Carya poilanei is a very large species of hickory native to northern Laos, northern Vietnam, Thailand, and southern China. It was first described by Auguste Jean Baptiste Chevalier, and given its current name by André Leroy.[1] Carya poilanei is part of the genus Carya, and the family Juglandaceae.[1][2]

Carya poilanei
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Fagales
Family: Juglandaceae
Genus: Carya
Section: Carya sect. Sinocarya
Species:
C. poilanei
Binomial name
Carya poilanei
Synonyms

Juglans poilanei A.Chev.

Description

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The species grows up to 15 to 40 meters tall. It is deciduous and monoecious.[3]

Habitat

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The species grows on southeastern and southern slopes of limestone or calcareous mountains at elevations of 1000 to 2050 meters.[3]

Range

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Prior to 2021, it was only known from Laos and Vietnam (and a previously undocumented specimen collected in Thailand). Its original localities had been affected by repeated deforestation events, and it was thus not observed in these sites for over 63 years, raising fears that it had been driven to extinction. However, in 2021, three fragmented subpopulations of this species were discovered on the eastern edge of the Ailao Mountains in Yunnan Province, China. The populations contained about 50 total adult trees, some gigantic in size, as well as some seedlings and saplings. These populations are located relatively close to villages, but the trees are considered sacred by villagers due to their large size and are thus not at risk of being cut down. Due to its very low population and fragmented distribution, it has been recommended that this species be classified as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List.[4]

References

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  1. ^ a b Roskov Y.; Kunze T.; Orrell T.; Abucay L.; Paglinawan L.; Culham A.; Bailly N.; Kirk P.; Bourgoin T.; Baillargeon G.; Decock W.; De Wever A.; Didžiulis V., eds. (2014). "Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2014 Annual Checklist". Species 2000: Reading, UK. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  2. ^ World Plants: Synonymic Checklists of the Vascular Plants of the World
  3. ^ a b "Carya poilanei (A.Chev.) Leroy".
  4. ^ Zhang, Wei-Ping; Bai, Wei-Ning; Zhang, Da-Yong (2022-12-01). "The rediscovery of Carya poilanei (Juglandaceae) after 63 years reveals a new record from China". PhytoKeys (188): 73–82. doi:10.3897/phytokeys.188.77242. ISSN 1314-2003. PMC 8770418. PMID 35095293.