Many gentians are endangered in many countries.  Some species are only rare in certain parts of their distribution area, whereas others only occurs in a very small geographic area that is under a distinct threat and therefore are rare. Habitat loss is the major threat to gentians. For example, grazed meadows disappear in northern Europe, rainforests are cut down in the tropics, and native habitats are destroyed when cities and suburbs spread.  Some gentians are also becoming rare because of over-collecting in the wild, often for pharmacological purposes.

Gentians are usually not close to extinction because they are picked by people, but because they no longer have the right place to live.  But do not dig up gentians or try to transplant them into your garden.  Many gentians only live for a year or two and most have connections to the fungi in the soil (mycorrhizae) that they need to survive.

The list below of endangered gentians is not complete, and we will add species from countries as we build this web site.  Keep in mind that some gentians are only endangered in parts of their area. For tropical gentians, many are severely endangered but many countries do not keep lists of endangered species so they are not officially listed or we don't know about different species to make risk assessments. If you work with gentians and know of species at risk, please contact us so we can list them here to draw attention to them.

The three words vulnerable, threatened, and endangered are usually used for an increased risk of extinction. Be aware that criteria and definitions sometimes differ between different authorities and countries. The often used definitions are:

vulnerable = facing a high risk of extinction in the wild in the medium-term future (= might die out in the future)

threatened = likely to become endangered in the foreseeable future throughout all or a significant portion of its range (= likely will die out in the near future)

endangered = in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range (= at risk to die out right now)

See also IUCN's definitions

Another ranking system is:

NatureServe uses a similar ranking:

1 = critically imperiled (is listed as endangered in the table below)
2 = imperiled (is listed as threathened in the table below)
3 = vulnerable to extirpation or extinction (not listed in the table below)
 

In northern Europe there has been several studies and experiments of how to restore and help endangered gentian species such as Gentiana pneumonanthe, a species that grows in wet meadows. A rare butterfly, the alcon blue, is dependent on this gentian to survive because its larvae feeds on the gentian.  This is just one example how the extinction of one species can lead to the extinction of other species.

This table present gentian species that are threatened.  Vulnerable species are not listed here, but are also under threat. Geographic names are linked to local web sites, if available. Since species can have different status in different areas of their range, bold type is used to indicate areas where a species is officially red-listed  (i.e. endangered, imperiled, or threatened), and non-bold type indicate distribution areas where the species is not yet listed or it occurs but are not at risk. In some countries gentians are legally protected and it is illegal there to dig them up, take seeds, or destroy their habitats.

References:

Links:
Center for Plant Conservation (CPC) [conservation of the native flora of USA]
NatureServe Explorer: An online encyclopedia of life [worldwide organization for conservation, large database]
U.S. Dept, of Agriculture (USDA), PLANTS database [USA, Federal agency, photos, maps of species]
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), Endangered Species Program [USA, Federal government]

© Lena Struwe, 2004-2011