Proud of you Pankaj Success only comes after dedication and hard work you proved it Many more to come Thanks for showing cute orchid Best wishes
On Sun, 22 May 2022 at 5:35 PM, Dinesh Valke <[email protected]> wrote: > Superb, dear Pankaj. Liked the adventure of meeting your goal. Such > determined efforts satisfies the mind thoroughly, knowing that the loose > ends are tied up. Thanks for sharing the charming orchid. > Regards. > > On Sun, 22 May 2022, 17:27 J.M. Garg, <[email protected]> wrote: > >> Thanks, Pankaj ji, for the gripping write up. >> I know it is so risky. >> True grit combined with Orchid taxonomy. >> You are always so involved. That is why we are here. >> Great!!! >> >> >> On Sun, 22 May 2022 at 16:26, Pankaj Kumar <[email protected]> >> wrote: >> >>> In 2011, while going through the proof of one of the books, "The wild >>> orchids of Hong Kong", I realised there was a mistake. There was a species, >>> *Crepidium >>> acuminatum* included in the book and it had two figures plus one plate. >>> To my surprise neither of those two plants on the figures and the plate (of >>> one plant) matched with the species I knew from Western Himalaya and Nepal. >>> However, one of the figures and the colour picture matched with another >>> species Crepidium purpureum, which I also knew from Himalaya. Having seen >>> the wild plants I was sure that one plant was Crepidium purpureum, but then >>> what was the other. Anyways, the book was published as it was. Few years >>> later I found an old plant collected in the wild in our living collection, >>> this was labelled as Malaxis allanii. I was surprised because this was >>> surely very distinct but in the same book it was merged under Crepidium >>> acuminatum. However, there was an issue. Many of these old living plants >>> were also brought from outside Hong Kong to study and compare with local >>> species. How to resolve this? The only way out was to find this plant which >>> was described as Malaxis allanii in 1976 based on a specimen collected in >>> the 1950s from a part of Hong Kong. So the search began and it started with >>> looking at old literature. In old notes from the 1970s I found an old map. >>> This map belonged to an old hiking trip in the 1990s which indicated >>> roughly the site of the species but also indicated that the person who >>> undertook the survey was unable to find the plants of *Malaxis allanii* >>> at the original site but found at another site. I had already looked into >>> the area and hence, started to think of visiting this particular stream. In >>> 2020, finally after doing a lot of map reading and consultation of old >>> literature, visited Kew to study the original specimens, I was able to find >>> this particular subpopulation along with 2 more subpopulations of the >>> species in the same stream, that too in flowering. I was able to confirm >>> that this plant was indeed the same as the plants in our living collection. >>> However, in my head I wanted to find out the type locality of this species. >>> Hence, I continued my search and in 2021 I found another subpopulation of >>> the species, but in the same stream. My search went on and after a >>> difficult hike in April 2022, I finally found the species in its type >>> locality. How can I say it is the type locality? Because in the 1950s the >>> area was not well developed and hence, if someone wants to hike, he will >>> start with the main stream in the centre. My mistake was, I never went into >>> the main stream, maybe because this was very difficult and risky. At two >>> points, I almost lost my balance and slipped on loose gravel on the slopes >>> and also missed a snake bite which was sitting on the branches. But it was >>> a non-venomous indochinese rat snake.This plant was also in flower and it >>> matched with the plant at all other sites and with the plants in our living >>> collection. Even during my first trip in 2020, I carried ropes and >>> carabineers because it was steep slope and it was raining. Infact I had to >>> use the ropes to pull a few of my friends who accompanied me on this >>> difficult trip. Bottom line is, this was indeed a distinct species seen >>> only after 1950s at its type locality, and hence it needed to be >>> resurrected. The article was finally published in 2022 and we call this >>> plant as *, Crepidium allanii (S.Y.Hu <http://S.Y.Hu> & Barretto) Kumar >>> & S.W.Gale*. Please find a photograph attached. >>> >>> FOR FURTHER READING: Kumar, P., J. Li & S.W.Gale. 2022. Integrative >>> analyses of *Crepidium *(Orchidaceae, Epidendroideae, Malaxideae) shed >>> more light on its relationships with *Dienia*, *Liparis *and *Malaxis *and >>> justify reinstatement of narrow endemic *C. allanii*. *Botanical >>> Journal of Linnean Society *198 (3): 285–305; >>> https://doi.org/10.1093/botlinnean/boab048 >>> >>> [image: Crepidium allanii.jpg] >>> >>> >>> -- >>> >>> *Pankaj Kumar* MSc, PhD, FLS >>> >>> *IUCN-SSC Orchid Specialist Group Asia* >>> >>> Lam Tsuen, Tai Po, New Territories, Hong Kong S.A.R., P.R. China >>> >>> *email*: [email protected]; [email protected] >>> *Phone*: +852 9436 6251 (mobile) >>> >>> -- >>> 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 view this discussion on the web, visit >>> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/indiantreepix/CABpo8%3D1jFvn8vEWf4UOvoT4oP3OF%3DZ-6uWU2meZiajWHy54jxw%40mail.gmail.com >>> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/indiantreepix/CABpo8%3D1jFvn8vEWf4UOvoT4oP3OF%3DZ-6uWU2meZiajWHy54jxw%40mail.gmail.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >>> . >>> >> >> >> -- >> With regards, >> J.M.Garg >> >> -- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >> "ITPmods" group. >> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >> email to [email protected]. >> To view this discussion on the web, visit >> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/itpmods/CA%2BiuSFCo788g6jd5Y62_hYid%2BBYYn%2B0%2B0haZwK%2BX9xs%3DCruFbw%40mail.gmail.com >> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/itpmods/CA%2BiuSFCo788g6jd5Y62_hYid%2BBYYn%2B0%2B0haZwK%2BX9xs%3DCruFbw%40mail.gmail.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >> . >> > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "ITPmods" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To view this discussion on the web, visit > https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/itpmods/CABSQqC2r%3Dv3N1VNFG5J0Cg9u3ZFwJQFPcA4mJTtZfS%2BbKWZf%3Dw%40mail.gmail.com > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/itpmods/CABSQqC2r%3Dv3N1VNFG5J0Cg9u3ZFwJQFPcA4mJTtZfS%2BbKWZf%3Dw%40mail.gmail.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > . > -- Smita Raskar 308 Disha Residency, Salaiwada,Sawantwadi Mob.09422379568 -- 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 view this discussion on the web, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/indiantreepix/CABDcxeC3m4CsJ0fjQ6LBhyXC4KT3V0gnEr15zzOw3b%2BUS4BKfw%40mail.gmail.com.
