<P> The term megadiverse country refers to any one of a group of nations that harbour the majority of Earth's species and high numbers of endemic species . Conservation International identified 17 megadiverse countries in 1998 . Many of them are located in, or partially in, tropical or subtropical regions . </P> <P> Mega diversity means exhibiting great diversity . The main criteria for megadiverse countries is endemism at the level of species, genera and families . A megadiverse country must have at least 5,000 species of endemic plants and must border marine ecosystems . </P> <P> In 2002, Mexico formed a separate organisation focusing on Like - Minded Megadiverse Countries, consisting of countries rich in biological diversity and associated traditional knowledge . This organisation does not include all the megadiverse countries as identified by Conservation International . </P> <P> In alphabetical order, the 17 megadiverse countries are: Australia, Brazil, China, Colombia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ecuador, India, Indonesia, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mexico, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Philippines, South Africa, United States and Venezuela . </P>

Which region is known as the region of megadiversity