{"id":268,"date":"2015-07-08T00:14:40","date_gmt":"2015-07-08T00:14:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cycadgroup.org\/?page_id=268"},"modified":"2015-07-08T04:46:27","modified_gmt":"2015-07-08T04:46:27","slug":"debao-cycad-conservation-project","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.cycadgroup.org\/?page_id=268","title":{"rendered":"Debao Cycad Conservation Project"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"menu-debao-cycad-conservation-project-container\"><ul id=\"short_menu_6a1ac72fc5e5c\" class=\"shortcode_menu  wpsm-menu enhance_shortcode_menu_inline  \"><li id=\"menu-item-338\" class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-has-children menu-item-338\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cycadgroup.org\/?page_id=268\">Debao Cycad Conservation Project<\/a>\n<ul class=\"sub-menu\">\n\t<li id=\"menu-item-362\" class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-362\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cycadgroup.org\/?page_id=355\">Project Progress<\/a><\/li>\n\t<li id=\"menu-item-335\" class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-335\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cycadgroup.org\/?page_id=270\">Expedition 2008<\/a><\/li>\n\t<li id=\"menu-item-382\" class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-382\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cycadgroup.org\/?page_id=368\">Expedition 2011<\/a><\/li>\n\t<li id=\"menu-item-403\" class=\"menu-item menu-item-type-post_type menu-item-object-page menu-item-403\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cycadgroup.org\/?page_id=384\">Children in Fuping<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div><div class=\"clear\"><\/div>\r\n\t\t\t<style>\r\n\t\t\t\t#short_menu_6a1ac72fc5e5c {  }\r\n\t\t\t\t#short_menu_6a1ac72fc5e5c ul.wpsm-arrow-enabled:before { color:rgba(0,0,0,0.8); } \r\n\t\t\t\t#short_menu_6a1ac72fc5e5c ul, #short_menu_6a1ac72fc5e5c ul ul { background: rgba(0,0,0,0.8); }\r\n\t\t\t\t#short_menu_6a1ac72fc5e5c a {  }\r\n\t\t\t\t#short_menu_6a1ac72fc5e5c a:hover {  }\r\n\t\t\t\t#short_menu_6a1ac72fc5e5c ul a { color:#e0e0e0;  }\r\n\t\t\t\t#short_menu_6a1ac72fc5e5c ul a:hover { color:#ffffff;  }\r\n\t\t\t\t\r\n\t\t\t<\/style>\r\n\t\t\t<script type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n\t\t\t\tvar show_arrow = \"true\";var $sm = jQuery.noConflict();\r\n\t\t\t\t\tjQuery(function ($) {\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t$(\"#short_menu_6a1ac72fc5e5c\").tinyNav();\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t$(\"#short_menu_6a1ac72fc5e5c\").next().addClass(\"shortcode-menu-mobile\");\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\tshortcode_menu_responsive();\r\n\t\t\t\t\t});\r\n\t\t\t\t\tjQuery(window).resize(function($){\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\tshortcode_menu_responsive();\r\n\t\t\t\t\t});\r\n\t\t\t\t\tfunction shortcode_menu_responsive()\r\n\t\t\t\t\t{\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\tvar window_width = $sm(window).width();\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\tif(window_width <= 650)\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t{\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t$sm(\"#short_menu_6a1ac72fc5e5c\").hide();\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t$sm(\"#short_menu_6a1ac72fc5e5c\").next().show();\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t}\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\telse\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t{\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t$sm(\"#short_menu_6a1ac72fc5e5c\").show();\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t$sm(\"#short_menu_6a1ac72fc5e5c\").next().hide();\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t}\r\n\t\t\t\t\t}<\/script>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>PROJECT INTRODUCTION<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Cycads are an ancient group of seed plants that originated over 280 million years ago.\u00a0 They have no close living relatives and are thus considered to have a high priority in conservation from both a scientific and a biodiversity perspective (Norstog and Price 1997, Donaldson 2003).\u00a0 Cycads are currently threatened globally with extinction.\u00a0 Most of these threats originate from human activities and include destruction of wild populations for agriculture, strip mining, and the ornamental plant trade.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_333\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-333\" style=\"width: 1620px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.cycadgroup.