Z^**- -A. llf. UNEP WCMC Bamboo biodiversity Information for planning conservation and nnanagennent in the Asia-Pacific region Nadia Bysthakova, Valerie Kapos, Chris Stapleton, Igor Lysenko '^/n/ Q.^{j^ ! I \^ C t-^C vc ^-o 03 UNEP WCMC Bamboo biodiversity Information for planning conservation and nnanagennent in the Asia-Pacific region Nadia Bystriakova, Valerie Kapos, Chris Stapleton, Igor Lysenko UNEP WCMC INBAR UNEP World Conservation international Network for Bamboo and Rattan Monitoring Centre Anyuan Building No 10. Anhui Beili 219 Huntingdon Road Asian Games Village. Cfiaoyang District Cannbridge Beijing, People s Republic of China CB3 0DL Postal address: Beijing 100101-80 United Kingdom People s Republic of Ctiina Tel:+i4(01 1223 2773U Tel: +86 10 64956961/82 Fax: +UI01 1223 277136 Fax: +86 10 64956983 E-mai[: [email protected] E-mail: info@inbarmt Website: www.unep-wcmc.org Website: www.inbarint Director: Mark Collins Director General: Ian Hunter The UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre is the The International Network for Bamboo and Rahan IINBARI biodiversity assessment and policy implementation arm is a non-profit, international organization established in of the United Nations Environment Programme lUNEPI, 1997 by Treaty As of June 2002. INBAR's Establishment the world's foremost intergovernmental environmental Agreement had been signed by 26 countries. INBAR's organization. UNEP-WCMC aims to help decision-makers mission IS to improve the well-being of producers and users recognize the value of biodiversity to people everywhere, and of bamboo and rattan within the context of a sustainable to apply this knowledge to all that they do. The Centre's bamboo and rattan base by consolidating, coordinating challenge is to transform complex data into policy-relevant and supporting strategic and adaptive research and information, to build tools and systems for analysis and development. integration, and to support the needs of nations and the international community as they engage in joint pro- grammes of action. Authors Acknowledgements N Bystriakova" The authors gratefully acknowledge financial support from the V Kapos' International Network for Bamboo and Rattan IINBARl. the UNEP C M A Stapleton' World Conservation Ivloniloring Centre lUNEP-WCMCI and I Lysenko' Missouri Botanical Garden. UNEP-WCMC and the Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew are thanked for providing working facilities. 1 international Network for Bamboo and Rattan Beijing, China Additional photo credits 2 UNEP World Conservation ("lonitoring Centre Page 7 Heft lo right] 1-3: Zhu Zhaohua; A: Jeevanandhan Cambridge. UK Duraisamy; 5: Zhu Zhaohua 3 Royal Botanic Gardens Page 8 A Bonssenko Kew, Surrey TW9 SAB. UK; [email protected] Page 9 M Sanbluch/UNEP/Topham ©UNEP-WCMC/INBAR2003 A Banson production Citation: Bystriakova, N.. Kapos. V.. Stapleton. C. & Lysenko. I. Printed in the UK by Swaingrove Imaging 2003 Bamboo Biodiversity UNEP-WCMC/INBAR. The contents of this report do not necessarily reftect the views or policies of UNEP. INBAR or contributory organizations. The designations employed and the presentations do not imply the expressions of any opinion whatsoever on the part of UNEP. INBAR or contributory organizations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or its authority, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries Bamboo biodiversity Contents Foreword Preface BAMBOO BIODIVERSITY 7 References 16 Annex I: Priority species of bamboo 17 Annexll: Bamboo species on the 1997 lUCN Red List of Threatened Plants 17 Annex III: Subtribes and genera of woody bamboos occurring naturally in Asia 18 Annex IV: Maps of potential distributions of woody bamboos in the Asia-Pacific Region 19 Annex V: Woody bamboo species of the Asia-Pacific region with <20 000 km- of forest remaining within their ranges 67 Bamboo biodiversity Fo rewo rd The bamboo plant supports an international trade survival of many potentially important bamboo species may which (even according to our currently imperfect be threatened. is a first towards quantifying , trade statistics) is worth more than US$ 2 billion This work step bamboo per year Yet international trade represents only a small resources in the world. It presents an innovative approach to proportion of total bamboo usage - domestic use is quantifying the likely range of the various bamboo species. estimated to account for at least 80 per cent. Bamboo is It also, through the aggregation of overlapping ranges, has thus a major world commodity something to contribute to knowledge about bamboo Despite this, very little is known about the biodiversity distribution and resources of bamboo. Certain bamboo The innovative approach used here can be applied species (e.g. Chinese Moso