--- title: One in Five Plant Species Endangered: Kew Gardens Report description: One in five known plant species is under threat of extinction, according to the first global report into the state of the earth's flora canonical: https://time.com/4324142/endangered-plant-species-kew-gardens/ author: Simon Lewis article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-05-10T08:57:58.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:55:37.595Z article:section: Science og:title: One in Five Plant Species Is Endangered, Says Global Report og:description: One-third of endangered plant species are threatened by the expansion of agriculture og:url: https://time.com/4324142/endangered-plant-species-kew-gardens/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte1c7134ad3f20664/69889285524fc02805df7eae/gettyimages-525624962.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3600 og:image:height: 2025 og:image:alt: LIBERIA-ENVIRONMENT-PALM-OIL og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: One in Five Plant Species Is Endangered, Says Global Report twitter:description: One-third of endangered plant species are threatened by the expansion of agriculture twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte1c7134ad3f20664/69889285524fc02805df7eae/gettyimages-525624962.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # One in Five of the World's Plant Species Is Endangered, Says Report > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ## Video: Green Earth [Watch (HLS stream): Green Earth](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/rEkdsbGi.m3u8) (5:15)  _Published 2013-06-27. A NOAA satellite gives a rare glimpse into natural and man made changes in global vegetation._ by [Simon Lewis](https://time.com/author/simon-lewis/) ## Simon Lewis May 10, 2016 8:57 AM UTC  A picture taken on April 28, 2016 shows broken trees due to the intense deforestation intended for land clearing for palm oil production in Lofa county, northern Liberia A picture taken on April 28, 2016 shows broken trees due to the intense deforestation intended for land clearing for palm oil production in Lofa county, northern Liberia Marco Longari—AFP/Getty Images by [Simon Lewis](https://time.com/author/simon-lewis/) ## Simon Lewis May 10, 2016 8:57 AM UTC One in five of the world’s known plant species is under threat of extinction, according to the first global[ report](http://assets.kew.org/files/State%20of%20the%20Worlds%20Plants%20report%202016%5F0.pdf?%5Fga=1.53149992.1481545917.1462867808) on the earth’s flora. Authors of the _State of the World’s Plants_, by London’s Royal Botanical Gardens Kew, recorded 390,000 known plant species and noted that humans have found uses for more than 30,000 of them. Out of the species facing possible extinction, almost one-third (31%) is threatened by the destruction of their habitats to meet expanding demand for agricultural land, including the clearing of many of the world’s forests to make way for palm oil production or cattle farming. Demand for timber is jeopardizing 21% of endangered plant species, while construction is the cause of 13% of at-risk species, the report finds. Researchers of the assessment hope their findings will provide a benchmark to track threats to the flora that sustains human life. Professor Kathy Willis, director of science at Kew, told [the _Guardian_](http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/may/10/one-in-five-of-worlds-plant-species-at-risk-of-extinction) she was “reasonably optimistic” that the report could help the world to address the threats to plant species. “Plants provide us with everything — food, fuel, medicines, timber and they are incredibly important for our climate regulation. Without plants we would not be here. We are facing some devastating realities if we do not take stock and re-examine our priorities and efforts,” she said. ## Transcript Green. It's the color of life. As seasons cycle on earth, it is the greenest of the planet that is the most notable change. Both on the ground and in space, we see vegetation bloom, flourish, and fall. This satellite analysis of greenness over one year shows the subtle transitions over the planet from week to week. This data is colored to represent the amount of greenness on our planet. A summer fades to fall and eventually winter. We see the loss of greenness and even blankets of snow across the United States. Improving our understanding of surface vegetation advances our weather model accuracy, as it provides greater detail on energy transfers between the surface and the atmosphere which is the ultimate driver of weather. [ MUSIC ] We are now able to see the subtle changes in seasonal vegetation cover, which is important fro understanding the amount of field available for forest fires. We see the scars and disturbances to ecosystems caused by the natural process of wildfires and regrowth or in the case of Everglades. [ SOUND ] The reduction in the natural occurrence of fires due to engineered water ways. Since 2012, NOAAH, in collaboration with NASA has taken a tremendous lead forward in measuring global vegetation with the launch of SUMI NPP Satellite. The data from the satellite is providing more detailed views of earth. Not previously possible with NOAAH satellites. Continuous data record from previous satellite missions including the NOAAH ADHRR and NASA Motive Sensors will be used in conjunction with SUMI NPP via data to document the changes, observed in greenness over time. And changes from week to week and over decades. Some changes are natural, and some are man- made. The vastest, the Brazilian rain forest, is clear in this data, along with the network of tributaries leading to the mighty Amazon. Eventually, this heavy blanket of green gives way to a model patchwork of forest and field. In this view, we can clearly see areas of the Amazon converted from dense rain forest into agricultural areas. These land use changes impact local ecosystems, as well as micro climates and micro scale weather patterns. Not only does the Veer sensor provide us a detailed understanding of how plant cover changes on land, but also how phytoplankton are distributed in the ocean. Beside their individual usefulness, combining the two datasets begins to paint a picture of carbon cycling across the planet. Moving accross europe cities with otherwise lush landscaps dominatied by agriculture and forests. Mountain ranges surface divisions between climate zones, where rain and temperature vary greatly between imposing sides, such as the Alps and the Caucasus. These climate transitions are especially clear along the southern edges of the Black and Caspian seas. As lush mountain regions in Turkey and Iran gives way to the plains in the Middle East. Amid vast deserts we can see the signature of the Tigris and the Euphrates rivers in Iraq, creating a well- known historical breadbasket in the region. Even the most subtle changes in vegetation from week to week provide meaning to scientists. In the horn of Africa, the slightest pixel by pixel variations from week to week. Provide early warning for the onset of drought conditions. Droughts that could impact tens of thousands of people each year. Early warnings provided by vegetation data are used by global relief organizations to mobilized resources to listen the effect of drought on populations. As vegetation regrows, it is also an indicator of the potential for malaria. Since mosquitoes of sub Saharan Africa are reliant upon proper vegetative habitat to produce and spread the malaria disease. The Indus river valley in Pakistan shows the signs of productivity especially at post monsoon periods. And at its source high in the Tibetan plateau. Increases in global temperature are resulting in melting glaciers. Change in the extent of vegetation in this region. In the dense vegetation of Southern and South- eastern Asia, are the unmistakable signs of the human race. The footprints of towns and cities throughout India, and up through China are clearly visible. The United Nations estimates that over 60 % of the world lives in this region. Hundreds of islands, both large and small, some just little green dots of lush tropical forest, are scattered through the west of Pacific. Even some of the tiniest islands exhibit relatively large spatial variations in vegetation cover, due to their mountainous terrain. Australia's red deserts pale in this representation, are lined by an area of green on the coasts, a thin boundary of habitable land on this island continent. [ MUSIC ] As humans, we do have impact on the color of Earth. 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