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Cycas_debaoensis_habitat.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-333\" src=\"http:\/\/www.cycadgroup.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Cycas_debaoensis_habitat.jpg\" alt=\"Cycas debaoensis in Fu Ping, Debao county, Guangxi, China\" width=\"1620\" height=\"1080\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cycadgroup.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Cycas_debaoensis_habitat.jpg 1620w, https:\/\/www.cycadgroup.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Cycas_debaoensis_habitat-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.cycadgroup.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Cycas_debaoensis_habitat-1024x683.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1620px) 100vw, 1620px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-333\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><i>Cycas debaoensis<\/i> in Fu Ping, Debao county, Guangxi, China<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>In 1997 a unique cycad was discovered in Guangxi Province, China and named <em>Cycas debaoensis<\/em> (Zhong and Chen 1997).\u00a0 Unlike most cycads this one has leaflets that are divided three or four times and has exceptional potential as an ornamental plant (Holzman 2007).\u00a0 Subsequent study has shown that this species has a limited distribution in 4 small populations in western Guangxi and 1 small population in eastern Yunnan Province (Xie et al. 2005).\u00a0 Within one year of its discovery by science this species was severely reduced in numbers in the wild by plant collectors.\u00a0 In Fu Ping, Debao county, Guangxi, the type locality for the species, \u00be of the original population of 2000 plants were dug out for sale (Ma et al. 2003). \u00a0Immediate conservation measures were clearly needed to prevent extinction.<\/p>\n<p>In 1999, project managers Liu Nian and William Tang initiated a novel, international conservation project in Fu Ping which centered on the needs of the local people as well as <em>Cycas debaoensis<\/em> (Tang et al. 2004).\u00a0 This plan focused on education of the local people and is based on the scientific study of the ecology of the plant and environment.<\/p>\n<p>In the past, the main approach to cycad conservation involved the establishment of preserves that hoped to exclude people from cycad habitat, but in many cases local people easily bypassed barriers and this approach has proven to be completely unsuccessful (Donaldson 2003, personal communication). Conservation managers are becoming increasingly aware that human beings are an integral part of the ecosystems in which cycads exist and that people must be factored into any conservation plan for cycads.\u00a0 To have the highest chance for success local villagers need to be involved in conservation plans to gain their commitment. The needs of human beings, particularly those living next to cycad populations, must be reconciled with the needs of the plants themselves.\u00a0 In such conservation projects success relies on understanding the needs and behavior of human populations living near cycad populations as much as on an understanding of the biology of the plants themselves.<\/p>\n<p>The <em>Cycas debaoensis<\/em> conservation project is based on previous ones conducted in Mexico (Vovides et al. 2002) and southern Africa (Stalmans 1995).\u00a0 In these projects, local villagers harvested seeds from local cycad populations to grow as a crop.\u00a0 After education and outreach to the villagers, they protected the wild plants as a source of seeds for agriculture and recognized the cycad as an important and valuable part of there heritage and environment.<\/p>\n<p><strong>OBJECTIVE<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Develop conservation project for <em>Cycas debaoensis<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>This project continues to develop the <em>Cycas debaoensis<\/em> conservation plan as an international project.\u00a0 It brings to China scientific and conservation expertise from 5 countries.\u00a0 It will focus on education of local villagers, ecological study of the plant and its environment, and develop management techniques.\u00a0 It is developing a conservation model new to China.\u00a0 The benefit of this project is not just for cycad conservation, but it is envisaged that the techniques developed can be used elsewhere and with other endangered organisms in China and other parts of Asia.