''Encephalartos aemulans'', the Ngotshe cycad, is a species of
cycad
Cycads are seed plants that typically have a stout and woody (ligneous) trunk (botany), trunk with a crown (botany), crown of large, hard, stiff, evergreen and (usually) pinnate leaves. The species are dioecious, that is, individual plants o ...
endemic to South Africa. It is listed by the
IUCN
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...
as
Critically Endangered and by
CITES
CITES (shorter name for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, also known as the Washington Convention) is a multilateral treaty to protect endangered plants and animals from the threats of interna ...
in Appendix I. Only 100-250 are believed to be left, with a decreasing population trend. Its main threat is collecting of wild specimens.
Description
These plants have an erect stem, without branches, which can reach 3 m in height and 35 cm in diameter.
The leaves, up to 2 m long, are composed of lanceolate leaflets, with margins endowed with small spines, 12–15 cm long and arranged on the rachis in the opposite way to 135°.
It is a dioecious species, endowed with ovoid male cones, sessile, yellow in color, 29–38 cm long and 14–18 cm broad, with broad and rhombic microsporophylls. The female cones have a yellow-green color, are 35–40 cm long and 20–23 cm broad, with macrosporophylls with a warty surface.
The seeds have an oblong shape, are 25–30 mm long and are covered with a red flesh.
Distribution and habitat
The species is endemic to KwaZulu-Natal
KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN and known as "the garden province") is a province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu) and Natal Province were merged. It is locate ...
in South Africa, were a single population is known. It occurs among sandstone cliffs in shortgrass savannah at altitudes of 1,000-1,100 m, with individual specimens found at lower altitudes.[
]
References
aemulans
{{cycad-stub