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  Re: [Aroid-l] Your Aroid Society Newsletter
From: brian lee <lbmkjm at yahoo.com> on 2011.06.19 at 08:43:41(22118)
Dear Jason and All,

Aloha.

I always enjoy reading about plants, growing plants, and doing what I can to preserve plants in-situ....in other words, their habitat and cradle of evolution. Without the habitat and all of the associated flora and fauna and geology; the majority of cultivated endangered plants become sad relicts that are doomed to a lonely, prolonged, and delayed extinction. Most will become extinct before we find out they were distinct. More cryptic species are being discovered and ecotypes are under appreciated.

Hawaii is the extinction capital of the United States, and depending on whose opinion you read, the world. I have been an advocate for protection and
preservation of Hawaiian endemic and indigenous flora and fauna for many years. I do not believe we can reclaim pre-contact perfection, so I am preparing for a future of a mix of non-invasive exotic species along with native species in a largely constructed and managed environment. That is our reality. Yesterday, I was on an intense hiking expedition as a volunteer participant to preserve endemic biodiversity in Hawaii. Three people in our party climbed to the end of the regular trail and refused to drop down into the hanging valley as they thought it was too dangerous to descend. Once we made it to our destination, we were in a mini-Eden full of endangered species in a lost world. We saw rare native honeycreepers....birds that diversified in much greater variety than Darwin's most famous finches in the Galapagos. This little spot of heaven was only the size of one McMansion that crowds the lowlands.
The climb out was intense. If you can imagine climbing a greasy pole for an extended period...it was very exhausting. Slipping was not an option as the waterfall we were over had a drop of a hundred feet vertically or more. True wilderness is not so easy to find or access. I am getting older.

Jason, you mention former abundance. I have seen former abundance reduced to extinction many times in my five decades. As a kid and into the late 1970's, I could find certain endemic snails so commonly, that it looked like rice was thrown in loose abandon over the bushes. The snails have completely disappeared and now, the plants are disappearing. Let me say that these snails were not pest species. They ate sooty mold that covered the leaves or dried, partially decomposed vegetation. Some species were absolutely gorgeous...little jewels. Hawaii had over 800 taxa and
now, there are a few dozen left in very few numbers. There are many similar stories of plants and yesterday, I was looking at the very last known plant of a species...in the wild or cultivation. It was in bud. Will it survive? I cannot say. It may become one more story of many I have witnessed.

All we have is hope. Our future is only bright if we save some of the variation of plants and animals we have left. The only place for them is in their original habitats. Conservation through cultivation is one tool, but, it is not a substitute for preservation of the original ecosystem. I love aroids, but, Hawaii had no endemic or indigenous Araceae. My interest is in non-invasive species of aroids. I am not trying to return to an aroid free Hawaii. I do believe in moving forward with knowledge and responsibility. Can you imagine a world without tigers, rhinos,
and pandas? How about a world without Amorphophallus titanum, Philodendron biribiriense, and Anthurium kamemotoanum? It may happen. What is the world without wilderness? Is wilderness important? I love it. I hope you do too.

Aloha(" in the presence of the breath of life"),

Leland

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