In the forests and on remote offshore islands of Taiwan, a group of conservationists is racing to collect as many rare plant species as they can before they are lost to climate change and human encroachment
Overseen by the Dr. Cecilia Koo Botanic Conservation Centre, the plant hunters are scouring sub-tropical Taiwan for as many rare plant samples as they can find, from the rugged eastern coast around Taitung to Dongyin, in the Matsu archipelago.Hung Hsin-Chieh takes care of a fern that he collected from a forest, in a nursery at Dr. Cecilia Koo Botanic Conservation Center.
"So for many things, if you don't conserve them properly then perhaps in the future you'll no longer be able to find them."Industrialised Taiwan is best known for its mass production of technological goods. Taiwan's government has made environmental protection and a shift to renewable energy a key priority, but the island still ranks poorly when it comes to tackling climate change.
"Then we'll have these species that we can use. Or perhaps one day when a certain habitat needs this specific species, we can provide it."The goal is to ensure Taiwan's biodiversity is protected and that rare species that may have died out in their original habitat can one day be re-introduced.
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