Current status of Paphiopedilum fairrieanum (Orchidaceae)– An endangered orchid of Arunachal Pradesh, India

Abstract

Paphiopedilum fairrieanum is categorized as Critically Endangered in the IUCN red list of threatened species. The species is found only in India, Bhutan and Nepal with a very restricted distribution. Due to over-exploitation for horticultural purpose, more than 95% of the population has lost in the past few decades (probably between 1984-2014). In Arunachal Pradesh, the species is found in West Kameng district with a small population size. During the year 2017-2021, many field explorations were conducted by Orchid Research Centre, Tipi to know the current status of this species in the state of Arunachal Pradesh. Four locations were identified with less than 200 mature plants. Area of occupancy (AOO) is estimated as 16 km2 and extent of occurrence (EOO) is about 137 km2. Based on this, the species is categorized as Endangered (EN) at Arunachal Pradesh Regional level. The largest habitat of Paphiopedilum fairrieanum was measured at Munna-Camp (71 hectares), followed by Gaccham (68 hectares), Tenga-Ledge (15 hectares) and the smallest was measured at Salari (5 hectares). All these areas are owned by local communities and are facing many anthropogenic threats.