中国的植物多样性保护行动虽然提升了公众对多样性的认识, 但这些努力往往未能深入到理解植物多样性演化及其保护的深层意义。从演化的视角进行植物多样性宣传教育, 有利于促进对多样性的综合理解, 增进对多样性保护的认可。然而, 现有资料多集中于物种的识别、鉴定与分类, 缺乏从生物演化角度对植物多样性进行系统性介绍的内容。本文介绍了一个具有全球影响力的科教资料案例——由美裔德国植物学家Theodor C. H. Cole发起的植物系统发生海报(Plant Phylogeny Posters)项目。该项目通过整合最新的系统与演化植物学研究成果, 以系统发生为线索介绍植物多样性及其亲缘关系, 旨在利用系统发生树所蕴含的丰富演化思想内涵, 启发读者理解植物多样性与演化。海报以系统发生树结合植物类群的形态、地理分布、物种数量等数据信息, 直观展示了多个分类等级的重要类群的演化历史。在数十所大学和科研机构的45位研究人员的努力下, 70张系统发生海报已被翻译成中文, 并向所有人免费开放获取。这一科教项目有望为增进公众深入理解植物多样性及其保护行动提供宝贵的资源和帮助。

Background: Conservation activities in China have raised public awareness about plant diversity, but these efforts have not been sufficient to enhance a true understanding of plant evolution and the underlying principles and objectives of biodiversity conservation. A more effective communication and profound education of plant diversity from an evolutionary perspective is paramount for a comprehensive understanding of biodiversity and appreciation of the significance of biodiversity conservation. Most references to plant biodiversity focus on species identification and classification, with limited attention to evolutionary perspectives.

Summary: Here, we introduce the global “Plant Phylogeny Posters” project, a portfolio of educational tools developed by the German-American botanist Theodor C. H. Cole. This project is aimed to present clear overviews of plant diversity and relationships from a phylogenetic perspective from recent systematic and evolutionary studies in botany, providing the means for a better understanding of plant diversity and evolution. The posters display the phylogenetic trees of major plant taxa at different ranks alongside morphological characteristics, geographical distributions, and the number of plants at each rank.

Progress & Perspectives: Through the collaborative efforts of 45 Chinese researchers from various universities and research institutions, all 70 posters of this project have now been translated into Chinese and made freely available worldwide. This project promises to improve the understanding of plant biodiversity and conservation efforts in China.