GUAM & ROTA 2007 WORKING AGAINST CYCAD EXTINCTION ycas micronesica is a large, arborescent cycad found caterpillars begin consuming tender leaves. Any remain- Cin the remote Pacific islands of Guam, Rota, Palau, ing leaves may be infested by CAS after hardening. and Yap. Uniquely adapted to its island environment, it COLLABORATIVE EFFORTS withstands frequent typhoons, and, along with other closely Funding from the Association of Zoological Horticulture related species, it has a spongy flotation layer within the allowed MBC to obtain an ex situ conservation collection seed coat to aid in ocean dispersal. of Cycas micronesica from Guam. Montgomery Botanical Center Montgomery Botanical received (MBC) is playing a key role in seeds from Dr. Thomas Marler, the conservation of this cycad. botany professor and cycad re- AN ENDANGERED CYCAD searcher at the University of Guam, Until recently, Cycas micronesica in early 2007. At the same time, was the most common forest tree Dr. Irene Terry, University of Utah, in Guam. In 2003, a tiny insect discovered CAS had made its way forever altered the future of Guam’s to a native C. micronesica popula- forest giants. Aulacaspis yasumatsui, tion on the island of Rota, 60 km commonly known as cycad aulac- north of Guam. aspis scale (CAS), made its way to Dr. Marler is coordinat- Guam in 2003 via the importation ing multi-institutional efforts to of king sago (Cycas revoluta) plants. combat CAS, gain a better under- With no native predators, wide- standing of Cycas micronesica, and spread hosts, and year-round trade preserve its genetic diversity. He winds to aid dispersal, CAS quickly is studying pollination biology spread throughout Guam. CAS of C. micronesica with Dr. Terry, attacks Cycas leaves by inserting and releasing natural CAS preda- needle-like mouthparts and feed- tors for biological control with ing on the plant’s sap. It reproduces colleagues from the University of very rapidly and leaves are quickly Guam and the Guam National covered by white scale, eventually Wildlife Refuge. Despite inten- overwhelming the plant until it sive in situ conservation efforts, dies. The effect on Guam’s native the infestation is not contained cycads has been so devastating that and populations continue to C. micronesica was listed as Endan- decline at an alarming rate. gered (EN) in the 2006 IUCN In late 2007, I had the unique Red List of threatened species. opportunity to work with In addition, the cycad blue Michael Calonje next to Cycas micronesica in Guam Dr. Marler in Guam and Rota; butterfly (Chilades pandava) collect Cycas micronesica leaflet arrived in Guam in 2005. The butterfly lays its eggs on samples for DNA extraction for genetic studies by newly emerging Cycas leaves. Soon after hatching, the Dr. Angélica Cibrián-Jaramillo and Dr. Eric Brenner of (continued on page 3) Montgomery Botanical Center Established 1959 Board of Directors Charles P. Sacher, Esq., President Karl Smiley, M.D., Vice President Walter D. Haynes, Esq., Sec./Treasurer Loyd G. Kelly, Assistant Secretary Nicholas D. Kelly Peter A. Manz F r o m t h e Executive Director Executive Director M. Patrick Griffith, Ph.D. Botanical Consultant John Popenoe, Ph.D. Measuring success is essential. For a botanical institution, defining Montgomery Botanical the metrics of success can be challenging. How can we quantify botany? Research Fellows John Dowe, Ph.D. At Montgomery Botanical Center, collaboration and colleagueship William Hahn, Ph.D. are deep principles, established by Nell and The Colonel. Thus, quanti- Damon P. Little, Ph.D. fying collaborations can offer a measure of our success. The number of Mónica Moraes R., Ph.D. these collaborations has risen in recent years: from 2005 to 2006, the Silvia Salas-Morales number of Montgomery Botanical Center collaborators increased by Alberto S. Taylor B., Ph.D. 60 percent; 2007 saw an additional 36 percent increase. Our partner- ships in research, conservation, and education continue to grow. Col- To advance science, education, laboration is the best path forward — by dividing costs and multiplying conservation and horticultural outcomes, everyone achieves more. knowledge of tropical plants, emphasizing palms and cycads, Other statistics provide insight into our work. Last year, we conducted Montgomery Botanical Center collects six collecting expeditions, planted a total of 807 living specimens, and seeds from wild plant populations distributed nearly one million seeds. In the first three months of 2008, around the world and grows the we’ve already completed three more expeditions. Articles throughout this resulting plants in population-based, issue highlight other achievements — consistent, focused effort is accom- documented, scientific collections, for plishing a great