Plant Biodiversity

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Colombia, which ranks second in the world for plant diversity, is home to about 45,000 different plant species. Only Brazil, a country which is 6 1/2 times larger than Colombia, has more distinct plant species (about 55,000). This means that approximately 15% of plant species world wide are found in Colombia.

Colombia is the second largest exporter of flowers to the world. (There is nothing like a Colombian rose on Mother's Day -- May 9th -- Hint! Hint!)

One interesting statistic about Colombian biodiversity. Colombia makes up 1% of the planet surface, but it contains 10% of the world's entire biodiversity.

Some of the more interesting plants of Colombia include:

La Victoria (Victoria regia) which grows large enough for a child to sit on it and float.

And the Frailejón (Espeletia schultzii) which grow in the páramo regions of Colombia.

Pictures: http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archivo:Victoria_regia_Kew_Gardens.jpg
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Rossettenstauden.JPG

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