Freycinetia baueriana

Botanical Description

Freycinetia baueriana is an evergreen shrub with straggling stems that can climb into the surrounding vegetation. The stems can grow up to 30 metres long[ 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. ] The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food and source of materials. Freycinetia baueriana is endemic to the palm forest in the Norfolk Islands, where it is mainly found within the Norfolk Islands National Park in the Mount Bates and Mount Pitts area with some plants at Balls Bay nature reserve and on private land. Due to the large reduction in area of native forest on the island (90%) since European's settlement the plant is suspected to have had an historic population size reduction. The current population trend is suspected to be decreasing due to rats eating the flowers and fruits and the lack of observed young plants in the last ten years. The plant is classified as 'Critically Endangered' in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(2013)[ 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. ].