SELBYANA Tuesday Jan 04 2005 07:31 PM selb 25_244 Mp_185 Allen Press • D T ProN System GALLEY 185 File # 44em

Selbyana 26(1,2): 49±57. 2005.

ANDEAN ORCHID CONSERVATION AND THE ROLE OF PRIVATE LANDS:ACASE STUDY FROM

JOE E. MEISEL AND CATHERINE L. WOODWARD* Ceiba Foundation for Tropical Conservation, 2319 North Cleveland, Chicago, IL 60614 USA. Email: [email protected]

ABSTRACT. Orchids represent ca. 10% of the world's ¯owering , and their diversity and endemism reach their maximum in the montane forests of the Andes. In Ecuador, nearly 80% of the 700 orchid species endemic to the country are found at 300±3000 m elevation. Microclimatic specialization and geographic isolation of elevational bands in montane regions have favored orchid speciation and the evolution of restricted-range species. With 75% of montane forests destroyed, and only 15% of species protected within existing reserves, fully a third of Ecuador's endemic orchid species are at risk of . Private reserves in the Andes can play a major role in the conservation of orchids. After outlining existing legal mechanisms for conservation of on private lands, we present a case study of the application of a conservation easement to the protection of the El Pahuma Orchid Reserve in the Ecuadorian Andes.

RESUMEN. Las orquõÂdeas representan aproximadamente 10% de la ¯ora mundial y su diversidad y endem- ismo maÂximo es en los bosques montanos de los Andes. En el Ecuador, casi 80% de las 700 especies endeÂmicas al paõÂs se encuentran entre 1000 y 3000 m. EspecializacioÂn microclimaÂtica y aislamiento geo- gra®ca de los niveles de altura han favorecido la especiacioÂn y la evolucioÂn de especies de rangos restrin- gidos. Con la destruccioÂn de 75% de los bosques montanos y solo 15% de las especies protegidas en las reservas existentes, la tercera parte de las orquõÂdeas endeÂmicas del Ecuador estaÂn en peligro de extincioÂn. Las reservas privadas en los Andes pueden tomar un rol importante para la conservacioÂn de orquõÂdeas. En el presente, ofrecimos un per®l de los mecanismos legales existentes para conservar haÂbitats en tierras privadas y presentamos un estudio del caso de la aplicacioÂn de una servidumbre ecoloÂgica para la proteccioÂn de la Reserva OrquideoloÂgica El Pahuma en los Andes del Ecuador.

Key words: orchids, endemism, Andes, conservation easement, El Pahuma, Ecuador

INTRODUCTION diversity, they are closely rivaled by the mon- For centuries, orchids have fascinated private tane forests of the Andes, which may harbor as collectors and public societies worldwide. Al- much as half of South America's though these have been extensively stud- species in only a tenth of the total land area (Ka- ied, cultivated, and exhibited, only recently has pelle & Brown 2001). In Ecuador, analysis of protection of wild orchid habitat captured the at- the distribution of a representative fraction of the tention of orchid enthusiasts. Tropical regions country's ¯ora found that 48% of species were contain more than 50% of the Earth's biological restricted to elevations at 900±3000 m elevation diversity, including the majority of all orchid (Balslev 1988), an altitudinal band constituting species. in the tropics has 10% of Ecuador's territory. The high biodiver- placed countless species under threat of extinc- sity of middle elevations is largely the result of tion, and protection of montane forests in partic- an increased abundance of epiphytes, which ular is urgently needed, if orchid populations are constitute ca. 10% of vascular plant species to be saved. Here, we summarize patterns of or- worldwide, with representatives in at least 84 chid diversity and review why endemism and families (Gentry & Dodson 1987). diversity peak in montane forests of the Andes. Orchids are by far the most diverse family of Making the case that private land can serve a vascular epiphytes, representing 22 of the 47 major role in conserving tropical orchid diver- most speciose epiphytic genera in the world. sity, we discuss various legal mechanisms for Among all orchid species, 70% are epiphytic private lands protection. With a focus on con- (Gentry & Dodson 1987, Dressler 1981). In Ec- servation easements, we provide a case study of uador, recent estimates place the diversity of or- the El Pahuma Orchid Reserve in Ecuador. chids at 220 genera and more than 3750 species, representing more than 10% of the country's Patterns of Orchid Diversity and Endemism vascular ¯ora (C. Dodson, C. Luer & G. Romero Although tropical lowland rain forests are unpubl. data). As with other epiphytes, orchid widely recognized as great storehouses of bio- species richness in tropical America peaks in the Andean mountains at 1000±2000 m elevation * Corresponding author. (Ibisch et al. 1996, IUCN/SSC Orchid Specialist SELBYANA Tuesday Jan 04 2005 07:31 PM selb 25_244 Mp_186 Allen Press • D T ProN System GALLEY 186 File # 44em

