Who Identified the Plants? Reclaiming Plant Identification Expertise in Vegetation Science

The decline in botanical expertise, particularly in plant identification, poses a significant threat to vegetation science and biodiversity monitoring. Although reliance on primary botanical data seems to be decreasing in favor of database records, field- and laboratory-based identification remains essential for producing high-quality scientific outcomes. Nevertheless, this expertise is often undervalued in terms of scientific authorship and academic recognition. This forum article highlights the historical and contemporary importance of plant identification, examines the factors contributing to its decline, and advocates for the explicit inclusion of identification work in author contribution statements in journals owned by the International Association for Vegetation Science (IAVS) and beyond. Where feasible, it also recommends linking deposited herbarium specimens of a specific paper to a DOI through dedicated platforms. Additionally, a framework is presented to illustrate how botanical research can be strengthened and formally recognized by individual authors. Formally recognizing plant identifiers is a crucial step toward restoring the value of a discipline that underpins ecological research and conservation.