Following SSAA (SEE), rankings brings lists of genera and families, under various criteria (endemisms, occurrences, diversity within a country, etc.), and at different geographical levels (country, continent). Many of the data exposed here are those obtained from the direct search of the VPA, without taking into account the considerations listed in the SSAA. The rankings are organized into 5 categories. Many data of worldwide diversity in some groups follows Flora of North America, Flora of China, World Checklist of Selected Plants Families and Christenhusz & Bing (Phytotaxa, 2016). The numbers on a global scale, except for some cases of New World genera, follow Plants of World On Line.
In this text, we use the terms exxogenus (plural: exxogenera) and exxofamily (plural: exxofamilies) to refer to taxa that are native to South America but not native to Brazil.
1. LARGEST DIVERSITIES...
... of endemic families, by countries.
| 12 | AUSTRALIA | PETERMAN DORYANT BLANDFORD BORYAC DASIPOG ECDOCOL AUSTROBAYL CEPHALOT EMBLIN APHANOP MACARTH TETRACARP | |||
| 5 | MADAGASCAR | SARCOLAENACEAE PHYSENACEAE SPHAEROSAPALACEAE BARBEUIACEAE ASTEROPEIACEAE | |||
| 5 | SOUTH AFRICA | LANARIACEAE BRUNIACEAE GRUBBIACEAE RORIDULACEAE GEISSOLOMATACEAE | |||
| 3 | NEW CALEDONIA | AMBORELLACEAE ONCOTHECACEAE PHELLINACEAE | |||
| 1 | FIJI | DEGENERIACEAE | |||
| 1 | CHINA | EUCCOMIACEAE | |||
| 1 | NAMIBIA | TIGANOPHYTACEAE | |||
| 1 | ARGENTINA | HALOPHYTACEAE | |||
| 1 | CHILE | GOMORTEGACEAE | |||
| 1 | MEXICO | SETCHELANTHACEAE |
... of number of angiosperms genera, in New World.
| 2,760 | BRAZIL | Source: SSAA/2024 | |||
| 2,706 | MEXICO | Source: Villaseñor (Revista Mexicana de Biodiversidad, 2016, table 2, pg. 04) |
... of trees (via Journal of Sustainable Forestry, 2017)
| TOTAL | ENDEMIC | |||||||||
| 8,715 | BRAZIL | 4,333 | BRAZIL | |||||||
| 5,776 | COLOMBIA | 2,991 | MADAGASCAR | |||||||
| 5,142 | INDONESIA | 2,584 | AUSTRALIA | |||||||
.... of a family in a single country by number of species, in New World, by VPA in June 01, 2024 (SEE).
| 4,312 | ECUADOR | in ORCHIDACEAE | |||
| 4,296 | COLOMBIA | in ORCHIDACEAE | |||
| 3,105 | MEXICO | in ASTERACEAE | |||
| 2,822 | BRAZIL | in FABACEAE | |||
| 2,755 | BRAZIL | in ORCHIDACEAE | |||
| 2,417 | PERU | in ORCHIDACEAE |
... of a family in a single country by number of genus, based on Plants of the World Online in June, 2024 (SEE).
| 385 | MEXICO | in ASTERACEAE | |||
| 271 | BRAZIL | in ASTERACEAE | |||
| 228 | COLOMBIA | in ORCHIDACEAE | |||
| 212 | ECUADOR | in ORCHIDACEAE |
... of endemic genera in a single family in a single country, in New World.
| 73 | BRAZIL | ASTERACEAE (SSAA/2024) | |||
| 59 | MEXICO | ASTERACEAE (Plants of the World Online in June, 2024, SEE) |
2. HIGHEST RATES...
... of endemism of a centenary family in the New World within a single country, in relation to the total in the New World itself:
| 94.29 ⁒ | BRAZIL | 215 of 229 spp. in VELLOZIACEAE of New World are endemic to Brazil. | ||||
| 68.85 ⁒ | MEXICO | 356 of 517 spp. CRASSULACEAE of New World are endemic to Mexico. | ||||
... of endemic in a centenary national country genus, by country, in New World.
| 99.02 ⁒ | BRAZIL | 102 of 103 spp. of Barbacenia (VELLOZIACEAE) are endemic to Brazil - one occur in SE Venezuela. | ||||
| 89.71 ⁒ | MEXICO | 157 of the 175 Mammillaria (CACTACEAE) are only found in Mexico, and four are absent in Mexico. | ||||
... of endemisms in Vascular Plants, in New World, in a non-insular country (VPA data in June 01, 2024; it may contain errors in the exact numbers, such as species that occur in the country and outside the New World, but the percentages are very close to reality).