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Group 1996). In Ecuador, nearly 3000 orchid Montane forests also are characterized by species (77% of country total) are found at 300± high epiphyte beta diversity (Nieder et al. 1999, 3000 m elevation, with greater levels of diver- but see predictions in Kessler 2001), de®ned as sity occurring on the western slopes (C. Dodson, species turnover rates within similar habitat. For C. Luer & G. Romero unpubl. data). example, two similar sites in Ecuador separated Tropical montane forests are considered to be by only 30 km shared only 35% of their epi- rich in endemic species (Kruckeberg & Rabi- phytic species (Nieder et al. 1999). Geographic nowitz 1985, Balslev 1988, Olson & Dinerstein isolation of elevational bands separated by in- 1997), de®ned as those ``con®ned to a single tervening valleys favors speciation and is me- domain or to a few localities'' (Kruckeberg & diated by limitation of movement. As Rabinowitz 1985). Balslev (1988) showed that a group, epiphytes are dominated by zoophilous nearly 40% of a sample of Ecuador's vascular pollination (Ackerman 1986), and the extreme ¯ora occurring at middle elevations (900±3000 topographic variation characteristic of montane m) were endemic to the country. Furthermore, regions may greatly reduce the mobility of in- the western slopes of the Andes displayed con- sect and to a lesser extent avian pol- siderably higher rates of endemism, possessing linators. Both microclimatic specialization and 56% of the middle-elevation endemic species as geographic isolation have contributed to the compared to only 31% on the eastern slopes. small range sizes of many species and the evo- Borchsenius (1997) showed that the richest Ec- lution of high levels of endemism in montane uadorian endemic ¯oras are found in the prov- areas. In addition to orchids, peaks in species inces of Pichincha (72 endemic species at 900± richness and/or endemism at middle elevations 2000 m elevation and 93 endemic species at have been found for taxa, such as leaf 2000±3000 m) and Loja (36 species at 900± litter reptiles and amphibians (Scott 1976), in- 2000 m elevation and 116 species at 2000±3000 sects (Janzen 1973, Janzen et al. 1976), and (Terborgh & Winter 1983). m). Some 700 species of Ecuador's orchids (19% of the country's total) and seven genera Threats to Andean Orchids are endemic to the country (C. Dodson et al. unpubl. data), and 70% of these occur in mon- Since the 1960s, increased population growth, tane forests (Endara this issue). economic development, and ®nancial pressures have led to increased rates of throughout the Andes (DireccioÂn General de Es- Why Are Montane Forests So Diverse? tadõÂsticas y Censos 1960, World Bank 2000, Gentry and Dodson (1987), summarizing the Vanacker et al. 2003). Montane forests alone ideal habitat for epiphyte diversity as ``wet, mid- have been reduced to 25% of their former extent dle-elevation, rich-soil, tropical American for- (Armenteras et al. 2003). Indeed, destruction ests,'' showed that this growth form could make and fragmentation of habitat is the leading threat up nearly a quarter of total plant diversity in the to orchid biodiversity worldwide (IUCN/SSC Andes. The observation that many taxa reach Orchid Specialist Group 1996). The tropical An- their peak diversity and endemism at 1000±3000 des and western Ecuador (including the ChocoÂ- m elevation is consistent with factors driving DarieÂn region) have been identi®ed as two of the evolution and speciation in montane areas. Fore- world's 25 biodiversity ``hotspots'' (Brooks et most among these is the great microclimatic var- al. 2002). These areas are suffering annual de- forestation rates of 0.94% and 1.43% respec- iation found in mountainous regions. Elevation, tively (Food and Agriculture Organization aspect, and frequent intermediate-scale distur- 1997). Illegal extraction of orchids is the second bance (e.g., treefalls, landslides) contribute to major cause of decline in wild populations. Be- high variation in light, temperature, and mois- cause of these and other threats, such as habitat ture across small distances. Very ®ne niche par- degradation and climate change, one in three of titioning (i.e., hyper-specialization on a narrow Ecuador's endemic orchid species are threatened range of conditions, even within one tree) has (Endara this issue). Sadly, only 15% of threat- been identi®ed as a leading cause of high alpha ened endemic orchids in Ecuador currently are diversity in orchids (Gentry & Dodson 1987, protected under the existing system of parks and Jost 2003). Several examples of extreme epi- reserves. phyte alpha diversity (Nieder et al. 1999) un- derscore the substantial contribution of this METHODS group to overall vascular plant diversity: In a single 175-m2 plot in Cajanuma, Ecuador, Bùgh Role of Private Lands in Orchid (1992) found 33 families of epiphytes; on a sin- Conservation gle tree in Venezuela, Longman (1917) counted A question of critical importance to biologists 66 epiphytic species. concerns the minimum reserve size necessary to SELBYANA Tuesday Jan 04 2005 07:31 PM selb 25_244 Mp_187 Allen Press • D T ProN System GALLEY 187 File # 44em

