Plants from the Woods and Forests of Chile. 2015. 81 watercolour paintings. Approx. 200 p. Hardcover.English language edition. 42 x 30 cm. In slip case.

The paintings are by Gülnur Eksi, Isik Güner, Hülya Korkmaz and MaryBenstead, with the assistance of Jacqui A. Pestell and Sabina G. Knees.-Deals with rees, shrubs, climbers, herbaceous and bulbous plant species, some of which have never been painted before. Text that is non-technical and includes details about distribution, habitat, conservation, cultivation and uses. Chile is often described as being like a biogeographical island. This is because it is enclosed to thewest by the Pacific Ocean, to the east by the high Andean mountain chain and to the north by the Atacama Desert. As a result, the flora has become isolated and the physical, climatic, and biological factors found within the country have contributed to a unique flora which consists of high levels of endemism. Recent estimates put the figure of Chilean endemic plants as high as 2266 species (46% of the flora). This is a higher percentage than any other South American country. The flora also has 81 endemic generaand two endemic plant families. In mainland Chile most of the endemic species are distributed between Región II [Antofagasta] and Región IX [Araucanía] with the most occurring in Región IV [Coquimbo]. Chilean territory also includes the Pacific islandsof Archipielago de Juan Fernández, Islas Desventuradas and Isla de Pascua. These remote oceanic islands also contain considerably high levels of plant endemism, for example, 70% of the flora of Juan Fernández is endemic to the archipelago.