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Activities<\/strong><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Conduct census of <em>Cycas debaoensis<\/em> at Fu Ping and\u00a0create GPS map of its population<\/li>\n<li>Study and document ecology of <em>Cycas debaoensis<\/em>\n<ul>\n<li>\u00a0Pollination biology<\/li>\n<li>Life-history<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Survey plant and animal fauna of the habitat\n<ul>\n<li>gymnosperms and angiosperms<\/li>\n<li>insects, mollusks, amphibians, reptiles, and birds<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Establish website for the project at Cycad Specialist Group Website\n<ul>\n<li>post information on the project<\/li>\n<li>summarizing results of floral and faunal surveys<\/li>\n<li>post scientific papers on the plant and project<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>PARTICIPANTS (in alphabetical order)<\/strong>:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Satie Airame, Ph.D.<br \/>\nMarine Science Institute<br \/>\nUniversity of California<br \/>\nSanta Barbara, CA 93106<br \/>\nU.S.A.<\/li>\n<li>Michael Calonje, M.S.<br \/>\nCycad Biologist<br \/>\nMontgomery Botanical Center<br \/>\n11901 Old Cutler Road<br \/>\nCoral Gables, FL 33156<br \/>\nU.S.A.<\/li>\n<li>Jeff Chemnick, M.S.<br \/>\nGanna Walska Lotusland Foundation<br \/>\n695 Ashley Road<br \/>\nSanta Barbara, CA 93108<br \/>\nU.S.A.<\/li>\n<li>Timothy Gregory, Ph.D.<br \/>\nBotanical Garden<br \/>\nUniversity of California<br \/>\nBerkeley, CA 94720<br \/>\nU.S.A.<\/li>\n<li>Anders Lindstr\u00f6m<br \/>\nNong Nooch Tropical Botanical Garden<br \/>\nSattahip, Chonburi 20250<br \/>\nThailand<\/li>\n<li>Liu Nian, M.S.<br \/>\nHorticulture Dept.<br \/>\nZhongkai Agrotechnical College<br \/>\nGuangzhou, Guangdong 510225<br \/>\nChina<\/li>\n<li>David G. Robinson, Ph.D.<br \/>\nDepartment of Malacology<br \/>\nAcademy of Natural Sciences<br \/>\n1900 Ben Franklin Parkway<br \/>\nPhiladelphia, PA\u00a0 19103<br \/>\nU.S.A.<\/li>\n<li>Rita Singh, Ph.D.<span style=\"line-height: 1.6471;\">School of Basic and Applied Sciences<\/span><br \/>\nGGS Indra Prastha University<br \/>\nKashmere Gate, Delhi 110006<br \/>\nIndia<\/li>\n<li>Limei Deng Tang, M.S.<br \/>\n65 Corydon Drive<br \/>\nMiami, Florida 33166<br \/>\nU.S.A.<\/li>\n<li>William Tang, M.S.<br \/>\n65 Corydon Drive<br \/>\nMiami, Florida 33166<br \/>\nU.S.A.<br \/>\n<a href=\"&#109;&#x61;&#x69;l&#116;&#x6f;:&#119;&#x6c;m&#116;&#x61;n&#103;&#x40;&#x62;&#101;&#x6c;&#x6c;s&#111;&#x75;t&#104;&#x2e;n&#101;&#x74;\">&#119;&#x6c;&#109;&#x74;a&#x6e;g&#64;&#x62;&#101;&#x6c;l&#x73;o&#117;&#x74;&#104;&#x2e;n&#x65;t<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Irene Terry, Ph.D.<br \/>\nDepartment of Biology<br \/>\nUniversity of Utah<br \/>\n257 South 1400 East<br \/>\nSalt Lake City, UT 84112-0840<br \/>\nU.S.A.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>DISTRIBUTION OF WORK<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Project leaders\/Logistics<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Liu Nian<\/li>\n<li>William Tang<\/li>\n<li>Anders Lindstr\u00f6m<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Cycad Biology<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Cycad Pollination<\/p>\n<ul>\n<ul>\n<ul>\n<li>William Tang<\/li>\n<li>Rita Singh<\/li>\n<li>Irene Terry<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Survey of Fauna<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Birds and Mammals<\/p>\n<ul>\n<ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Jeff Chemnick<\/li>\n<li>Satie Airame<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Amphibians and Reptiles<\/p>\n<ul>\n<ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Satie Airame<\/li>\n<li>Timothy Gregory<\/li>\n<li>Anders Lindstr\u00f6m<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Insects and Mollusks<\/p>\n<ul>\n<ul>\n<ul>\n<li>David Robinson<\/li>\n<li>William Tang<\/li>\n<li>Irene Terry<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Survey of Flora<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Liu Nian<\/li>\n<li>Anders Lindstrom<\/li>\n<li>Timothy Gregory<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Mapping of Cycad Population<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Michael Calonje<\/li>\n<li>All participants<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Interpreter and Translator<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Limei Deng Tang<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>MATERIALS AND METHODS<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Mapping of <em>Cycas debaoensis<\/em> plants will be based on Garmin GPSMAP 60csx hand-held GPS units.