Cycads, an ancient group of plants dating from the time of the dinosaurs, are threatened globally by extinction. The plants are also coveted by collectors, especially rarer specimens. In South Africa, a hotspot of cycad diversity, this demand has given rise to a harmful illicit market that has placed dozens of species at risk. Thousands of cycads have been dug up from the wild, with poachers using a legal cycad market to launder their harvests.
by Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime, Daily Maverick‘Loved to death’: Poaching for the horticultural market threatens cycads in South Africa by Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime, Daily Maverick January 4, 2022 The Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden, in Cape Town, South Africa, is globally famous for its displays of indigenous vegetation.
This article first appeared on Daily Maverick and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
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