Rare and endangered species| the Wulai rhododendron, which is unique to Taiwan, China, and has become extinct in the wild
Text: Mr. Hanaki
In the history of human development, due to the continuous growth of the human population, the continuous expansion of the living environment, coupled with the endless demand from nature, so that too many species on the earth have gone extinct.
According to statistics, since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution in the 17th century, there has been an average of one species extinction every ten years; after entering the 20th century, an average of one species has gone extinct every day; and now, 75 species have gone extinct every day in the world, and 3 species per hour have gone extinct. According to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, in 2009, one-fourth of the world's mammals, more than 1,200 species of birds and more than 30,000 species of plants were at risk of extinction.
Although there are many reasons for such a shocking extinction event, the main reason for the threat to nature is human beings! The excessive development of the economy, the expansion of urbanization, the serious pollution of industrialization, and the artificial laissez-faire and neglect of many countries and regions regardless of cost and consequence have made the natural environment deteriorate day by day, and the extinction of species has been accelerating, thus threatening the situation of human survival.
Therefore, how to maintain biodiversity, maintain ecological balance, and make human beings and nature coexist in harmony has become the top priority that we humans need to face and solve together. There is nothing we can do about the extinct, but for existing species, especially endangered species, we must do everything possible to protect and strengthen regulatory measures to avoid more organisms becoming extinct in our generation.
Earlier, we have introduced many rare and endangered species unique to China, most of which are caused by human destruction or habitat deterioration. Today, we introduce to you a rare plant that has become extinct in the wild, unfortunately, the most direct cause of the extinction of this plant is man-made, which is the unique cuckoo species in Taiwan, Wulai rhododendron.
Rhododendronkanehirai wils., also known as Taipei Rhododendron rhododendron, Rhododendron rhododendron, Rhododendron, Rhododendron, rhododendron, belongs to the rhododendron family, a rocky deciduous shrub.
【Plant】 1-3 m tall; numerous branches, slender young branches, densely covered with chestnut-brown flat rough hairs, old branches black-brown, with residual hairs; leaf linear lanceolate or linear inverted lanceolate to inverted ovate, blunt tip at the apex, short tip, tapering at the base, slightly reverse curled edges, full margin or inconspicuous circular serrations, coarsely haired, dark green above, pale below, midrib and lateral veins concave on the top, protruding below, scattered on both sides of the bright chestnut brown rough fusal hairs; petiole densely covered with chestnut brown coarse fusal hairs;
【Flowers and fruits】Flower buds are ovoid, the scales are broadly ovate, the outer part is bristled along the midrib, the edges are cilia; the flowers are 1-3 branches; upright, densely covered with chestnut brown flat and rough hairs; the calyx lobes 5, ovate to oval, with bright chestnut brown rough hairs, with long eyelashes on the edges; the corolla is narrowly funnel-shaped, magenta to dark red, the corolla is narrow to the base, 5 lobes, lobes are ovate or long ovate; the stamens are 10, unequal in length, shorter than the corolla, filament-shaped, slightly soft hairs below the middle, anther ovate, ovate in the ovary, Densely covered with chestnut-brown bristles, the peduncle is longer than the stamens, protruding slightly out of the corolla, there are a few rough fuss hairs near the base, the stigma is brown, head-shaped; the capsule is long cylindrical, 6-8 mm long, with bristle-like bravular hairs. The flowering period is In April, and the fruiting period is unknown.
(Rhododendron horticultural species)
(Wulai Cuckoo)
The Urai Rhododendron is similar to the r.indicum (linn.) sweet, native to Japan, with semi-evergreen shrubs and 1–2 meters tall. The main differences between the two are:
(1) The leaves of rhododendron are small, 1.7-3.2 cm long, while the Rhododendron wulai is longer, 1.5-4.8 cm.
(2) Gaoyue rhododendron 1-3 raw branches, usually 1, stamens 5, the flower column is thick and smooth; while the Wulai rhododendron 1-3 raw branches, stamens 10, the flower column is longer than the stamens, slightly protruding outside the corolla, near the base there are a little rough hairs.
(Gao Yue Cuckoo)
(3) The crown of Rhododendron gaoyue is bright red, sometimes rose red, wide funnel-shaped; the crown of Rhododendron wulai is magenta to dark red, narrow funnel-shaped, narrow to the base.
(4) The rhododendron flowering period is late, generally from May to June, and the Rhododendron of Wulai is generally in April to May.
Wulai rhododendron is a rare species endemic to China, with a narrow distribution area, and the wild is only distributed in the mountainous hills around Beishixi in Wulai District, New Taipei City, northern Taiwan. The Emerald Reservoir was built in 1979 and filled with water in 1984, flooding the only pristine habitat of the Rhododendron in Wulai. At that time, in order to avoid the permanent extinction of the Wulai rhododendron, a restoration sample area was opened in the riverbed downstream of the Emerald Reservoir Dam to plant 250 Wulai rhododendrons. However, due to repeated heavy rains, only 43 artificially cultivated mother trees remain, and all wild Wulai rhododendrons have become extinct, and so far, no record of wild plants has been found.
(Emerald Reservoir)
Subsequently, the relevant personnel used cuttings to breed and planted in the reservoir area and the site of the original Heron Pond, and there are currently more than 1,000 artificial plants. In addition, some artificially planted Wulai rhododendrons are preserved in some schools and parks, but the unisexual reproduction of cuttings may lead to a lack of genetic diversity. In 2012, the seed-grown Seedlings of Rhododendron Ula were developed, which will contribute to the rehabilitation of Rhododendron ula.
The Wulai rhododendron belongs to the rocky rhododendron, which is very similar to the Japanese Rhododendron, and has high research value for studying the distribution and classification of Rhododendron strains. Moreover, the Wulai rhododendron plant is low, the plant shape is beautiful; the leaves are like willow leaves, slender and verdant; the flowers are luxuriant, with lilac, purple, pink and pink and other colors, the flower color is beautiful, quiet and elegant, very suitable for making bonsai and potted ornamentation, so it has high ornamental value and economic value.
As a rare rhododendron species, Wulai Rhododendron was declared as a "legally precious rare plant" by Taiwan Province in 1988, and in the current "List of Wild Plants under National Key Protection (Second Batch)" (discussion draft), Wulai Rhododendron is listed as a national Level II endangered key protection.
Although the native land of the Wulai cuckoo, the endemic species of Taiwan's treasure island, was submerged and extinct, thankfully, people learned the importance of biodiversity and carried out ex situ conservation, so that it can be preserved today. It is hoped that with the improvement of horticultural technology, the Wulai rhododendron can expand the breeding speed, thereby greatly increasing the population, of course, I hope that in the near future, in the interior of the mainland of the motherland, we can see the beautiful and elegant beauty of the Wulai rhododendron, which will definitely be realized!
2020-4-16 Easy to flower to get wood