From August to September 2023, Mr. LUO Wanqing accidentally discovered a small grove of “willow forest” with a delicate shape and full of red pods by the Takha River in Jiulong County. At first, he didn’t pay much attention, and just thought that these trees seemed a little different from ordinary willows. The leaves were particularly long and slender, and the leaves were green in color. They were very pleasing, so he took some photos. Later, when talking with a friend who was engaged in seedling planting, he realized that this was actually a wild population of Acer pentaphyllum.
According to Luo Wanqing’s description, there are more than 100 Acer pentaphyllum trees growing along the stream in this forest. The average tree height is about 2 meters and the diameter at breast height is about 10-15 centimeters. It seems to be at least several decades old and it is a mature forest. When it was discovered, this forest was bearing fruit. The pods, as thin as cicada wings, were very pretty among the green branches and leaves. The distribution area of this forest is estimated to be 20-30 acres. The area is sparsely populated, with only a small village of about 20-30 households. The livelihood of the villagers usually does not interact with these woods, but allows them to grow wild.
Currently, the newly discovered population of wild Acer pentaphyllum in the Takha River area of Jiulong County, Sichuan is growing well. The China Biodiversity Conservation and Green Development Foundation(CBCGDF) is actively planning to build a new community conservation area(CCAfa) to interact with other domestic conservation areas and strengthen the protection of this wild population.
Original article: https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/1RSngueyIiHkQufePUqLHg
Translator:Daisy
Checked by Sara
Editor: Daisy
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