Widdringtonia whytei

Botanical Description

Widdringtonia whytei is an evergreen tree with a pyramidal crown that eventually becomes irregular or flat-topped, the branches are spreading or ascending; it can grow up to 50 metres tall. The usually straight bole can be free of branches for up to 20 metres and up to 150cm in diameter, occasionally to 200cm[ 299 Title Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa. Publication Author Website http://www.prota.org Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa. ]. Widdringtonia whytei has been one of the most important sources of softwood in Malawi for almost 100 years, and has consequently been greatly over-exploited. Trade in the wood has much diminished and is confined now to a local scale[ 299 Title Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa. Publication Author Website http://www.prota.org Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa. ]. This species is acutely threatened with extinction for a range of reasons. Its area of occupancy and the number of individuals has been severely reduced through excessive felling in the past 100+ years. Currently, only dead standing timber is legally harvested but illegal cutting of living trees is a major problem. An increase in the extent and frequency of fires further reduces remaining stands and prevents regeneration. Although some fires are natural, the majority are the result of deliberately set hunting fires, crop burning and, to a lesser extent, forestry and tourism activities. Fuelwood collection and the expansion of small holder farms into the lower slopes is a more indirect, but widespread threat as it leads to deforestation and degradation of forests at lower altitudes. As these lower forests disappear, pressure increases on the higher altitude forests including the remaining cedar stands. One recent study (Hecht 2008) indicated that, if current trends continue, the lower slopes could be completely deforested within the next decade, with the upper forest following soon after. A potential threat in the near future relates to open cast mining of the significant bauxite deposits that have been found on several parts of the plateau. The plant is classified as 'Critically Endangered' in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(2011)[ 338 Title IUCN Red List of Threatened Species Publication Author Website http://www.iucnredlist.org/ Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat. ].