At a Glance
Plants known as cycads and zamias are as old as dinosaurs; they have lived on Earth for about 280 million years and they used to cover much of the planet! Now they are relegated to the planet’s tropical and sub-tropical regions, and many of these “living fossils” are now disappearing.
Chigua is among those vanishing species. Found only in Colombia, the species is native to the cloud forests of the northwestern Andes.
Most of the known remaining Chigua plants are within Las Orquídeas National Natural Park. However, the park and surrounding areas are increasingly threatened by habitat destruction for cattle ranching, growing crops and gold mining.
While the plant has proven difficult to raise in captivity, local conservationists are growing seedlings and then planting the juveniles in the wild. More research on Chigua ecology will be essential to maximize the species’ chances of recovery.
At a glance
Taxa
Plants
Geography
Colombia
Status
Critically Endangered
Habitat
Tropical Andean forest (cloud forest)
Estimated Population
Fewer than 1,000 mature individuals
Threats
Forest degradation and fragmentation driven by small-scale farming and cattle-ranching, mining, timber plantations
Potential Recovery Actions
Habitat protection and recovery, conservation breeding (near-situ and ex-situ), population reinforcement
