Nepenthes Northiana - Ecology

Ecology

Nepenthes northiana is endemic to the Kuching Division of Sarawak, particularly the hills around the village of Bau. The species has an altitudinal distribution of 0 to 500 m above sea level and is restricted to limestone substrates.

Nepenthes northiana generally grows in exposed sites on near-vertical limestone cliffs with permanent water seepage. Less commonly it occurs in secondary vegetation on small hills. It is sympatric with other limestone flora such as Alocasia longiloba var. lowii.

The conservation status of N. northiana is listed as Vulnerable on the 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species based on an assessment carried out in 2000. This agrees with the informal classification of the species made by botanist Charles Clarke in 1997. However, it differs from the assessment by the World Conservation Monitoring Centre, which classified N. northiana as "endangered".

Quarrying activity has damaged several of the hills on which N. northiana grows, although this has apparently not affected the plants directly. In addition, natural populations of N. northiana have suffered from over-collection in recent years. Plants of this species have a high commercial value and are thus highly sought after by collectors. In their 1996 monograph Pitcher-Plants of Borneo, Anthea Phillipps and Anthony Lamb wrote that N. northiana "has been over-collected nearly to the point of extinction". Despite this, the short term future of the species appears to be secure, as most remaining plants are inaccessible to collectors.