Illegal harvesting and livestock grazing threaten the endangered orchid Dactylorhiza hatagirea (D. Don) Soó in Nepalese Himalaya.

Harvesting of orchids for medicine and salep production is a traditional practice, and increasing market demand is spurring illegal harvest. Ethno-ecological studies in combination with the effect of anthropogenic disturbance are lacking for orchids. We compared population density and structure, and tuber biomass of Dactylorhiza hatagirea (D. Don) Soó for three years in two sites: Manang, where harvesting of medicinal plants was locally regulated (protected), and Darchula, where harvesting was locally unregulated (unprotected). Six populations were studied along an elevation gradient by establishing 144 temporary plots (3 × 3 m2) from 3,400 to 4,600 m elevations. Mean density of D. hatagirea was significantly higher in the locally protected (1.31 ± 0.17 plants/m2) than in the unprotected (0.72 ± 0.06 plants/m2) site. The protected site showed stable population density with high reproductive fitness and tuber biomass over the three-year period. A significant negative effect (p < .1) of relative radiation index (RRI) on the density of the adult vegetative stage and a positive effect of herb cover on juvenile and adult vegetative stages were found using mixed zero-inflated Poisson (mixed ZIP) models. The densities of different life stages were highly sensitive to harvesting and livestock grazing. Significant interactions between site and harvesting and grazing indicated particularly strong negative effects of these disturbances on densities of juvenile and adult reproductive stages in the unprotected site. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with informants (n = 186) in the villages and at the ecological survey sites. Our interview results showed that at the protected site people are aware of the conservation status and maintain sustainable populations, whereas the opposite was the case at the unprotected site where the populations are threatened. Sustainability of D. hatagirea populations, therefore, largely depends on controlling illegal and premature harvesting and unregulated livestock grazing, thus indicating the need for permanent monitoring of the species.

Saussurea talungensis (Asteraceae), a new species from Humla, Nepal Himalayas.

A new species Saussurea talungensis S.K.Ghimire & H.K.Rana, sp. nov. (sect. Strictae), from Talung valley of Humla district, Nepal, is described and illustrated. Morphologically, this species resembles Saussurea roylei and Saussurea lanata in habit, though it can be distinguished in having longer leaf petioles, purplish leaf margin, 1 or 3 capitula, shorter phyllaries, shorter receptacle bristles and the same anthers, comparatively shorter corolla with shorter lobes. Phylogenomic analysis also supports S. talungensis as a distinct species of Saussurea. Here, we provide taxonomic note, distribution map and phylogenomic inference to distinguish the new species and its allied members.

Harvest effects on density and biomass of Neopicrorhiza scrophulariiflora vary along environmental gradients in the Nepalese Himalayas.

A surprisingly large number of species potentially threatened by human harvest lack quantitative ecological studies incorporating harvest effects, especially clonal species in the alpine Himalayas. We studied density and biomass variation of a threatened medicinal herb, Neopicrorhiza scrophulariiflora, to examine the effect of harvest on plant performance. The study covered two regions with contrasting harvest situations-one with open-access and another protected from commercial harvesting. Four populations from each region were compared along an elevation gradient (3,800-4,800 m). Also, we conducted in situ interviews with 165 and 38 medicinal and aromatic plant users in open-access and protected regions, respectively, to assess the collection and use patterns of the target species. The quantity harvested per household for traditional healthcare use was similar in both regions. We found no evidence of trade-driven collection in the protected region but in the open-access region a trade-based annual collection of 35-465 kg dried rhizomes per household had a strong negative effect on both density and biomass. In the protected region, the effect of harvest intensity on plant density was positive for vegetative and negative for reproductive individuals, whereas in the open-access region, the effect was negative for both vegetative and reproductive individuals. The results indicated that a low harvest intensity had no adverse impact on N. scrophulariiflora populations; however, quantification of the optimum level of harvest remains to be explored. Shrub vegetation appeared to buffer the harvest impact on plant density, possibly through the retention of additional moisture. To maintain population viability, we suggest regulating harvest, for example, by introducing rotational harvest systems, ensuring that a sufficient number of reproductive individuals are left as a source of propagules in each harvested population and that populations are given time to recover between harvests.