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Megadiverse countries
Nation with extremely high biological diversity or many endemic species / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A megadiverse country is one of a group of nations that harbours the majority of Earth's species and high numbers of endemic species. Conservation International identified 17 megadiverse countries in 1998,[1][2] all of which are located at least partially in tropical or subtropical regions.
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Megadiversity means exhibiting great biodiversity. The main criterion for megadiverse countries is endemism at the level of species, genera and families. A megadiverse country must have at least 5,000 species of endemic plants and must border marine ecosystems.
In 2002, Mexico formed a separate organization focusing on Like-Minded Megadiverse Countries, consisting of countries rich in biological diversity and associated traditional knowledge. This organization includes all but three megadiverse countries as identified by Conservation International.[3] [failed verification]