SI_Appendix_DatasetS6.xlsx from Changes of cinchona distribution over the past two centuries in the northern Andes

The <i>Cinchona</i> genus is important for humanity, due to its ethnobotanical properties, particularly its ability to prevent and treat malaria. However, historical changes of <i>Cinchona</i> distribution in the tropical Andes remain undocumented. In the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, several explorers precisely recorded <i>Cinchona</i> localities in present-day Colombia and Ecuador, countries which harbour about half of the species of the genus, including <i>C. officinalis</i>. We compared historical and twentieth century records to evaluate whether elevational ranges, mean elevation and latitude varied between the two periods. A large expansion of 662.5/948.5 m in the average and elevational range for <i>C. officinalis</i> and 792.5 for <i>Cinchona</i> was obtained. These findings have implications for the conservation of economically important species and to understand the impacts of the Anthropocene over time.

金鸡纳属（Cinchona）凭借其民族植物学特性，尤其是预防与治疗疟疾的功效，对人类而言具有重要价值。然而，热带安第斯山脉中金鸡纳属植物分布的历史演变迄今仍未得到记载。18世纪末至19世纪初，多位探险家精准记录了现今哥伦比亚与厄瓜多尔境内的金鸡纳属植物分布点位——这两个国家孕育了该属约半数物种，包括药用金鸡纳（Cinchona officinalis）。本研究对比了历史记录与20世纪的观测记录，以评估两个时期内物种的海拔范围、平均海拔及纬度是否存在差异。结果显示，药用金鸡纳的平均海拔与海拔范围分别扩张了662.5米与948.5米，金鸡纳属整体的该两项指标扩张幅度达792.5米。上述研究结果对经济重要物种的保护工作，以及理解人类世（Anthropocene）随时间推移产生的影响均具有重要启示意义。