Atlas of Chinese Native Orchids

Book excerpt: This book updates taxonomy information of orchids in China. China is one of the countries with the richest biodiversity. In China, all five subfamilies of Orchidaceae are represented, about 1600 orchid species in 198 genera. All orchids are rare and endangered plants. They are among the flagships for biological conservation, listed in CITES appendix I or II. This book provided an updated classification system of Orchidaceae with newly recorded and published species in China and new combinations. 1026 species in 157 genera of native species in China are included, about half of which are newly recorded or published species in China in the last two decades. Indexes to genera and species are included. For each species, one to four photos, most of which were taken by the authors, are utilized to illustrate habitats, morphological characters, and phenology. Furthermore, the geographic distribution of them also demonstrated in a map. This book can be used as a reference for researchers working on Orchidaceae, as well as practitioners in the horticulture community.