Floristic changes in vascular plants in the British Isles: geographical and temporal variation in botanical activity 1836-1988

The temporal and geographical variation in the history of botanical recording in the British Isles between 1836 and 1988 has been reconstructed from literature, herbarium, and field records, and related to the number and distribution of botanists. The number of botanists increased steadily to the 1930s and then five-fold after the Second World War, and is a consistent proportion of the local population. The amount of variation in the literature, assessed from the number of pages published, number of publications, and number of floras, has changed from a low rate between 1836 and 1880, to twice that between 1890 and 1940, and increased steadily to 1988. The number of herbarium specimens collected was also low up to the 1870s and then increased three-fold between 1870 and 1914, decreased between the World Wars, increased in the 1950s, and then decreased as conservation concerns came into play. The number of field records, now on computer, has risen dramatically since the 1930s, especially associated with major recording projects. The Botanical Society of the British Isles (BSBI) Monitoring Scheme data show a strong relationship between the number of hours spent recording at a site and the number of species recorded. The production of literature, collection of herbarium specimens, and field records also vary geographically, being concentrated in the areas in which botanists live. General patterns of recording activity are presented from a combination of the data that follow the general trends shown by the sources. There has been an increase in recording activity, with a low level between 1836 and 1870, followed by a large increase, peaking between 1890 and 1910, followed by decreases during the World Wars, with a recovery between, and a sustained increase since 1950. There is a clear trend from a high recording activity in south-east England to low levels in Scotland and, especially, Ireland, high levels being associated with the main population areas. Temporal and geographical variations in recording activity need to be taken into account when assessing floristic change.