\u00a0 This model allows for GPS reading trough tree canopy and has the resolution to distinguish the positions of plants within 3-4 meters apart.\u00a0This information will be deposited in a computer that will be purchased at the Shang Ping Tun Cycad School\/Forestry Office.\u00a0 This information will be used to construct a map of the cycad population from which periodic surveys of the population can be conducted in the future.\u00a0 The map will serve as a baseline for detecting future growth or decline of the population and allow assessment of the conservation project as it progresses.<\/p>\n<p>All survey and identification of vertebrates (mammals, birds, and reptiles) will be conducted visually and with the aid of photography.\u00a0 Survey and identification of plants, insects, mollusks, and other invertebrates requires that specimens be collected and preserved.\u00a0 Plant specimens will be pressed and dried and deposited at Zhongkai Agrotechnical Collegeand the South China Botanical Garden.\u00a0 Invertebrate specimens will be deposited at Zhongkai Agrotechnical College.<\/p>\n<p><strong>LITERATURE CITED<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Donaldson, J. (2003)\u00a0 Cycads Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge,UK.<\/li>\n<li>Holzman, G.\u00a0 (2007) \u00a0Cycas debaoensis. Cycad Newsletter 30(1):<\/li>\n<li>Ma, Xiao-yan, Jian Shu-guang, Wu Mei, and Liu Nian.\u00a0 (2003)\u00a0 The population characters and conservation of <em>Cycas debaoensis<\/em> Y.C. Zhong et. C. J. Chen. Guihaia 23(2): 123-126.<\/li>\n<li>Stalmans, M. (1995)\u00a0 Cycad conservation and cultivation in KaNgwane. Pp. 51 in P. Vorster (ed.) Proceedings of the Third International Conference on Cycad Biology. Cycad Society of South Africa, Stellenbosch.<\/li>\n<li>Tang, W., A. Lindstr\u00f6m, and N. Liu\u00a0 (2004)\u00a0 <em>Cycas debaoensis<\/em> conservation project in China. Pp. 77-83 in A. Lindstr\u00f6m (ed.) Proceedings of CYCAD2002. Nong Nooch Tropical Garden, Bangkok.<\/li>\n<li>Tang, W., J. Donaldson, and T. Walters.\u00a0 (2003)\u00a0 A unifying framework for cycad conservation.\u00a0 Pp. 54-57 in J. Donaldson (ed.) Cycads Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK.<\/li>\n<li>Vovides, A. P., C. Iglesias, M.A. Perez-Ferrera. J.G. Astorga, and U. Schippmann.\u00a0 (2002)\u00a0 Peasant nurseries: an effort to conserve cycads in Mexico. Cycad Newsletter 25(4): 3-7<\/li>\n<li>Xie, Jianguang, Jian Shuguang, and Liu Nian\u00a0 (2005)\u00a0 Genetic variation in the endemic plant Cycas debaoensis on the basis of ISSR analysis. Australian Journal of Botany 53: 141-145.<\/li>\n<li>Zhong, Y.C. and C.J. Chen\u00a0 (1997)\u00a0 <em>Cycas debaoensis<\/em> Y.C. Zhong et C.J, Chen &#8211; a new cycad from China.\u00a0 Acta Phytotaxonomica Sinica 35:571.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>PROJECT INTRODUCTION Cycads are an ancient group of seed plants that originated over 280 million years ago.\u00a0 They have no close living relatives and are thus considered to have a high priority in conservation from both a scientific and a biodiversity perspective (Norstog and Price 1997, Donaldson 2003).\u00a0 Cycads are currently threatened globally with extinction.\u00a0 &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cycadgroup.org\/?page_id=268\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Debao Cycad Conservation Project<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"parent":257,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-268","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cycadgroup.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/268","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cycadgroup.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cycadgroup.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cycadgroup.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cycadgroup.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=268"}],"version-history":[{"count":35,"href":"https:\/\/www.cycadgroup.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/268\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":405,"href":"https:\/\/www.cycadgroup.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/268\/revisions\/405"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cycadgroup.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/257"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cycadgroup.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=268"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}