PALM S Kholia: Vanishing Trachycarpus Vol. 54(1) 2010 Is Trachycarpus latisectus B.S. K HOLIA Botanical Survey of India Vanishing Sikkim Himalayan Circle P. O. Rajbhawan from its Gangtok-737 103, Sikkim, India Natural
[email protected] Habitat? 1. Rocky habitat with three living palms and one dead palm. The relatively recently described rare and endemic palm from Darjeeling Himalaya of India, Trachycarpus latisectus (Fig. 1), was surveyed to evaluate its status in its only known wild and semi-cultivated localities. The Windamere palm is becoming rarer and rarer in its natural habitat and exposed to the great threat of extinction. It is feared that if the threats continue this beautiful palm may perish very soon from the wild. A few protective measures are also suggested here for its conservation. PALMS 54(1): 43 –50 43 PALM S Kholia: Vanishing Trachycarpus Vol. 54(1) 2010 2. Satellite imagery of the site of Trachycarpus latisectus . Two open areas with scattered vegetation are separated by two narrow parallel gorges with dense vegetation. (Courtesy Google Wikimapia) The Himalaya and South East Asia bear a very Hussain & Garg 2004, Gibbons et al. 2008, rich a nd diver se flora d ue to t he ir unique Kholi a, 200 9); ho weve r, the rece nt recognit ion geo graphical po sitio n, com plex to pograph y of ano ther endem i c and thre atened species of and variable climatic conditions. This region Darjeeling and Kalimpong hills of west Bengal, is considered as the South East Asian center of India, T.