| 56.52 ⁒ | BRAZIL | 19,751 of 34,945 | |||
| 52.28 ⁒ | MEXICO | 12,345 of 23,609 |
3. LARGEST FAMILIES...
| BALSAMINACEAE | 1,094 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
| PAPAVERACEAE | 1,048 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
| FAGACEAE | 975 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
| PANDANACEAE | 962 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
| LILIACEAE | 755 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
| DIPTEROCARPACEAE | 540 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
... absent in New World, by number of genera
| STILBACEAE | 12 [POWO, JUN 2024] |
| PEDALIACEAE | 11 [POWO, JUN 2024] |
| SARCOLAENACEAE | 10 [POWO, JUN 2024] |
| PITTOSPORACEAE | 9 [POWO, JUN 2024] |
... Top 10 Brazil, but non Top 10 World
| BROMELIACEAE |
... in Brazil, without endemic genera, by World diversity
| CYPERACEAE | 5,928 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
| ROSACEAE | 5,521 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
| ERICACEAE | 4,588 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
| BRASSICACEAE | 4,192 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
| RANUNCULACEAE | 3,878 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
| PIPERACEAE | 3,835 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
| BORAGINACEAE | 3,440 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
| ASPARAGACEAE | 3,364 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
| PRIMULACEAE | 3,330 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
.... in number of exxogenera (SSAA/2024)
| ASTERACEAE | 255 |
| ORCHIDACEAE | 96 |
| POACEAE | 60 |
| CACTACEAE | 59 |
| FABACEAE | 56 |
| PAPAVERACEAE | 46 [POWO, JUN 2024] |
| SAXIFRAGACEAE | 39 [POWO, JUN 2024] |
| POLEMONIACEAE | 27 [POWO, JUN 2024] |
| DIPTEROCARPACEAE | 22 [POWO, JUN 2024] |
| MONTIACEAE | 16 [POWO, JUN 2024] |
| FAGACEAE | 8 [POWO, JUN 2024] |
....absent in New World, by number of species
| PANDANACEAE | 962 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
| PITTOSPORACEAE | 298 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
| NEPENTHACEAE | 179 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
| CASUARINACEAE | 91 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
.... Top 10 World, but non Top 10 Brazil
| LAMIACEAE |
... in Brazil, without endemic species, by World diversity
| AIZOACEAE | 1,808 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
| CRASSULACEAE | 1,740 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
| XANTHORRHOEACEAE | 1,243 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
| PLUMBAGINACEAE | 1,133 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
| GOODENIACEAE | 465 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
| ZYGOPHYLLACEAE | 288 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
| CISTACEAE | 279 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
| CALCEOLARIACEAE | 273 [POWO, JUN 2024] |
| ADOXACEAE | 225 [POWO, NOV 2022] |
.... Brazilian, in proportion of exxogenera (SSAA/2024)
| BRASSICACEAE | 45 of 49 (0.9183) |
| ZYGOPHYLLACEAE | 9 of 11 (0.818) |
| FRANCOACEAE | 4 of 5 (0.800) |
| BORAGINACEAE | 11 of 14 (0.785) |
| CALYCERACEAE | 6 of 8 (0.75) |
4. LARGEST GENERA....
| Hieracium | ASTERACEAE [POWO, JUN 2024] | 4,631 |
| Astragalus | FABACEAE [POWO, JUN 2024] | 3,032 |
| Taraxacum | ASTERACEAE [POWO, JUN 2024] | 2,490 |
| Piper | PIPERACEAE [POWO, JUN 2024] | 2,425 |
| Bulbophyllum | ORCHIDACEAE [POWO, JUN 2024] | 2,186 |
| Begonia | BEGONIACEAE [POWO, JUN 2024] | 2,092 |
| Carex | CYPERACEAE [POWO, JUN 2024] | 2,082 |
.... endemic to South America (SSAA/2024)
| Microlicia | MELASTOMATACEAE | 288 |
| Dyckia | BROMELIACEAE | 219 |
| Adesmia | FABACEAE | 204 |
| Gynoxys | ASTERACEAE | 130 |
| Neoregelia | BROMELIACEAE | 114 |
... in Brazil without endemic species (SSAA/2024)
| Maripa | CONVOLVULACEAE | 12 |
