Thank you all for showing interest in this rediscovery and showering nice words on me. I believe these words will inspire me to continue this quest to search other little known plants. It is the good wishes that give strength to a person in field work, away from home, without cell phones, hiding under a rock shelter, crossing glacial crevices with little basic safety equipment, or crossing a river hanging on a wire! I have many such experiences of trekking in Uttarakhand and words of appreciations and good wishes really helps.
DSRawat Pantnagar On Thursday, June 5, 2014 2:22:13 PM UTC+5:30, D.S Rawat wrote: > > We have good news on this day when a lot of environmental problems are > discussed including *extinction of species*. > > > > Last year’s toil have fruited now. After a natural disaster (I call it > natural because we are also apart of nature’s creation) in June 2013 in > Utttarakhand Himalaya, we (I with my student Satish) dared to venture into > the anterior Kali Valley on a trail leading to Kailash & Mansarovar, in > July 2014. Hills were severely bleeding with scars of active landslides and > after Pithoragarh we changed vehicles several times to reach Jauljibi for > night stay. > > > Next day, once again, after changing vehicles few times reached Dobat > beyond which no vehicles were available. Consequently, we trekked for about > 25 kms to reach Pangla, a village motorable in normal summer seasons. This > trekking was adventurous (see pics) and even the local people were not > moving from their villages. After Pangla there were numerous landslides and > road was covered with sliding mantle of earth; it is yet not repaired > today. We trekked for nearly 15 km negotiating ups and downs in the remote > Himalayan terrain and reached Malpa, a place remembered for a natural > disaster in August 1998 in which entire Malpa (Malipa) village and pilgrims > to Kailash- Mansarovar were killed. Now this place has a deserted look and > Mahakali (as Kali river known in the area) roars in a deep gorge hundred > meters below old Malipa village site. > > > > Despite of all troubles in 40-45 km track we were rewarded by the > collection of a presumed *Extinct* species *Dipcadi reidii (Asparagaceae)*. > Way back, in 1886, J.F. Duthie and J.R. Reid collected plants here and on > the basis of these specimens a new species D. reidii was published by Deb > and S. Dasgupta in 1978. The species was never collected or seen by any > other after 1886 and this led to the assumption that it has become extinct > (in Red Data Book of Indian Plants and 1997 IUCN Redlist of threatened > Plants). The locality of D. reidii was, in fact, not clear in scientific > literature and general plant collection in the area didn't collect it. > > > > It was fortunate for us that our intentional botanical exploration in this > remote locality succeeded in rediscovery of it. > > > > Our scientific publication will appear in June issue of Rheedea and I > received the proof of it today. > > > *Attached pics narrate the story*. > > Dr D.S.Rawat > Department of Biological Sciences, G.B. Pant University of Agriculture & > Technology Pantnagar-263 145 Uttarakhand, INDIA > > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "efloraofindia" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/indiantreepix. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