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achieve lasting conservation. The answer de- many successes and is gaining in popularity. pends primarily on which organisms and eco- With the majority of tropical outside of logical processes one is trying to conserve. In national parks held on private lands, legal mech- the lowland rain forests of tropical America, a anisms for their conservation rapidly are being reserve millions of ha in size still may be insuf- strengthened, promoted, and executed. A recent ®cient to protect viable populations of the largest overview by the Environmental Law Institute predators such as jaguars (Terborgh 1999). In (2003) describes in detail the principal mecha- contrast, a narrow endemic species restricted to nisms employed for voluntary land conserva- a single mountaintop may be well protected in tion. These mechanisms include land purchase a reserve of just a few hundred ha (Kessler by NGOs (non-governmental organizations), 2001, MuÈller 2003). formally declared private reserves, informal Andean orchids are particularly well suited to conservation agreements, land donations to gov- conservation on private lands. High alpha diver- ernment protected area systems, land trusts and sity indicates that relatively small reserves will limited development efforts, and conservation contain large numbers of species. High beta-di- easements. versity and high levels of endemism indicate The bene®ts and shortcomings of each option that even neighboring reserves of similar habitat must be considered before choosing the ap- will protect a different set of species. Orchids, proach best suited to each case, when establish- widely appreciated as they are, can be managed ing some form of a private reserve. Land pur- effectively in small areas by local people chase, traditionally a favored technique, has the (IUCN/SSC Orchid Specialist Group 1996). bene®t of placing management control wholly in Many species of orchids are well adapted to sec- the hands of the conservation organization. Land ondary or disturbed conditions and thus can sur- purchase can be expensive, however, as rural vive in human-impacted forests. A network of landowners increasingly recognize the value of small private reserves thus may be able to pro- undisturbed habitat to international organiza- tect a substantial proportion of the total orchid tions. Additional expense is incurred by the ®- diversity of the Andes. For many of the 85% of nancial demands for reserve management and Ecuador's endemic orchids that fall outside of protection. Furthermore, outright purchase often existing reserves and occur in the heavily pop- has the unintended effect of ostracizing mem- ulated and highly fragmented Andean landscape, bers of the local community, who may look small privately managed reserves may be the upon land purchase as an invasion of their do- only remaining option to protect them in the main by foreigners. Such attitudes routinely lead wild. to much higher risks of poaching and illegal in- Four hurdles must be overcome if conserva- vasion, than if the land were to remain in local tion on private lands is to succeed. First, biodi- hands. Nonetheless, land purchase by NGOs has versity mapping and gap analysis (Scott 1993) succeeded in protecting many hundreds of thou- must continue to identify centers of orchid en- sands of ha of habitat throughout the American demism that lack protection. Second, the mini- tropics. mum sustainable reserve sizes for various orchid Private reserve designations exist in various taxa need to be determined by studying, for ex- forms throughout Latin American countries. ample, the range and population dynamics of Brazil has been the most successful in applying their pollinators, minimum viable population this approach, with nearly 500,000 ha protected sizes, and seed dispersal patterns. Third, because as of 2002 (Environmental Law Institute 2003). much of the montane forest habitat in the Andes Nearly as much land (400,000 ha) has been set is in private ownership, legal mechanisms for aside in Chile in private protected-area net- conservation on private lands must be evaluated, works. The total area of all private reserves in improved, and implemented. Finally, once re- the orchid-rich countries of , Peru, and serves are created, mechanisms must be set in Ecuador, however, was only 253,000 ha as of place to encourage revenue generation from sus- 2003. Unfortunately, federal and state private re- tainable, non-destructive sources. Such revenue serves suffer from a number of shortcomings will allow reserve owners to continue conserv- that weaken their utility as a long-term habitat ing their land and to regard protected habitat as protection tool. Foremost is that the lack of re- a bene®t to their lives rather than a limitation on sources for monitoring and enforcement cause their economic prosperity. nearly all such reserves to quickly become so- called ``paper parks,'' while logging, hunting, Legal Mechanisms for Conservation on dumping, and other affronts continue unabated. Private Lands Protected status may collapse at the whim of Private lands conservation in the American current administrators under economic or polit- tropics, while a recent undertaking, has had ical pressure to develop land. Landowners also SELBYANA Tuesday Jan 04 2005 07:31 PM selb 25_244 Mp_188 Allen Press • D T ProN System GALLEY 188 File # 44em

