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TCS
2010 Grants
Cycas micronesica on the Island
of Yap
Thomas Marler
University of Guam
27 May 2010
The Cycad Society
Research, Conservation and Grants
Committee
Subject: Informal request for funds
I am writing to request funds to work
within Cycas micronesica habitats on the island of Yap. We are at an
interesting stage in the developing threats to this species. The fact that we
have learned so much in the past few years also allows us to identify critical
gaps in knowledge. Current range for C. micronesica includes the
islands that comprise the state of Palau and the islands of Yap, Guam, and
Rota. Cycad aulacaspis scale (Aulacaspis yasumatsui) and the predator
Rhyzobius lophanthae
are now established on Guam, Rota, and several of
the Palau islands. This predator is responsible for saving the individuals
that are still alive, but it is not fully protecting the plants from mortality
for several reasons. We are in the process of rearing a parasitoid on Oahu,
and already have the permits to introduce it to Guam. If it establishes and
picks up the slack where the predator is not effective, the two biological
control agents working in tandem may thwart further mortality.
We have just completed a USDA project in
which we studied the genetic relations of the plants among the islands. The
results indicate at least two populations within the Palau islands do not
belong to Cycas micronesica. One of these populations lumps with C.
rumphii plants in the closest Indonesian islands. The other Palau island’s
plants do not conform to any described species. This genomics work has shown
that the Yap population is the oldest population and the most pristine
genetically. Yap is also the only island that has not been invaded by
Aulacaspis yasumatsui. Therefore, this is an ideal time to focus on Yap.
I am asking for $2,500 to support three
trips over the next year. The trips will be six months apart, and the primary
purpose is to scout the Cycas micronesica populations to ensure an
invasion of Aulacaspis yasumatsui has not occurred, then to ensure that
we are ready to introduce biological control rapidly if one of the trips
reveals a recent invasion. The secondary purpose of the initial trip is to
conduct a thorough census and collect demography data. These data will provide
the information needed to describe the general health of the Yap population as
defined by its structure, then provide pre-invasion data for comparison if an
invasion does occur at some point in the future. With daily flights from Guam
to Yap, an invasion remains highly likely.
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