deal. use by botanists, scientists, and educators, in a 120-acre botanical Numbers clearly demonstrate our success. Harder to measure, garden exemplifying excellent design. though, is the increasing goodwill that MBC generates in the local, national, and international botanical community. It seems MBC helps Montgomery Botanical Center enable more projects than ever. Personally, I noted this at the recent (originally The Montgomery Foundation) Cycad 2008 conference in Panama. Dr. Alberto Taylor, University of is a tax-exempt, nonprofit institution established by Nell Montgomery Panama professor and Montgomery Botanical Research Fellow, chaired Jennings in memory of her husband, an excellent meeting — scientists from around the globe presented their Colonel Robert H. Montgomery, and work. Seeing so many of our colleagues in one place highlighted Mont- his love of palms and cycads. gomery’s contribution to botany. Montgomery Botanical News With expanding operations, MBC will need increased capacity. I am is published biannually by very excited to report a generous pledge from Christiane Tyson for a new Montgomery Botanical Center. plant conservation building (see page 6). Please join me in thanking 11901 Old Cutler Road Mrs. Tyson for her wonderful support. Miami, Florida 33156 In 2007, Montgomery Botanical Center saw many successes. I look Phone 305.667.3800 forward to working with you to advance our mission even further Fax 305.661.5984 this year. [email protected] www.montgomerybotanical.org Masthead photo of Veitchia arecina (formerly V. montgomeryana) by Harvey Bernstein Pictured: Dr. Griffith with a specimen of Encephalartos woodii, at Longwood Printed on recycled paper Gardens, Pennsylvania. 2 Montgomery Botanical News | Spring/Summer 2008 GUAM & ROTA 2007 WORKING AGAINST CYCAD EXTINCTION (continued from front page) The New York Botanical Garden (NYBG); and collect seeds invaded. Nine months and biogeographic data to augment MBC’s ex situ conser- after Dr. Terry first vation collection. During an intense month of non-stop found CAS on a single fieldwork, we studied a total of 25 different populations of population in Rota, C. micronesica in Guam and Rota. Funding from the West- the scale remained ern Pacific Tropical Research Center, College of Natural and confined to that single Applied Sciences, University of Guam, generously supported population. Although Montgomery Botanical’s work. a natural scale preda- GUAM tor beetle (Rhyzobius The collecting protocol for NYBG’s gene flow studies lophanthae) was intro- required sampling a total of 15 plants every 20 meters along duced into Rota just two months after Dr. Terry’s discovery, extensive devastation from CAS in that Cycad Blue butterfly, wingspan to 3 cm population was still evident. It is probably only a matter of time before the scale spreads throughout Rota. This demonstrates the vital impor- tance of our quarantine procedures. EX SITU CONSERVATION Montgomery Botanical’s Guam and Rota 2007 Expedition secured valuable DNA collections for studies at NYBG, and MBC obtained 561 seeds from 18 populations of Cycas micro- nesica for ex situ conservation. MBC now has 150 accessions of C. micronesica from 24 different populations — the most complete single-species representation of any cycad in MBC’s collection. With native C. micronesica populations declining rapidly, the crucial role of ex situ conservation collections has Cycas micronesica population on Rota, devastated by CAS never been clearer — Montgomery Botanical Center is work- ing directly to prevent extinction of cycad populations. a straight transect. This presented an enormous challenge as Guam has very rugged terrain, abundant limestone cliffs, and areas of scrub forest with virtually impenetrable veg- etation. Moreover, scale had infested the entire island and, in several populations, over 80 percent of standing cycads were dead — finding live plants in the correct transect location was difficult. In some populations, cone produc- tion had ceased entirely and seeds could not be found. In the 17 populations I visited in Guam, I observed only one, single-leaf seedling, likely to soon succumb to scale. ROTA The environment on Rota was more encouraging, with large, healthy, actively reproducing Cycas micronesica popula- tions — as Guam’s populations must have been before CAS Healthy Cycas micronesica population on Rota Michael Calonje, Cycad Biologist Montgomery Botanical Center [email protected] Spring/Summer 2008 | Montgomery Botanical News 3 PANAMA 2007 EXPEDITION COMARCA KUNA YALA omarca Kuna Yala is an autonomous territory in Dr. Alberto Taylor, Montgomery Botanical Research Fellow CPanama controlled by the Kuna indigenous people. and University of Panama professor, as well as by Kuna bota- It is