| Drymonia | GESNERIACEAE | 10 |
... in number of unbrazilian South American species (SSAA/2024)
| Epidendrum | ORCHIDACEAE | 1,234 |
| Stelis | ORCHIDACEAE | 1,021 |
| Piper | PIPERACEAE | 918 |
| Miconia | MELASTOMATACEAE | 851 |
| Anthurium | ARACEAE | 807 |
| Peperomia | PIPERACEAE | 784 |
| Lepanthes | ORCHIDACEAE | 765 |
| Pleurothallis | ORCHIDACEAE | 589 |
... in a single country, in New World:
| 600 | Epidendrum | ECUADOR [POWO, JUN 2024] | |||
| 588 | Miconia | BRAZIL [POWO, FEV 2024] | |||
| 562 | Epidendrum | COLOMBIA [POWO, JUN 2024] | |||
| 550 | Stelis | ECUADOR [POWO, JUN 2024] | |||
| 546 | Miconia | COLOMBIA [POWO, FEV 2024] | |||
| 492 | Stelis | COLOMBIA [POWO, JUN 2024] | |||
| 471 | Eugenia | BRAZIL | |||
| 467 | Carex | USA | |||
| 466 | Epidendrum | PERU [POWO, JUN 2024] | |||
| 455 | Myrcia | BRAZIL |
| Miconia | MELASTOMATACEAE | 1,886 | ||||
| Epidendrum | ORCHIDACEAE | 1,769 | ||||
| Anthurium | ARACEAE | 1,269 | ||||
| Stelis | ORCHIDACEAE | 1,210 | ||||
| Lepanthes | ORCHIDACEAE | 1,103 | ||||
... absent in South America
| Dendrobium | ORCHIDACEAE [POWO, JUN 2024] | 1,607 |
| Syzygium | MYRTACEAE [POWO, JUN 2024] | 1,236 |
| Impatiens | BALSAMINACEAE [POWO, JUN 2024] | 1,120 |
| Rhododendon | ERICACEAE [POWO, JUN 2024] | 1,091 |
| Acacia | FABACEAE [POWO, JUN 2024] | 1,085 |
.... in tree diversity worldwide (via Journal of Sustainable Forestry, 2017)
| Syzygium | MYRTACEAE | 1,069 |
| Eugenia | MYRTACEAE | 884 |
.... in rare species in Brazil (Plantas Raras do Brasil)
| Microlicia | MELASTOMATACEAE | 75 |
| Paepalanthus | ERIOCAULACEAE | 67 |
| Chamaecrista | FABACEAE | 52 |
| Diplusodon | LYTHRACEAE | 43 |
| Piper | PIPERACEAE | 40 |
| Xyris | XYRIDACEAE | 31 |
| Calliandra | FABACEAE | 28 |
| Begonia | BEGONIACEAE | 27 |
... endemic in a country in New World (SSAA/2024)
| 114 | Neoregelia | BRAZIL | |||
| 65 | Cryptanthus | BRAZIL | |||
| 64 | Orthophytum | BRAZIL | |||
| 56 | Nidularium | BRAZIL | |||
| 54 | Actinocephalus | BRAZIL | |||
| 46 | Leucocoryne | CHILE | |||
| 42 | Alcantarea | BRAZIL | |||
| 34 | Copiapoa | CHILE | |||
| 34 | Bertolonia | BRAZIL | |||
| 34 | Stigmatodon | BRAZIL |
Miconia represents 0.44 of the Melastomataceae in Brazil, with a diversity of 588 spp., the second largest for the same genus in a single country in the New World after Epidendrum in Ecuador, and in a ranking that includes Hieracium in Norway (1,343), Hieracium in Sweden (1,192), Acacia in Australia (1,075), Astragalus in the Iran (850), Erica in South Africa (733), Eucalyptus in Australia (708) and Hieracium in Finland (598) as one of the largest on the planet.
5. LARGEST EXXOGENERA...
| Gentianella | GENTIANACEAE | 195 |
| Telipogon | ORCHIDACEAE | 190 |
| Cyrtochilum | ORCHIDACEAE | 187 |
| Gynoxys | ASTERACEAE | 130 |
| Dracula | ORCHIDACEAE | 127 |
| Nototriche | MALVACEAE | 110 |
| Ageratina | ASTERACEAE | 98 |
| Nolana | SOLANACEAE | 92 |
| Fernandezia | ORCHIDACEAE | 91 |
| Nasa | LOASACEAE | 89 |
| Ageratina | ASTERACEAE | 307, 98 in South America |
| Agave | ASPARAGACEAE | 299, 8 in South America |
| Eriogonum | POLYGONACEAE | 254, 1 in South America |
| Telipogon | ORCHIDACEAE | 247, 190 in South America |
... endemic to South America (SSAA/2024)
| Espeletia | ASTERACEAE | 140 |
| Gynoxys | ASTERACEAE | 130 |
| Nototriche | MALVACEAE | 110 |
| Nolana | SOLANACEAE | 92 |
| Andinia | ORCHIDACEAE | 77 |
... WORLDWIDE
| GENUS | FAMILY | WORLDWIDE | SOUTH AMERICA |
|---|---|---|---|
| Astragalus | FABACEAE | 3,082 | 117 |
| Silene | CARYOPHYLLACEAE | 904 | 23 |
| Sedum | CRASSULACEAE | 871 | 42 |
| Pedicularis | OROBANCHACEAE | 679 | 1 |
| Primula | PRIMULACEAE | 545 | 2 |
| Potentilla | ROSACEAE | 505 | 5 |
| Artemisia | ASTERACEAE | 498 | 5 |
| Saxifraga | SAXIFRAGACEAE | 475 | 2 |
| Quercus | FAGACEAE | 469 | 1 |
| Draba | BRASSICACEAE | 432 | 82 |
| Saurauia | ACTINIDIACEAE | 392 | 49 |