Stepping out of the plane in my British “summer” clothes, and being hit by the wall of heat and humidity at 10pm in Tortola was just the first taste of what I will experience for the rest of my time in the British Virgin Islands (BVI). After adjusting to the time change and accepting the fact that I was going to be hot and a little sweaty all the time, work commenced on Virgin Gorda or the “fat virgin’”. My work with the Kew UKOTs Team on this volcanic isle, in collaboration with members from the BVI National Parks Trust (NTP), was to create species lists of the national parks.
Left to right: Keith Grant (NTP), Martin Hamilton (Kew), Natasha Harrigan and myself.
The second we leave the car at each national park (and sometimes before) we are staring into the bush, identifying every species we see. At first I stare blankly into the wall of green, unable to differentiate one spiky leaf from another, but as the days go by I am calling out species left and right.
I make my very first collection, Reynosia guama (common name guama), of the Rhamnaceae family, in Gorda Peak National Park.
This national park is home to some of the rarest plants in BVI, and our team was there to monitor the known individuals and survey for more. The excitement of finding a few more individuals, for example a large specimen of Zanthoxylum thomasianum (St. Thomas Prickly-ash),a rare and endangered species within the park, was cause for celebration amongst the team. However, though the plant is found within a Protected Area (PA), it is still subject to threats from browsing by feral livestock or being chopped down by the illegal farming that occurs on Virgin Gorda.
Photo of Zanthoxylum thomasianum.
The first 3 weeks of work in BVI also took us to two uninhabited islands: Fallen Jerusalem and Prickly Pear. Fallen Jerusalem is a beautiful collection of massive boulders to be accessed by jumping from our boat onto one of them. It is home to another rare species, Acacia anegadensis (Pokemeboy), found only there and in Anegada. The other, Prickly Pear, has been devastated by the impact of feral goats. The evidence is clear in the fields of less edible plants and high erosion on the hillsides of the island.
Top: Fallen Jerusalem and bottom: Prickly Pear.
Now, leaving the altitudes of Virgin Gorda behind, we arrive at Anegada where the stark contrast of a lack of elevation hits you upon arrival at the jetty. The invasive Casuarina trees are the tallest thing you can see from the boat. The flora of Anegada is also subject to the browsing of feral goats, cows and donkeys as well as the bulldozing of roads and development of goat farms (even inside the current Ramsar site).
The Western Salt Ponds are a Ramsar Site: an important area for many bird species as well as flora.
The first few days of surveying involve sampling of the limestone (somehow the plants grow out of pockets of soil within this pavement of rock) and sand dune habitats covering the East and West of the island, respectively.
I find Metastelma anegadense, with its beautiful little flowers and seed pods, in the expected sand dune habitats and a bit farther than predicted next to the salt ponds.
Arygythamnia stahlii growing in pockets of soil in limestone.
Senna polyphylla var. neglecta makes for an exciting find in an extension of the Anegada endemics population to the West of current known individuals. Unfortunately, this species lies outside the PAs on the island. Perhaps further investigations will lead to discoveries within PAs offering some protection for this shrub.
Photo of Senna polyphylla var. neglecta.
The next three weeks will include further surveys around the island, including onto the cays. These are small limestone islands within the salt ponds. There we hope to find more Leptocereus quadricostatus, a very rare cactus of Anegada and Puerto Rico and to extend the known populations of the other threatened species of Anegada.
By Jean Linsky
The Silver Bulletin 