The Cape Floral Kingdom is one of the richest areas in the world for plant biodiversity, and the only one of the world’s six floral kingdoms to fall within the borders of a single country. It occupies 0.04 percent of the Earth’s surface but has 3 percent of its species — and nearly 20 percent of Africa’s flora.
All this translates to money. Tourism revenue drives the South African economy and South Africa also does a healthy trade in fresh flower exports.
Two out of three species in the Cape Floral Kingdom are endemic, occurring nowhere else on Earth, and some of them are disappearing in the wild as human development reduces their habitat.
The five other floral kingdoms in the world cover huge areas such as all of Australia and most of the northern hemisphere. The Cape Floral Kingdom is both the richest and smallest, with the highest known concentration of plant species: 1,300 per 10,000 square kilometers. By comparison, the South American rain forest has 400 species per 10,000 square kilometers.
Conservation of the Cape Floral Kingdom is a national priority for South Africa. Here’s some reasons why the Cape Floral Kingdom is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Sources: Kirstenbosch Gardens, Plantzafrica.com, WorldWildlifeFund, ekapa.ioisa.org.za, UWC, UNESCO.
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