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may be reticent to participate in government-au- ing of the agreement's clauses. The rights and thorized programs because of a lack of trust or responsibilities of each party can be tailored to con®dence, or because they believe they are for- suit the landowner's needs and the organization's feiting too many land-use rights for few demon- objectives speci®c to each case. strable bene®ts. Although easements are a well-established Informal land protection agreements are wide- mechanism for land protection in the United ly used in the tropics, often as a stopgap mea- States, their implementation in Latin America sure, while more strict and binding mechanisms has been hampered by several limitations. First, are negotiated and constituted. Informal agree- no national laws recognize the use of traditional ments range from simple written contracts be- easements speci®cally for conservation purpos- tween landowners and conservation organiza- es. Only appurtenant easements are recognized, tions to more precise contracts based on the civil a legal mechanism developed originally for such code. Informal agreements are appealing to purposes as ensuring right-of-way access, and landowners because they are ¯exible, simple to these have been adapted to conservation pur- enact, and are typically easy to terminate. For poses. Several restrictions characteristic of ap- the latter reason, they are viewed as less than purtenant easements limit, however, their effec- ideal land-protection mechanisms by conserva- tiveness for conservation, such as the require- tion organizations. Nonetheless, they have been ment that the two participants must be neigh- implemented in a large number of cases and boring landowners. Second, enforcement of have successfully achieved, at least in the short easements can be tenuous, although of the two term, the desired goal of forestalling forest loss. easement-litigation cases ever ®led (in Mexico and Argentina), both were decided in favor of Conservation Easements in Latin America the local conservation organization. Litigation can be costly (ca. $15,000 in the Mexico case), Conservation easements, made popular in the and organizations utilizing easements therefore United States during the past several decades, must prepare ®nancially for this possibility. are growing in popularity in tropical America, Third, many landowners in tropical America and have been employed in a number of coun- lack clear title to their land, precluding the legal tries, most notably Costa Rica. A conservation implementation of easements. Finally, the lack easement is a voluntary agreement, in which the of built-in incentives for landowners to sign landowner agrees to limit the use of property, easements has slowed their adoption as a pre- for some ®xed term or in perpetuity, under the ferred conservation tool. supervision of a second landowner, typically a In the United States, property tax exemptions conservation organization. The agreement is in- typically are awarded to landowners signing scribed in the registry of deeds, and therefore easements, an incentive that has proved power- remains in effect regardless of sale or other ful in recruiting prospective landowners. In Lat- transfer of property title. The ®rst conservation in America, such tax waivers are non-existent easement in the American tropics was signed in and unlikely to be adopted because of the ®scal Costa Rica in 1992, and that country now has crises and hard currency shortages experienced nearly 60 in effect; by 2002 at least 10 conser- by many tropical countries. Thus the develop- vation easements had been enacted in Mexico ment of alternative ®nancial incentives or other and another 14 in Paraguay. Most of these ease- types of incentives has become a major goal for ments have been for very small properties: in groups promoting easements. Costa Rica for example, the total land area pro- One widely used incentive is for conservation tected under 57 separate easements was only organizations to simply provide direct payments 5500 ha (Environmental Law Institute 2003). to landowners in exchange for easements. While One of the major bene®ts of conservation often useful in helping to alleviate the ®nancial easements is their low cost relative to land pur- impacts of restrictions on land use, direct pay- chase. The easement signed to protect the El Pa- ments do nothing to promote the adoption of huma Orchid Reserve (see Case Study, below) more sustainable land-use practices. Develop- was enacted for less than $2000 and was funded ment of infrastructure for tourism or other eco- by a single donation from the San Diego County nomic activities can provide an incentive that Orchid Society. In addition, the organization supports sustainable use of protected lands. In holding the easement only incurs costs of mon- particular, this can be effective when combined itoring compliance (typically annually), rather with technical training and education aimed at than the far higher costs of reserve management providing the landowner and community mem- required by outright land purchase. Easements bers the capacity to create and manage sustain- also are appealing to landowners because of the able alternatives for generating income. The ¯exibility available to both parties during draft- Ceiba Foundation for Tropical Conservation SELBYANA Tuesday Jan 04 2005 07:31 PM selb 25_244 Mp_189 Allen Press • D T ProN System GALLEY 189 File # 44em

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FIGURE 1. The El Pahuma Orchid Reserve, indicating zonation as speci®ed in the conservation easement. Zone A ϭ intensive use area containing nature center and botanical garden and permitting high visitation; Zone B ϭ minimum impact area with limited visitation; Zone C ϭ strict protection area closed to the public; Zone D ϭ residence area for use by landowner.

