Welcome to the North American Alpine Plant Conservation Atlas. This resource organizes information on taxonomy, ecology, and conservation for alpine plant taxa found in North America. As part of the North American Botanic Gardens Strategy for Alpine Plant Conservation, this site is a joint effort by Denver Botanic Gardens and Betty Ford Alpine Gardens, made possible by funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (MA-255890-OMS-24).
Warming in alpine regions over recent decades is outpacing the average global warming rate, making alpine plants particularly vulnerable to climate change. Because high-elevation species are adapted to low temperatures and deep snowpack, even small shifts in temperature can have major consequences on phenology, reproduction, and survival. Given the threats, conservation action is desperately needed to safeguard our alpine treasures.
This includes understanding what species currently exist in alpine areas, how species’ ranges may be shifting, what species can be found in conservation collections in case seeds or plant material are needed for restoration, and what species have yet to be conserved in ex-situ collections. Discover all this and more through this site.
Are you associated with a Botanic Garden? Contribute your garden’s taxa list to Botanic Gardens Conservation International’s PlantSearch and make your living collections part of the global conservation project. Visit www.bgci.org/resources/bgci-databases/plantsearch/ for more information.