A reappraisal of the conservation status of the indigenous New Zealand vascular plant flora is presented. The list comprises 792 taxa (34% of New Zealand's total indigenous vascular flora) in the following categories: Extinct 4 taxa, Acutely Threatened 122 taxa (comprising 47 taxa Nationally Critical, 54 Nationally Endangered, 21 Nationally Vulnerable), Chronically Threatened 96 taxa (comprising Serious Decline 26 taxa, Gradual Decline 70 taxa), At Risk 499 taxa (comprising Sparse 126 taxa, Range Restricted 373 taxa), Non-resident Native 26 taxa (comprising Vagrant 16 taxa, Colonist 10 taxa), and Data Deficient 45 taxa. A further 208 plants are listed as Taxonomically Indeterminate, being those which might warrant further conservation attention once their taxonomic status is clarified. A further 31 named taxa and 18 rated as Taxonomically Indeterminate, and previously considered to be threatened and/or uncommon, are removed from this updated listing. A concordance of plant names is provided. The lists presented use a new threat classification system developed by the New Zealand Department of Conservation for sole use within this country. This paper represents the first time the entire known indigenous vascular flora has been assessed from a conservation perspective since the mid 1970s. A brief analysis of the patterns of rarity exhibited by the taxa listed is presented.

A reappraisal of the conservation status of the indigenous New Zealand vascular plant flora is presented using the 2008 version of the threat classification system developed for the New Zealand Department of Conservation. The list comprises 897 taxa (38% of New Zealand's total indigenous vascular flora) in the following categories: Extinct-6 taxa, Threatened-180 taxa (comprising 91 Nationally Critical taxa, 45 Nationally Endangered, and 44 Nationally Vulnerable), At Risk-651 taxa (comprising 83 Declining, 6 Recovering, 20 Relict, and 542 Naturally Uncommon taxa), 25 taxa listed as either Vagrant (12) or Coloniser (13), and 35 as Data Deficient. A further 171 plants are listed as taxonom ically indeterminate, being those which might warrant further conservation attention once their taxonomic status is clarified. Forty-four recognised taxa and 26 plants rated as taxonomically indeterminate, and previously considered to be threatened and/or uncommon, are removed from this updated listing. A brief analysis of the patterns of rarity exhibited by the listed taxa is presented. Overall, the conservation status of the New Zealand indigenous vascular plant flora is worsening, with 7.6% of this flora now regarded as threatened with extinction. A concordance of plants names from the 2004 listing is provided.

Question Is there evidence for similar community assembly processes in two geographically disjunct examples of a rare alpine ecosystem? Location Two alpine granite gravel fields 610 km apart along a fault line in western South Island, New Zealand – the Lookout Range and Mt Titiroa. Methods Plot‐based vascular plant composition and traits for 86 species (height, seed length, leaf size and nutrient concentrations) were used to examine community structure reflecting assembly processes. We examined species richness, trait values averaged across species and plots, relationships between trait pairs using standardized major axis (SMA) regression and phylogenetically independent contrasts (PIC), relationships between abundance and trait values, and functional diversity indices against null models. Lastly, we partitioned taxonomic, functional and phylogenetic diversity within and across alpine ranges. Results Functional and phylogenetic turnover of diversity between the two locations was low (2.9% and 6.3%, respectively) relative to turnover of taxonomic diversity (75%). Species‐level traits were similar between the two locations, except leaf P, which was higher at Mt Titiroa. Plot‐level average traits were all significantly higher on Mt Titiroa. Relationships between species‐level traits were typically non‐significant at both locations, or significant only at a single location. In contrast, relationships between plot‐level trait values were frequently significant and consistent across the two locations. At both locations, dominant species had a narrow range of similar trait values, while rare species had a wide range of values. Within plots, we found both trait convergence and divergence. Associations of trait values among dominant and rare species were largely non‐random but inconsistent between the two locations. Conclusions The two locations had a similar pool of trait values but often differed in how those traits were assembled. Results demonstrate that dominant species are subject to rigorous filters during community assembly leading to trait convergence, but rare species contributed to trait diversity and trait divergence. Models of community assembly can often predict traits of dominant species but must consider the importance of rare species as a source of local trait diversity, even in species‐poor communities under severe environmental conditions.

This study describes the flora and vegetation of pakihi land (mostly rush-fernland) and surrounding vegetation in North Westland. This work is a prerequisite for determining the degree to which the reserve system represents the diversity of pakihi vegetation, and will aid reserve management.Thirty five areas of pakihi vegetation in seven Ecological Districts were sampled using non-area plots. Soil profile features were recorded from auger samples and soil pits. Leptospermum scoparium stem ages and densities were recorded. Floristic data were analysed using TWINSPAN and DECORANA. Twelve plot groups were identified, from forest to open herbaceous vegetation. The first axis of the ordination was interpreted as relating primarily to soil drainage and to fire frequency. The second axis related mainly to soil nutrient status, influenced by release of nutrients following disturbance, e.g., by fires after forest clearance.Most pakihi areas once supported forest and many are being invaded by L. scoparium. There is a close and statistically significant correlation between the age of L. scoparium scrub and the number of woody species in the vegetation. Given time, and the absence of fire, this scrub would revert to forest of podocarps and species of Nothofagus.The flora and composition of the pakihis varies throughout North Westland. Those in western Ecological Districts, at high altitudes, and near Lake Hochstetter are the most distinctive groupings. These differences may be related to landform features, climate, and vegetation history.The dynamic nature of pakihi vegetation will require reserves including them to be managed, particularly with fire, if their distinctive features, ranging from rare orchids to fern birds, are to be conserved.

The two newly named South Island species that occur west of the Alpine Fault evidently evolved from a common ancestral species that is inferred to have more narrow leaves, smaller flowers, and a reduced zone of adnation for the epipetalous stamens. One species, L. fatiscens, the name for a species previously identified as the Australian Isotoma fluviatilis, primarily occupies coastal sites, and only tetraploid plants with 2n = 28 are known. The other species, L. fugax, is a newly described upland species endemic to the ephemeral and shallow margins of cirque lakes within Kahurangi National Park in North-West Nelson. The diploid (2n = 14) L. fugax is like a diminutive version of L. fatiscens, which must have diverged from the common ancestral species before the chrom osome doubling that occurred in the evolution of L. fatiscens. The conservation status of these endemic New Zealand species is evaluated.