Ferns and lycophytes are seedless plants of ancient origin. Its dispersion through spores occurs by the wind, which makes them possible to occur in several places. They are important environmental indicators, becoming a special group when it comes to conservation. The Lower Tapajós region, located in the western region of Pará state, in the Tapajós River basin, has a large diversity of ferns and lycophytes, but all this richness is under threat from constant human actions such as fires in Protected Areas and construction of dams in the Tapajós river . The objective of this work was to analyze collection gaps, sampling biases, richness distribution and assess if protected areas in the Lower Tapajós are contributing to the conservation of the flora using ferns and lycophytes as model group. For this, a database was built from information of each fern and lycophyte specimen collected in the region and deposited in scientific collections or available in published works. These records were verified for location accuracy and correctness and were georeferenced when necessary. The records were checked and identified using a dichotomous key. The relationship between sampling effort and species richness was evaluated as well as whether records were biased towards areas close to access routes (defined as roads or navigable rivers). A comparison of species composition was made between the study areas and sixteen other areas that have fern and lycophyte inventories in the Brazilian Amazon. Here we present the first checklist for the ferns of the Baixo Tapajós basin, as well as for the four Conservation Units that presented records of these plants. It was possible to identify the conservation status of the species as well as places that had collection gaps. The sampling bias was also verified from the access routes in rivers and roads and it was possible to verify a collection density restricted to areas with easy access and close to large municipalities. Because it is a target region of destructive actions and a study group so sensitive to environmental changes, the information obtained from the research is of paramount importance to aid in the conservation of the flora of the Lower Tapajós region. Obtaining this data from an herbarium collection further enhances the preciousness of these scientific collections, and how much it is capable of storing and recording the history of the flora of a given region. Based on this study on information about the distribution of these plants, it is possible for managers of protected areas to use this information to develop species protection policies, so as to minimize conflicts of devastation in forest areas caused by human action.
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