(CFTC) is working to develop creative incen- 78Њ37.9402ЈW), the reserve contains a diverse set tives, such as a program of college scholarships of microclimates. The forest is classi®ed as Very for children of landowners who commit to pro- Moist Lower Montane with 2000±4500 mm of tect their lands. In all cases, as in the El Pahuma precipitation annually and average annual tem- Orchid Reserve, the most effective incentives peratures of 12±18ЊC. Rain falls year round, with for conservation will be those that address the the least precipitation in July and August (CanÄa- landowner's needs, while building capacity to das 1983). manage resources sustainably. Primary forest occupies ca. 575 ha, with the remaining made up of secondary forest and a EL PAHUMA ORCHID RESERVE,ECUADOR: small area of regenerating pasture. Forest, with ACASE STUDY a canopy 10±20 m in height, is dominated by Croton magdalenensis (Euphorbiaceae), Clusia The El Pahuma Orchid Reserve protects 650 alata (Clusiaceae), and Blakea rotundifolia (Me- ha of montane forest in the of lastomataceae) and blankets steep hillsides of Ecuador, near the capital, Quito (FIGURE 1). Oc- 50±85% slope (Freire 2000). The ongoing in- cupying an elevational range of 1800±2600 m on ventory of orchids currently lists 187 taxa, some the western slopes of the Andes (0Њ01.5120ЈN, of which have yet to be identi®ed to species. SELBYANA Tuesday Jan 04 2005 07:31 PM selb 25_244 Mp_190 Allen Press • D T ProN System GALLEY 190 File # 44em

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TABLE 1. At the El Pahuma Orchid Reserve in Ecuador, 89 orchid species are identi®ed to species, based on preliminary inventories made in 1999±2003 by P. Myers, M. Mites, C. Woodward, and C. Douglas, with assistance of others. An additional 97 species are in the process of being identi®ed, many of them in the genera Pleurothallis and .

Orchid species at El Pahuma Orchid species at El Pahuma, cont. Ada elegantula (Rchb. f.) N. H. Williams Lycomormium ecuadorense Sweet Altensteinia virescens Kunth Masdevallia angulata Rchb. f. Anguloa virginalis Lindl. Masdevallia bucculenta Luer Bletia purpurea (Lam.) DC. Masdevallia cucullata Rchb. f. Brachtia andina Rchb. f. & Lindl. Masdevallia nidi®ca Rchb. f. Brassia arcuigera Rchb. f. Masdevallia ophioglossa Rchb. f. Chondrorhyncha embreei Dodson & Neudecker Masdevallia ventricularia Rchb. f. Comparettia falcata Poepp. & Endl. Maxillaria acutifolia Lindl. Cyrtochilum ¯exuosum Kunth Maxillaria aurea (Poepp. & Endl.) L. O. Williams Cyrtochilum macranthum (Lindl.) Kraenzl. Maxillaria lehmanni Rchb. f. Cyrtochilum meirax Rchb. f.) DalstroÈm Maxillaria lepidota Lindl. Cyrtochilum serratum (Lindl.) Kraenzl. Odontoglossum cirrhosum Lindl. Cyrtochilum williamsianum (Dodson) DalstroÈm Odontoglossum cristatellum Rchb. f. Dichaea longa Schltr. Odontoglossum cristatum Lindl. Dracula felix (Luer) Luer Odontoglossum hallii Lindl. Dracula hirtzii Luer Oncidium abortivum Rchb. f. Dracula navarrooÈrum Luer & Hirtz Oncidium cucullatum Lindl. Dracula polyphemus (Luer) Luer Oncidium heteranthum Poepp. & Endl. Dracula sodiroi (Schltr.) Luer Phragmipedium lindenii Dressler. & N. Williams Dryadella hirtzii Luer Pleurothallis anceps Luer Elleanthus capitatus (Poepp. & Endl.) Rchb. f. Pleurothallis cordata (Ruiz & Pav.) Lindl. Elleanthus gastroglottis Schltr. Pleurothallis cordifolia Rchb. F. & W. Egener Elleanthus robustus (Rchb. f.) Rchb. f. Pleurothallis de¯exa Luer Epidendrum cochlidium Lindl. Pleurothallis macra Lindl. Epidendrum embreei Dodson Pleurothallis ruberrima Lindl. Epidendrum gastropodium Rchb. f. Pleurothallis ruscifolia (Jacq.) R. Br. Epidendrum gemini¯orum Kunth Porroglossum amethystinum (Rchb. f.) Garay Epidendrum macrooÈphorum HaÂgsater & Dodson Porroglossum muscosum (Rchb. f.) Schltr. Epidendrum mancum Lindo. Prosthechea hartwegii (Lindl.) W. E. Higgins Epidendrum porphyreum Lindl. Prosthechea vespa (Vell.) W. E. Higgins. Epidendrum quitensium Rchb. f. Sobralia crocea (Poepp. & Endl.) Rchb. f. Epidendrum sophronitoides F. Lehm & Kraenzl. Sobralia ecuadorana Dodson Epidendrum renilabium Schltr. Stanhopea impressa Rolfe Govenia sodiroi Schltr. Stelis argentata Lindl. Habenaria monorrhiza (Sw.) Rchb. f. Stelis eublepharis Rchb. F. Keferstenia taurina Rch. f. Stelis ¯exuosa Lindl. Lepanthes biloba Lindl. Symphyglossum sanguineum (Benth.) Schltr. Lepanthes gargantua Rchb. f. Telipogon steinii Dodson & R. Escobar Lepanthes mucronata Lindl. fragrans (Lindl.) Rchb. f. Lepanthes pecunialis Luer & Hirtz Warrea warreana (Lodd. ex Lindl.) C. Schw. Lepanthes stupenda Luer Xylobium leontoglossum (Rchb. f.) Rolfe Lockhartia chocoensis Kraenzl Zootrophion dayanum (Rchb. f.) Luer Lycaste ciliata (Ruiz & Pav.) Lindl. ex Rchb. f. Zootrophion hirtzii Luer Lycaste gigantea Lindl. Zootrophion hypodiscus (Rchb. f.) Luer

