É VIÁVEL MANTER UM HERBÁRIO NO INSTITUTO FEDERAL GOIANO, CAMPUS URUTAÍ?

Abstract

A herbarium is a dried plant museum that documents the diversity of plants. The large collections, globally speaking, house specimens from all over the globe and are a useful laboratory for studying large groups of plants or preparing monographs on a wide geographic scale. Small and regional collections document local flora, often house collections in locations that do not exist in large herbaria and provide an invaluable contribution to recording the occurrence of rare plants and accurately accessing the conservation status of taxa. A counterpoint can be observed, as the regions of the planet with the greatest species richness are the tropical regions, which are also where they receive the least investment for scientific studies, especially basic science; Even worse, the cost of maintaining collections is high due to the climate and insect diversity, which undoubtedly represents a threat to plant conservation. However, it is certain that this investment is necessary, as knowledge and documentation is the first step towards conservation actions. Therefore, the present study aimed to survey Brazilian herbaria focusing on the Central-West region and the state of Goiás; finally, reflect on the botanical collection of the Instituto Federal Goiano, Câmpus Urutaí and the micro-region in which it is located. To this end, searches were carried out on websites such as the Brazilian Herbarium Network, where information about all Brazilian herbaria was obtained. The websites Index Herbariorum (https://sweetgum.nybg.org/science/ih/) and Flora e Funga do Brasil (https://floradobrasil.jbrj.gov.br/reflora/listaBrasil/PrincipalUC/PrincipalUC.do#CondicaoTaxonCP ) were also consulted. A search on splink (https://specieslink.net/) was carried out with the aim of listing the specimens collected in the municipalities of Ipameri, Pires do Rio, Urutaí and Santa Cruz de Goiás. The Central-West region has the lowest number of herbaria in the country and among the federation units in this region, Goiás is the one that houses the smallest number of specimens. Indicating a lack of investment and the need to expand study groups in the area in the state.