Harvesting_Laelia furfuracea_Mexico

Affiliation
IIED
Type of wild species covered by the record
Wild species used in its natural habitat
Wild species sourced from the wild but reared/cultivated in a managed site (e.g., cultivated wild specimens, eggs/juveniles from the wild)
Stage of the value chain covered by the record
Primary Producer/harvester (e.g., NTFP collectors, egg collectors)
Unknown/not recorded
Record Source
Scientific publication (e.g., journal articles and book chapters independently peer-reviewed)

Sustainable harvesting and conservation of Laelia furfuracea, a rare epiphytic orchid from Oaxaca, Mexico

Unknown/not recorded
Is the species endemic HIDE
Yes
Population Status
Common but only within narrow areas of distribution
Formal international protection in place
International Level
National Level
Unknown/not recorded
Threats/Pressures impacting the conservation of the species
Population Trend
Unknown/not recorded
Sub-national Level
Unknown/not recorded
Name
Emma Hemmerlé
Scientific Name
Laelia furfuracea
Common Name(s)
lirio morado
Type of Use
Extractive (i.e., the entire organism or parts of the organism are removed from its environment)
If extractive, for the target species, is this use
Non-Lethal
Does this use involve take/extraction of
Only parts or products of the organism (e.g., feathers, leaves, branches, eggs, nuts)
Details of parts/products taken

severing the flowering pseudobulb is the traditional technique frequently used by collectors at the study area. local people cut flowering pseudobulbs in half, removing the inflorescence, and leaving the rest of the plant behind. In the latter case, the two meristems located at the base of the pseudobulb are left intact, which allows the development of a new pseudobulb from which a new inflorescence may eventually grow

Are specific characteristics/traits being targeted?
Unknown/not recorded
Purpose of Use
Cultural/spiritual
Additional Details (if available)

Laelia furfuracea's inflorescences are used as ornaments during the December festivities.

What is the main end use for any living organisms, parts or products taken/extracted?
Amount
7834.00
Units Of Measurement
items of the plant (whole plants, plant fragments, or inflorescences) being traded from Oaxaca
Time period over which this has been recorded
between October 2011 and January 2012
What is the trend in the level of offtake within the period covered by this record?
Geographic Location
Country
Mexico
Sub region/state
Oaxaca
Name
municipality of Santo Domingo Yanhuitlán, Nochixtlán district
Local people (e.g., individuals, communities, co-operatives)
National / local private sector
If more than one box ticked, please provide more details

plants are intensively extracted from their habitat and traded mostly in local traditional markets.

Is the use part of a strategy to generate conservation incentives, to finance conservation, or to improve tolerance/stewardship?
No
Is there evidence that the use is affecting the conservation status of the species? HIDE
No – no clear evidence of the impact of use compared to other factors influencing
Is there evidence that the use is affecting natural selection?
Unknown/not recorded
Is there evidence that the use is affecting poaching of illegal wildlife trade?
Unknown/not reported
Is there any evidence that this use of the species is having a knock-on effect on the status of non-target species
Unknown/not recorded
Unknown/not recorded
Details of assessment carried out

Inflorescence collection did not affect the production of new pseudobulbs the following season. However, it affected the size of these pseudobulbs, as well as their flowering probability. We conclude that harvesting of flowering pseudobulbs may be sustainable in terms of its effects on plant performance, at least in the short term.
Traditional harvest methods for L. furfuracea include the removal of flowering pseudobulbs. Those inflorescences are obviously prevented from making a contribution to the next seedling generation, either through the distribution of their pollen, or through seed production (pollen is ripe at the time of anthesis, but inflorescences are generally harvested just before anthesis). However, the plants they were harvested from are left behind and their survival is not affected; there is no evidence that harvest reduces the ability of the plant to produce new pseudobulbs, at least in the short term;

Has a valuation of financial flows from this use at the site/national/international level been recorded
No
Contribution to GDP
Unknown/not recorded
Medicine/healthcare
Training/Skills
Land/Resource Rights
Decision Making
Social Cohesion
Conflict- people
Conflict- wildlife
Climate Change
Has the use of the species been recorded as resulting in changes to human health in this record?
Unknown/not recorded
Has the species in use been noted as being of particular disease risk to humans?
Unknown/not recorded
Has the use of the species resulted in changes to animal welfare in this record?
Unknown/not recorded
Are there particular practices which have increased the risk to human or animal health or welfare in the use of this species?
Unknown/not recorded
Does the use of this species increase susceptibility to pathogen spread?
Unknown/not recorded
Unknown/not recorded
Biological characteristics of target species
Absent
Source Reference(s)

Octavio Orozco‐Ibarrola, O. Orozco‐Ibarrola, Rodolfo Solano, R. Solano, & Teresa Valverde, T. Valverde. (2021). Sustainable harvesting and conservation of Laelia furfuracea, a rare epiphytic orchid from Oaxaca, Mexico. Biotropica, 53, 142-151. doi: 10.1111/btp.12854

Who is involved in the use?
Is there any gender/age specificity in the various roles
Unknown/not recorded
How many of these local jobs accure to the following categories?
How many people outside the local area are employed
Is there any evidence of other economic benefits associated with this use beyond direct income and jobs
Unknown/Not recorded
Scale of Assessment
IUCN National Red List Category
IUCN Global Red List Category
Green Status Global Category
Yearly Financial Flows
Other
Gathering terrestrial plants;
Unknown/not recorded
No assessment recorded
Yes, considered sustainable
Country reference