in Sri Lanka - Ministry of Environment

Conservation prioritiesIn order to conserve wild orchids, there is a combination of actions needed to be taken.The most important conservation action regarding wild orchids is to identify a Protected Area(PA) network covering the habitats of all orchid species found in the country. At present, underthe PA system, most orchid rich PAs fall under proposed reserves (PR) or other state forests(OSF), which have the least legal protection. By combining geographical occurrence datacollected during the present red listing process, the Ministry of Environment together with theDepartments of Wildlife and Forest Conservation can recognize new thematic PA systemswhich highlight the orchid diversity among other biota. The establishment of a set of parkmanagement criteria by prioritizing orchid conservation is also needed for such thematic PAs.The establishmentof systematically planned ex-situ conservation centers is also of primeimportance. 90% of the indigenous orchid diversity can be protectedin this manner. Presently,there are no ex-situ conservation centers for indigenous orchids apart from a few private adhoc collections. The botanic garden network distributed throughout the country is the mostviable institution for this task. Within such centers, other ecological and taxonomic researchescan also be implemented.Presently, there is adequate legal protection for native orchids, the whole family beingprotected under the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance (Amend. Act No 2 of 2009). Underthe Forest Ordinance, Extraordinary Gazette Notification No. 05.12.2005 issued by The ForestDepartment, orchids are forest produce which require permission for any removal. Sri Lankais a ratified country under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species ofWild Fauna and Flora (CITES); all species of our orchids are under Appendix II which requirepermits in the case of exporting.However, due to lack of awareness and knowledge on legal status and identification of nativeorchids, a significant weakening of the protection of the target group is observable. Therefore,the rise of awareness regarding orchids at all levels is important, primarily through lawenforcement officers.Research gaps and research needsApart from species identification and distribution records, all other types of researches relatedto orchids conducted in the country are inadequate. Among many other research areas needed,the following are some of the important aspects which require attention:• Comparable with current global orchid taxonomic knowledge, molecular basesystematic update of our endemic species is a prime need.• Studies on orchid habitats and their ecological requirements have not been conducted.Therefore, planned researches on understanding habitat and ecology conditions,phenology patterns and interactions of pollinators and associations with mycorrhizalspecies are needed.• Studies on effects of climate change and environmental sensitivity on native orchidsare also needed.203