Selected species are shown in TABLE 1. Several tris), toucan barbet (Semnornis ramphastinus), plant species new to science found within the and giant ( gigantea). reserve are in the process of being identi®ed, The Ceiba Foundation for Tropical Conser- such as Ruagea sp. nov., Cupania sp. nov., Myr- vation ®rst made acquaintance with the land- cianthes sp. nov., Philodendron sp. nov., Cleome owner, EfraõÂn Lima, in early 1997 on a recon- sp. nov., and three Gesneriaceae (Freire 2000, T. naissance trip to Ecuador. Lima expressed his Cochrane pers. comm., Clark 2003). In addition, interest in conservation and his desire to draw the reserve provides habitat for a number of paying visitors to his forest, rather than clearing threatened or rare animal species, including the the land for timber. After several meetings and spectacled bear (Tremarctos ornatus), plate- site explorations to discuss the landowner's vi- billed mountain-toucan (Andigena laminiros- sion and to assess the conservation value of the SELBYANA Tuesday Jan 04 2005 07:31 PM selb 25_244 Mp_191 Allen Press • D T ProN System GALLEY 191 File # 44em

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property, CFTC initiated negotiations for the im- ment established the basis for a sustainable plementation of a conservation easement. The source of ecotourism revenue to support the education of the landowner regarding easements, landowner and management of the reserve. the development of incentives and negotiation of The value of all incentives given in exchange terms, and the compilation of baseline documen- for the 25-year easement, combined with the le- tation (boundary maps, photos of existing struc- gal costs of constituting the easement itself, to- tures, inventories, etc.) was conducted during a taled ca. $50,000. By contrast, the purchase of 2-year period. Because this easement was the the same property at an estimated 2000 market ®rst of its kind in Ecuador, we anticipate that price of $400 per hectare would have cost future easements may require less than one year $260,000. The conservation easement therefore to enact. The legal drafting, signing, notariza- constituted a substantial savings compared to tion, and registration of the easement followed land purchase and represents an economical al- successfully in August 2000. ternative for habitat protection. Furthermore, the indirect bene®ts derived from empowering local El Pahuma's Conservation Easement people to control and manage their own natural resources in a sustainable manner, while deriv- The conservation easement at El Pahuma was ing suf®cient income from these activities, are created for the purposes of maintaining ``the cur- substantial. rent extent and integrity of the primary and sec- The Ceiba Foundation for Tropical Conser- ondary forests'' and protecting ``populations of vation also has sponsored the development of an native plants and , especially native spe- environmental education program at El Pahuma, cies of orchids and all species threatened with in ful®llment of the organization's obligations extinction'' (translated from easement No. 2000- speci®ed in the easement. The program is de- EC001, CFTC, August 2000, p. 2). The conser- signed to educate school groups and day visitors vation strength of the easement is embodied in to the reserve regarding the value of montane its fourth clause, ``Prohibited Uses,'' which dis- forests, the threats such forests face, and some allows ``activities that expressly or implicitly di- of the essential ecological services they provide minish, intend to diminish or that negatively af- (e.g., clean water). The goal of the program is fect the purposes and objectives of this ease- to promote a broader acceptance of the princi- ment.'' Such disallowed activities include cut- ples of montane forest conservation among rural ting of timber, hunting, extraction of plants or Ecuadorians, many of them landowners them- animals, construction of buildings, mining or ex- selves. In addition, CFTC has promoted El Pa- cavation, livestock production, and contamina- huma as a site for scienti®c research and has tion of air, soil and water. The easement divided attracted biologists studying such topics as or- the property into four zones each designated by chid microclimate requirements, ¯oral morphol- allowable levels of use and impact within them ogy of Gesneriads, and bat pollination syn- (FIGURE 1), and required that speci®c manage- dromes. ment directives be outlined in a management To date, the conservation easement at the El plan. Among the rights retained by the landown- Pahuma Orchid Reserve has achieved the pro- er were the rights to inhabit the property (within tection of montane forest habitat and set the Zone D) and to sell or transfer the property. stage for an improved standard of living for the CFTC acquired the obligation to create a man- landowner and his family. The incentives of- agement plan and to monitor the property for fered provided an opportunity for positive feed- compliance with the easement terms. CFTC was back: by early 2004, the reserve was attracting granted the right of ®rst purchase in the event ca. 1000 visitors per month. The income derived of property sale and the right to prevent any ac- from ecotourism has eliminated economic pres- tivities that violate the easement. sure on the landowner to exploit or convert the The Ceiba Foundation for Tropical Conser- forest. El Pahuma's success serves as a model vation offered an incentive package that includ- for conservation on other private lands. Never- ed the construction of basic tourism infrastruc- theless, the speci®c incentives that were effec- ture (trails, signage, and a nature center), the in- tive for El Pahuma may not be appropriate in stallation of an orchid botanical garden, techni- other cases, for example, where tourism poten- cal training to reserve staff and owners, and tial is low; in such cases, alternative incentives printing of promotional materials for the reserve. must be developed that ®t local needs. The suc- A small direct payment in the form of monthly cess of El Pahuma largely hinged on the heart- ``rental'' of management rights also was made felt interest of the landowner in conservation, during the ®rst year. This offer was effective in and we view such interest by the landowner as convincing the landowner to sign a strictly a key to the positive outcome of any private land worded easement. The infrastructure develop- conservation effort. SELBYANA Tuesday Jan 04 2005 07:31 PM selb 25_244 Mp_192 Allen Press • D T ProN System GALLEY 192 File # 44em

