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It's an Endemic!
The last several weeks on St. John, have been interesting. I’ve been living at Maho Bay Camps for the last 6 weeks, and this correspondent has been living slightly rougher than usual. Maho Bay Camps is an eco-resort located on the northern shore of St. John. Basically, it’s a bunch of stilted tents placed on a lovely hillside that looks out over Maho Bay, Francis Bay, and St. Thomas. Living in this place has been interesting for a number of reasons- it’s nearly like living outside- just a thin screen of separation lies between you and your surroundings. The tents are equipped with two beds, a fan, table, stove, cooler, and water bucket. Having only those things, plus whatever you bring makes it easy to escape whatever life you lead elsewhere. So, I’ve been doing just that- forget about school, the mainland, etc. etc. and get down to living life on island time (yea, it really does exist).
I spend most of my time working at Maho Bay Camps- The reason I chose to stay here is because they offer a free tent to you PLUS a bag of ice per day (for that cooler) if you work six hours each day for the camp. So, I work from 8-2:30 at the camps, and then head off for the many misadventures available on the island. But, we’ll get to that soon enough! The reason I’m writing is to talk about a species which is endemic to St. John, Solanum conocarpum.
“ A rare and endangered species, known only from a few old collections and from two recent collections. The species is known on St. John from only a single living plant, from dry, deciduous forest.”
Well, today I got to meet that single living plant. I had the pleasure of meeting a plant expert on St. John several weeks ago, and we set up a meeting to go out and collect some data on a reintroduction plot. The plot was on the south side of the island, in a nice secluded, undisturbed area of the island within the bounds of the National Park. The plot included 64 original plants, but the number has dwindled to the last twenty or so survivors. The remaining survivors, after being there for about 10 years, were a mere 15-24 cm tall, completely unarmed. They were tiny little guys! The entire process of taking measurements (height and basal diameter) took about 4 hours, trekking through 4 separate plots, trying to find the little guys. Being short, they weren’t exactly easy to find. On top of that, the flags that had marked the plants were sometimes picked up and moved with sediments transported during rain, and would be several feet away from the actual plant.
Today, I had a great time making ecological waves. What a treat! Some other ecological points about non-natives (by which I really mean invasive) that you might find interesting; have you ever considered any orchid a weed? Well, there’s a species here called Oeceoclades maculata- a terrestrial orchid with lovely mottled green leaves that look pathetically similar to the Sansevieria growing all over the island. The plant came from tropical Africa, and is literally spreading like a weed. So, it’s time to pull some weeds! I haven’t ever pulled an orchid before, and I almost feel like a traitor on the Orchidaceae. There are several other orchids on the island, but the other prevalent species is Psychilis macconnelae. AKA the Bull’s Foot orchid, it grows all over in drier areas, with a long flowering branch, and clusters of greenish yellow flowers with a pink lip, makes this species quite easy on the eyes- even if it looks a bit ridiculous when it blooms on such a long branch. There is also a member of the Rutaceae- a nice fruiting tree called the Genip- (G. Species). The plant produces yellowish green ovoid fruits, which inside resemble a very chewy snot surrounding a large pit. They taste great, but they’re becoming a nuisance in their populations. They enjoy a moister (so, basically all the forest on the N. Shore) environment to grow in. Ecologically, they’re taking out a bunch of diverse plants and creating a large canopy to sow their seeds. These plants are all attractive things gone horribly wrong. What a bunch of good looking mistakes! Anyhow, my misadventures are beginning to catch up with me- I need a good nights sleep after a Big Maho party last night. Let’s just say that the people at Maho Bay know how to have plenty of fun. Until next time (I’ll probably be stateside) but there are more horticultural fun to be had! Oh- I do have a dream too. It goes like this: There’s a place at the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha, Nebraska (my hometown, and a lovely place) . The place is great, because they deal with species like the one I dealt with today. It’s called the Rare and Endangered Plant Lab, and they do some really cool things. I met a woman there, who travels the world, collects rare and endangered (who would’ve thought?!) plant samples, brings them to NE, and propagates them to reintroduce into their native habitat. I just think that’s the cat’s pajamas. Pajamas, man.
Oeceoclades maculata
Blossom of Solanum conocarpum.
My arm, after a sting from a Jack Spaniard (Wasp). The sting was that red spot... which has left a small scar. Those wasps can really do some damage!
Island Tidings, Mr. Winston