Wetland plant biodiversity in China: a scoping evidence map linking ecosystem services, SDGs, and governance instruments

Wetlands are biodiversity hotspots and critical nature-based solutions for water purification, climate regulation, and flood and coastal risk reduction, yet they remain among the world’s most threatened ecosystems. This scoping review synthesized 2,482 China-focused studies published between 2001 and 2026 to examine how wetland plant biodiversity supports ecosystem services and informs governance and United Nations. Multidimensional biodiversity, including taxonomic, compositional, functional, and phylogenetic attributes, was consistently linked to water-quality regulation, carbon sequestration, habitat provision, and flood protection. Major pressures included land conversion, hydrological alteration, pollution, coastal reclamation, invasive species, and climate change. Although few studies explicitly referenced SDGs or named policy instruments, substantial evidence supported SDG 6, 13, 14, and 15. Synthesized within a State–Function–Pressure–Response framework, the findings demonstrate that conserving wetland plant biodiversity is essential for sustaining ecosystem services and strengthening biodiversity-informed wetland governance in China.