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CONCLUSIONS Borchsenius, F. 1997. Patterns of plant species ende- mism in Ecuador. Biodivers. & Conserv. 6: 379± Private lands hold promise for conservation, 399. particularly for restricted-range species in the Brooks, T.M., R.A. Mittermeier, C.G. Mittermeier, Andes, where the vast majority of threatened G.A.B. da Fonseca, A.B. Rylands, W.R. Konstant, and endemic taxa, such as orchids, are unpro- P. Flick, J. Pilgrim, S. Old®eld, G. Magin and C. tected. Several legal mechanisms exist for con- Hilton-Taylor. 2002. Habitat loss and extinction in servation on private lands, and conservation the hotspots of biodiversity. Conserv. Biol. 16: 909±923. easements, in particular, represent a ¯exible and CanÄadas, L. 1983. El Mapa BioclimaÂtico y EcoloÂgico inexpensive tool that is gaining acceptance del Ecuador. MAG-PRONAREG and Banco Cen- throughout Latin America. Organizations imple- tral del Ecuador. Quito, Ecuador. menting easements on private lands need to con- Clark, J. 2003. Did upside down ¯owers evolve once sider not only the biological value of the site but or multiple times in the neotropical plant the socioeconomic context of the landowner as Alloplectus (Gesneriaceae)? Abstract of research well, and design incentives accordingly. The El conducted at the El Pahuma Orchid Reserve. Pahuma Orchid Reserve in Ecuador represents http://www.ceiba.org/research/jclark࿞abs.htm. an example of how an easement can be imple- DireccioÂn General de EstadõÂsticas y Censos. 1960. mented to protect habitat and enhance the lives Primer Censo de poblacioÂn del Ecuador 1950: re- of local people. Like any conservation mecha- suÂmen de caracterõÂsticas. Ministerio de EconomõÂa, Quito, Ecuador. nism, long-term success requires that human and Dressler, R.L. 1981. The Orchids, Natural History and ®nancial resources be dedicated to monitoring Classi®cation. Harvard University Press, Cam- and, if necessary, to remedial action or litigation. bridge, Massachusetts. Although development of suitable incentives re- Environmental Law Institute. 2003. Legal Tools and mains a challenge for successful conservation on Incentives for Private Lands Conservation in Latin private lands, organizations can view this as an America: Building Models for Success. ELI, opportunity rather than a hindrance. Thus we Washington, D.C. urge the funding community to dedicate resourc- Food and Agriculture Organization. 1997. State of the es to support conservation on private lands. Rap- World's Forests 1997. FAO, Rome, Italy. id action is needed not only in the Andean re- Freire, E. 2000. Flora y vegetacioÂn de la Reserva Or- gion but also in tropical dry forests, mangroves, quideoloÂgica El Pahuma, Provincia de Pichincha, and other areas where remaining biodiversity Ecuador. Herbario Nacional del Ecuador, Museo Ecuatoriano de Ciencias Naturales, Quito, Ecua- faces an uncertain fate in dwindling remnants of dor. unprotected habitat. Gentry, A.H. and C.H. Dodson. 1987. Diversity and biogeography of neotropical vascular epiphytes. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Ann. Missouri Bot. Gard. 74: 205±233. Ibisch, P.L., A. Boegner, J. Nieder and W. Barthlott. The authors thank the San Diego County Or- 1996. How diverse are neotropical epiphytes? An chid Society, American Orchid Society, Fauna analysis based on the `Catalogue of the Flowering and Flora International, the National Herbarium Plants and Gymnosperms of Peru.' Ecotropica 2: of Ecuador, as well as many individual donors 13±28. for ®nancial support to the Ceiba Foundation for IUCN/SSC Orchid Specialist Group. 1996. Status and Conservation Action Plan: Orchids. IUCN (The Tropical Conservation for the El Pahuma Orchid World Conservation Union), Gland, Switzerland. Reserve project. Monica Navarro, Mary Evans, Janzen, D. 1973. Sweep samples of tropical foliage Calaway Dodson, and Lou Jost provided invalu- : effects of seasons, vegetation types, ele- able assistance and resources in identifying or- vation, time of day, and insularity. Ecology 54: chids. 687±708. Janzen, D., M. Ataroff, M. Farinas, S. Reyes, N. Rin- con, A. Soler, P. Soriano and M. Vera. 1976. LITERATURE CITED Changes in the community along an Ackerman, J.D. 1986. Coping with epiphytic exis- elevational transect in the Venezuelan Andes. Bio- tence: pollination strategies. Selbyana 9: 52±60. tropica 8: 193±203. Armenteras, D., F. Gast and H. Villareal. 2003. Andean Jost, L. 2003. On the Nature of Plant Endemism in the forest fragmentation and the representativeness of Eastern Andes. Published on the Internet. http:// protected natural areas in the eastern Andes, Co- www.loujost.com. lombia. Biol. Conserv. 113: 245±256. Kappelle, M. and A.D. Brown. 2001. Bosques Nub- Balslev, H. 1988. Distribution patterns of Ecuadorian lados del NeotroÂpico. Instituto Nacional de Bio- plant species. Taxon 37: 567±577. diversidad (INBio). Santo Domingo de Heredia, Bùgh, A. 1992. The composition and distribution of Costa Rica. the vascular epiphyte ¯ora of an Ecuadorian mon- Kessler, M. 2001. Patterns of diversity and range size tane rain forest. Selbyana 13: 25±34. of selected plant groups along an elevational tran- SELBYANA Tuesday Jan 04 2005 07:31 PM selb 25_244 Mp_193 Allen Press • D T ProN System GALLEY 193 File # 44em

