Flora of Australia (series) facts for kids
The Flora of Australia is a huge collection of books. It describes all the different kinds of plants, mosses, and lichens found in Australia. This includes plants from Australia itself and its nearby islands.
The Australian Biological Resources Study (ABRS) publishes this series. They believe that when the series is finished, it will describe over 20,000 plant species! A scientist named Alison McCusker helped lead this big project.
About the Series
The first book in the Flora of Australia series came out in 1981. A second, bigger edition of Volume 1 was published in 1999. The series uses a special way to group and name plants called the Cronquist system. This system helps scientists organize living things.
The ABRS also publishes other similar book series. These include the Fungi of Australia (about mushrooms and molds) and the Algae of Australia (about seaweeds and pond scum). They also have a Flora of Australia Supplementary Series.
In 2017, the ABRS started a new online version of the Flora of Australia. This means they will not print any more new books in the series. Now, people can find information about Australian plants on the internet.
Past Plant Studies in Australia
Before the Flora of Australia series, many other scientists studied Australian plants. They created their own lists and books about the plants they found. These earlier works helped build the knowledge we have today.
Some important past studies include:
- 1793-95 – James Edward Smith wrote A Specimen of the Botany of New Holland.
- 1810 – Robert Brown published Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen.
- 1863-78 – George Bentham created the Flora Australiensis.
- 1882 – Ferdinand von Mueller wrote the Systematic Census of Australian Plants.
These older books show how much effort has gone into understanding Australia's amazing plant life over hundreds of years.
See also
- In Spanish: Flora of Australia (series) para niños
