Meet the 2nd Pancheria ouaiemensis Plant Posted to iNat! - Observation of the Week, 1/23/24

Our Observation of the Week is only the second Pancheria ouaiemensis plant posted to iNaturalist! Seen in New Caledonia by @narido. 

Dorian.KC (“narido” is an anagram of Dorian), a primary school teacher from China, says his passion for plants started in his senior year of high school. “Honestly,” he tells me, “there aren’t any complicated reasons or exciting origins. I love things living and growing in their own way, in the most natural, the most comfortable, the most vital fashion.”

Dorian studied changes in flower color across different altitudes in Taiwan for graduate school, and has since traveled to many places to explore flora around the world.  

Plants live in places different from me, lead a lifestyle different from me, communicate with creatures differently than I do, and witness stories and histories differently than I do. Once I have taken photos of plants in the wild, I feel like I can get a complete sense of everything about their lives. Not only digital records, but also the beautiful flowers they have, the pollinators they interact with, the waterfalls by which they live. I can easily connect with them when I take and enjoy the photos. It’s quite pleasant to develop such interests with iNaturalist.

A few months ago Dorian traveled to New Caledonia, extremely excited by its high number of endemic plants. He saw this Pancheria ouaiemensis while on a hike in the northern side of the island.

I climbed for almost 2 hours, taking photos non-stop of the plants along trail, and I was drenched in sweat. Unfortunately the stunning views were covered by heavy fog, but surprisingly I did finally come across a Pancheria ouaiemensis plant. Although I saw many species of Pancheria in southern New Caledonia, it’s the first Pancheria I recorded in the north. Because all Pancheria species are endemic to New Caledonia and they have gone through adaptive radiation, i.e., diversified rapidly into multiple new species, each Pancheria fits perfectly into their local environment.

Their leaves are thick and tough, with a waxy surface which literally shows me how Pancheria ouaiemensis has adapted to frequent wildfires, seasonal drought, and poor nutrients in the maquis habitats. In addition, the cream-white color and sweetly scented capitula could attract many types of pollinators - not only bees and flies, but also butterflies and beetles. This may allow Pancheria ouaiemensis to adapt to the declining pollinators on island habitats. Such an incredible book of amazing evolution, living vividly in front of me.

Dorian (above, on Mont Mou in New Caledonia) wonders at French botanist Jean Armand Isidore Pancher, the namesake of Pancheria. What was it like exploring a remote island without the kind of references we have available now?

Fortunately, iNaturalist provides us with a very friendly environment and a professional reference. When planning my trip, iNaturalist helped a lot to locate the regions and trails where I could find my target plant species. And I also search and compare my records using iNat databases, as many of the most recent images and records are here - which is extremely helpful. Then I love to share my findings with people around the world!

You don’t have to worry about having a DSLR or a professional camera - mobile phones are encouraged on iNaturalist and this indeed breaks down barriers for nature observation. It’s cool and agreeable to record, to learn, and to share nature using iNaturalist.    

Right now, there are no excuses to not record nature.

(Some quotes have been lightly edited for clarity and flow.)

- take a look at all 200+ observations of Pancheria plants on iNaturalist!

- in 2020 @damienbr's observation of the Dumbéa River Pipefish from New Caledonia was the first one of that species in decades!

Posted on January 23, 2024 07:21 PM by tiwane