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The Biodiversity Heritage Library's Digital Treasure Trove The Biodiversity Heritage Library (BHL) has made over 64 million pages of scientific knowledge freely available online, providing a treasure trove for fans of the natural world. The library, which has been in operation for 20 years, features contributions from over 680 institutions worldwide, including museums, universities, libraries, and scientific institutions from countries such as China, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, Europe, Africa, Mexico, Canada, and the US. The Significance of Digitization in Biodiversity Research The BHL's digitization efforts have been instrumental in transforming our ability to understand and respond to the climate and biodiversity crises. According to a report from the Royal Botanic Gardens (RBG), Kew, the creation of the BHL 20 years ago demonstrated how bringing centuries of scientific knowledge online can unlock transformative discoveries and insights about the natural world. A Diverse Range of Scientific Materials The BHL features a diverse range of scientific materials, including published biodiversity literature and journals, letters, illustrations, climate records, field diaries, ecosystem profiles, distribution records, and manuscripts containing the original collecting stories of a particular species or detailing voyages of discovery. Some notable items in the collection include: The Circa instans, a medieval pharmacopeia dating back to approximately 1190, which is considered a fundamental text in the development of modern botany. An 1892 illustrated exhibition catalogue by Henry Howell & Co, a Victorian firm based in London, which marketed itself as the world's largest manufacturer of walking sticks. Sir Joseph Hooker's illustrated Antarctic journal, which includes his watercolour sketches of two volcanoes, first sighted in 1841 on his expedition to the continent with Capt James Clark Ross. The Impact of the BHL on Scientific Research The BHL has had a significant impact on scientific research, particularly during the pandemic. Historical journals uploaded to the BHL helped scientists to show that there had been a "massive change" in the distribution and abundance of rare Australian orchids during the "black summer" of the wildfires in late 2019 and early 2020. This discovery led to the reassessment of the threatened species status of these orchid species. The Future of the BHL As the BHL continues to grow and evolve, it is likely to play an increasingly important role in scientific research and conservation efforts. With its vast collection of scientific materials and its commitment to making knowledge freely available, the BHL is an invaluable resource for scientists, researchers, and the general public alike.

The Lead The rise of AI and digitisation could be a turning point in the “race against extinction” faced by botanists trying to identify and save vital plants before they vanish, according to a major report from Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. The Event Details New technology is enabling scientists to track how flowering times have shifted by weeks around the world, rapidly identify new specimens and even get crucial genetic data from 180-year-old fungus specimens, potentially opening a “genomic goldmine”. Digitisation and online access to millions of specimens that were until now only accessible in archives is also producing new insights, especially in the global south. The Data Analysis About 40% of the 70,000 plant species that have been assessed are at risk of extinction, while another 330,000 have yet to be analysed. There are also believed to be another 100,000 plant species still to be named by scientists. For fungi, 90% of an estimated 2m species are still unknown to science and less than 1% of known species assessed for extinction risk. The Impact Analysis Plants and fungi underpin all life on Earth, supplying food and medicines, storing carbon and regulating the climate. AI can learn how to identify challenging plants, for example, such as sedges and peat mosses whose distinguishing features are microscopic, meaning new or vulnerable species can be spotted faster. The Prediction The report also features a global study using an AI model trained to spot flowers that analysed 8m digitised specimens. It revealed flowering has shifted by an average 2.5 days a decade over the last century due to the climate crisis. The researchers said the breakthrough makes historical fungarium specimens a “genomic goldmine” for new medicines and the prediction of disease outbreaks.