Geographic distribution and impacts of climate change on the suitable habitats of Glycyrrhiza species in China

Climate change has a major impact on the growth and distribution of plants. Glycyrrhiza is widely used in the treatment of many diseases in China. However, with the overexploitation and the growing demand for medicinal uses in of Glycyrrhiza plants. The investigation of the geographical distribution of Glycyrrhiza plants and the analysis of future climate change are of great significance for the conservation of Glycyrrhiza. In this study, combined with administrative maps of Chinese provinces, the present and future of geographical distribution and richness of six Glycyrrhiza plants in China were studied by using DIVA-GIS and MaxEnt software. A total of 981 herbarium records of these six species of Glycyrrhiza were collected to research. Results show that the change of climate in the future will lead to an increase in habitat suitability for some Glycyrrhiza species as follows: Glycyrrhiza inflata by 61.6%, Glycyrrhiza squamulosa by 47.5%, Glycyrrhiza pallidiflora by 34.0%, Glycyrrhiza yunnanensis by 49.0%, Glycyrrhiza glabra by 51.7%, and Glycyrrhiza aspera by 65.9%. Glycyrrhiza plants have considerable medicinal and economic value, so it is necessary to adopt targeted development and rational management strategies for it.

Automated summary

Climate change has a significant impact on plant growth and distribution. The overexploitation and increasing demand for medicinal use of Glycyrrhiza plants make the investigation of their geographical distribution and analysis of future climate change important for conservation. In this study, the present and future geographical distribution and richness of six Glycyrrhiza plants in China were studied using DIVA-GIS and MaxEnt software. Results show that future climate change will increase the habitat suitability for some Glycyrrhiza species. Targeted development and rational management strategies are necessary for the conservation of Glycyrrhiza plants due to their medicinal and economic value.