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Monanthes is a small genus of succulent plants in the Crassulaceae family, native almost exclusively to the Canary Islands. These plants are remarkable for their ability to thrive in harsh, rocky environments and often go unnoticed unless one looks closely at the vertical rock faces they inhabit. What makes Monanthes particularly special is their extreme endemism and ecological adaptation. Many species occur only on a single island, making them significant from both conservation and evolutionary perspectives. Despite their modest appearance, their delicate flowers and diverse growth forms reveal a surprising variety and resilience within these isolated island ecosystems.

Terminology in natural history collections can be surprisingly varied. At its core, Collection Objects are simply the physical items you curate - vouchers in a Herbarium, seed packets in a Seed Bank, DNA aliquots in a DNA Bank, and the living plants themselves in a Living Collection.

Beyond these “Objects”, you’ll also encounter terms like Occurrences, Accessions and Catalogue Numbers. In the sections that follow, we’ll unpack each of these and see how they fit into the wider world of collection management.

The Schisandraceae is a small, basal angiosperm family of mostly woody, climbing plants. They are primarily native to East and Southeast Asia, with some species extending into tropical regions of North America. The family includes three recognised genera: Illicium, Kadsura, and Schisandra.

Scientific names: Genus, Species, and Authorship

Every organism’s scientific name is built from three parts: the Genus (the broader group it belongs to), the Species (its unique identifier within that genus), and the Authorship (the abbreviated name of the person/people who first described it).

For example, Quercus robur L. tells us that Linnaeus (L.) published the first formal description of this species of oak. The genus is “Quercus”, and the specific epithet is “robur”, making the full species name “Quercus robur”.

What is a taxonomic backbone?

A taxonomic backbone is like a master list of all living things, organised in a clear, stepped order (species inside a genus, genera inside a family, and so on). It tells us which names are “official”, which ones are just old or synonym names, and how each plant, animal or other creature fits into the bigger picture.

Welcome! I’m Arnau, and after a couple of weeks of tinkering behind the scenes, I’m thrilled to launch this site. By day, I help manage Kew’s Living Collection, and by night (and weekends!), I’m here sharing my passion.

I’ll try to post stories about collection management, fascinating species, botanic gardens, and the little discoveries that make working with living collections so rewarding. Want to learn more about my work or me? Just explore the About and Portfolio sections. And if something sparks a question or you simply want to say hello, drop me a line through the contact form, I’d love to hear from you!