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sect in the Bolivian Andes. Biodivers. & Conserv. Scott, J. 1993. Gap Analysis: A Geographic Approach 10: 1897±1921. to Protection of Biological Diversity. The Wildlife Kruckeberg A.R. and D. Rabinowitz. 1985. Biological Society, Bethesda, Maryland, USA. aspects of endemism in higher plants. Ann. Rev. Scott, N.J., Jr. 1976. The abundance and diversity of Ecol. Syst. 16: 447±479. the herpetofauna of tropical forest litter. Biotro- Longman, H.A. 1917. The ¯ora of a single tree. Pro- pica 8: 41±58. ceedings of the Royal Botanical Society of Terborgh, J.B. 1999. Requiem for Nature. Island Press, Queensland 29: 64±69. Washington, D.C. MuÈller, R., C. Nowicki, W. Barthlott and P.L. Ibisch. Terborgh J. and B. Winter. 1983. A method for siting 2003. Biodiversity and endemism mapping as a parks and reserves with special reference to Co- tool for regional conservation planningÐcase lombia and Ecuador. Biol. Conserv. 27: 45±58. study of the () of the Vanacker, V., G. Govers, S. Barros, J. Poesen and J. Andean rain forests in Bolivia. Biodiversity & Deckers. 2003. The effect of short-term socio-eco- Conservation 12: 2005±2024. nomic and demographic change on land use dy- Nieder, J., S. Engwald and W. Barthlott. 1999. Patterns namics and its corresponding geomorphic re- of neotropical epiphyte diversity. Selbyana 20(1): sponse with relation to water erosion in a tropical 66±75. mountainous catchment, Ecuador. Landscape Olson D.M. and E. Dinerstein. 1997. Global 2000: Ecol. 18: 1±15. Conserving the World's Distinctive Ecoregions. World Bank. 2000. World Development Indicators. World Wildlife Fund-US, USA. World Bank, Washington, DC.