Appendix S2: Analyses of the shift in the provenances (i.e. nationalities) of taxonomists
over time
To explore if scientific descriptions of endemic alpine species of Iran have shifted from
European countries to Iran, we calculated the proportional contribution of scientists from
different countries to the description of new species on a decadal basis.
In the past, the scientific descriptions of the endemic alpine Flora of Iran were predominantly
led by European researchers, with few countries being particularly important: scientists from
Switzerland described most species (215), followed by Germany (123), and Austria (68).
Taken together, scientists from these countries alone described 71% of all known Iranian
alpine endemics, whereas Iranian scientists described 69 (12%) endemics. The scientific
description of alpine endemic taxa was led by few taxonomists, with the Swiss P.E. Boissier,
who described 206 taxa, the German J.F.N. Bornmüller (54 taxa) and the Austrian K.H.
Rechinger (37 taxa) being the most prolific.
However, a substantial shift in the nationalities of taxonomists describing Iranian alpine
endemics occurred over time (Fig. S1). In particular, an analysis of the contribution of
scientists of different nationalities on a decadal basis shows that Swiss taxonomists had
already described 213 endemics by 1888, but only two species thereafter. In contrast, Iranians
played a prominent role in relatively recent species descriptions with 66 species described
since 1984, but only three species described before that year.
So, in the 19th and until the mid-20th century, European researchers have led the study of the
Iranian Flora. This has usually been done by repeated field collection trips, while the
taxonomic description followed later one in the native countries of the researchers, where they
were employed.
Political changes such as the Iranian revolution in 1979 and the war with Iraq may have
facilitated this change, as access for foreign researchers to mountain ranges became more
difficult. On the other hand, in the recent decades Iranian scientists have increasingly taken
over newly established positions in universities, research institutes and Natural History
Museums. Besides these specific Iranian aspects, such a change in taxonomic expertise seems
to be characteristic for many regions of the world. In particular, the decrease in taxonomic
training in most European countries (Hoagland 1996; Whittaker et al. 2005) and the
subsequent decrease in botanical exploration of distant countries has contributed to the shift in
nationalities of taxonomists.
Fig. S1 Temporal changes in the nationality of taxonomists describing endemic alpine
species. Shown are the cumulative numbers of species described by taxonomists native to
Austria, Germany, Iran, and Switzerland (see Appendix S1 for details).
References
Hoagland KE (1996) The taxonomic impediment and the Convention of Biodiversity.
Association of Systematics Collections Newsletter 24:66–67
Whittaker RJ, Araujo MB, Jepson P, Ladle RJ, Watson JEM, Willis KJ (2005) Conservation
Biogeography: assessment and prospect. Divers Distrib 11:3–23