bamboo, Phyllostachys eduUs] to the study of other species associated with mapped have formed the basis for major Industrial development and ecosystems. have been domesticated into plantations. Perhaps 50 or This study would not have been possible without 100 bamboo species are preferred for use and are under- the collaboration between INBAR and UNEP-WCMC. It was going some degree of domestication. However there are the detailed map-based databases of UNEP-WCMC that estimated to be nearly 2 000 species in total. The vast made the development of the methodology possible. Thus, majority of these occur only in their native ranges, and many this study IS an excellent example of two organizations may have uses of local or wider significance that have yet to working together to combine their strengths. be documented. Unfortunately, as obligate components of forested ecosystems, their futures are bound up with the Ian Hunter survival of their forest habitats. This publication indicates Director General that as forest ecosystems shrink under human pressure the International Network for Bamboo and Rattan Bamboo biodiversity Preface Bamboo - an intriguing name for a quite Conservation of biodiversity is a necessary step extraordinary group of plants! Essentially a family towards solving the problems of poverty alleviation and of giant woody grasses, they are used for every sustainable development - this message is clear from the conceivable purpose, from scaffolding to boats, cooking Johannesburg World Summit on Sustainable Development. utensils to furniture, for food, fuel, landscaping, ornamental But conservation in today's world means the adoption of an display and a thousand other uses. Their direct and overarching, ecosystem approach that takes into account widespread importance to our social and economic well- species, their habitats and the landscapes in which they being may be self-evident but, surprisingly, we still know occur The mapping approach used in the analysis relatively little about most bamboos in the wild. Although undertaken here facilitates building this bigger picture for their importance to a few threatened species, such as the conservation. This report will help range states to giant panda, is legendary, the distribution and conservation recognize, and value, the bamboo genetic resources on status of bamboos themselves largely remain a mystery. their own doorsteps, and to conserve them for future The results described in this publication expand our generations. knowledge base substantially Information drawn from a 1 welcome this opportunity to collaborate with wide range of botanical and other sources has been treated INBAR, the world's bamboo and rattan trade network. 1 with sophisticated analytical tools to generate a new hope that our first analysis will form the basis for future overview of the distribution of bamboos in the Asia-Pacific assessments of bamboo resources and their conservation region. By providing insight into centres of diversity and the status. Bamboos are a fascinating group of plants that bring amount of habitat remaining for individual species, it will benefits to people everywhere; they should be conserved as help to identify priorities for planning and management of an important resource for all our futures. bamboos. They are essentially forest plants and their future is linked to the survival of forest habitats - under pressure Mark Collins worldwide from the expansion of agriculture, plantation Director forestry and climate change. UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre Digitized by the Internet Arciiive in 2010 witin funding from UNEP-WCIVIC, Cambridge Iittp://www.arcliive.org/details/bamboobiodiversi03byst Bamboo biodiversity Bamboo biodiversity Bamboos are distinct and fascinating plants, with 20-120 years, inhabiting moister, more benign habitats a wide range of values and uses. They play a in old-growth forests, they are often associated with significant role in biodiversity conservation and threatened plants, and there are many specialized animal contribute to soil and water management. They are species that depend upon them. The best known of these in important for biomass production and play an increasing Asia is the giant panda [Ailuropoda melanoteuca], but the role in local and world economies. This study used an red panda lAilurus fulgens] and the Himalayan black bear innovative approach to map potential current distributions ISelenarctos thibetanus] are also heavily dependent on of nearly 1 000 individual bamboo species that occur bamboo. The smallest known bat ITylonycteris pachypus, naturally within remaining forests of the Asia-Pacific 3.5 cml roosts between nodes of mature bamboo region. The maps were also combined to generate regional \Gigantochloa