| Scientific Name | Cassipourea flanaganii (Schinz) Alston | Higher Classification | Dicotyledons | Family | RHIZOPHORACEAE | Common Names | Cape Onionwood (e), Kaapse Uiehout (a), Small-leaved Bastard Onionwood (e), Umemeziobomvu (z) |
National Status | Status and Criteria | Endangered A4acd; C1+2a(i) | Assessment Date | 2008/03/03 | Assessor(s) | V.L. Williams, D. Raimondo, A.P. Dold, N.R. Crouch, A.B. Cunningham, C.R. Scott-Shaw, M. Lötter & A.M. Ngwenya | Justification | A population reduction of at least 50% in the past 100 years is suspected based on volumes of bark harvested for the local traditional medicinal plant trade, and is expected to continue at the same rate for the next 50 years due to the popularity of this species (generation length 50 years). In addition, we estimate that the population consists of fewer than 2500 mature individuals and that no subpopulation has more than 250 mature individuals, based on surveys conducted in the Eastern Cape Province. |
Distribution | Endemism | South African endemic | Provincial distribution | Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal | Range | This species is endemic to the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal provinces, where it stretches from King William's Town to southern KwaZulu-Natal. |
Habitat and Ecology | Major system | Terrestrial | Major habitats | Southern Coastal Forest, Scarp Forest, Southern Mistbelt Forest | Description | Plants grow in evergreen primary and secondary forests from the coast to 1220 m. It is also found in southern mistbelt forest. |
Threats | | Bark is harvested for traditional medicine and sold in the medicinal plant markets in KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng, Mpumalanga and the Eastern Cape. Cunningham (1988) estimated that 156 bags of Cassipourea spp. (C. flanaganii and C. malosana) were sold annually by 54 herb-traders in the Durban muthi markets, and classed the species as 'declining' - i.e. a species that was recently widespread but is likely to become vulnerable and continue to decline if destruction of the wild populations continues. In Mpumalanga, Botha et al. (2001) report that Cassipourea spp. is in high demand. Williams (2007) reported that 60% of muthi shops in 1994 and 2% of street traders in the Faraday market sold Cassipourea spp. In Mpumalanga and Gauteng, it is suspected that only a small proportion, if any, of the Cassipourea spp. sold is actually C. flanaganii due to its increased rarity (V.L. Williams, pers. obs., 2008).
The current primary threat is bark harvesting for the cosmetics industry, specifically as a skin lightener. It is a rare forest tree in the Eastern Cape and has been harvested indiscriminately in the last 25 years for sale in the herbal medicine markets and muthi shops (Cocks and Dold 2004). The bark is removed from the tree, often leading to death, and is sold both locally and internationally. The effect of uncontrolled harvesting has had negative consequences on the ecology and habitat of the species (Cocks and Dold 2004). There is an absence of literature on the use of the species before the early 1970s, suggesting that the use and trade of the species was uncommon before that time (Cocks and Dold 2004). The bark is only harvested from wild populations, and a survey revealed that 97.9% of traders obtained the bark from the Eastern Cape (Cocks and Dold 2004). Furthermore, it was estimated that approximately 756 kg are sold annually in the Eastern Cape markets (Dold and Cocks 2002). Due to increased commercialisation resulting from the manufacture of products derived from the bark, there has been an increased demand for the species (Cocks and Dold 2004). The primary source of bark is the Pirie State Forest near King William's Town, followed by Gatyana Forest in the Willowdale district (Cocks and Dold 2004). In the Pirie Forests between 1986 and 1989, uncontrolled harvesting took place on a large scale resulting in the almost total loss of adult trees (Cocks and Dold 2004).
Excessive bark harvesting (i.e. complete ring-barking) has led to fatalities of larger trees and a massive decline in the abundance and availability of large and/or reproductive individuals (Cocks and Dold 2004). For example, Palmer and Pitman (1972) stated that trees can attain a diameter of up to 23 cm, whereas the largest individual recorded by Cocks and Dold (2004) in their study site was 12 cm. This has enormous ecological implications for the species, because there are virtually no mature individuals within the Pirie populations to ensure its continued reproduction (Cocks and Dold 2004). Furthermore, the coppicing ability of the tree appears to be limited because all ring-barked trees in the Hobo forests were dead. The species therefore has a low potential for sustainable harvesting. |
Population | The population size is estimated to be less than 2500 mature individuals, based on surveys conducted in the Eastern Cape province. Disturbed areas where bark harvesting has occurred often produces thousands of seedlings, but as soon as they get to about 5 cm diameter they are targeted for bark (A.P. Dold, pers. comm., 2008). In relatively safe subpopulations, trees are naturally few and far between. In the Eastern Cape, excessive harvesting pressure appears to have caused up to 90% reduction in the number of mature individuals with a dbh greater than 20 cm.
| Population trend | Decreasing |
Conservation | | It is protected in the Umtamvuna Nature Reserve. |
Assessment History |
Taxon assessed |
Status and Criteria |
Citation/Red List version | | Cassipourea flanaganii (Schinz) Alston | EN A4acd; C1+2a(i) | Raimondo et al. (2009) | | Cassipourea flanaganii (Schinz) Alston | Rare | Hilton-Taylor (1996) | | Cassipourea flanaganii (Schinz) Alston | Rare | Hall et al. (1980) | |
Bibliography | Boon, R. 2010. Pooley's Trees of eastern South Africa. Flora and Fauna Publications Trust, Durban.
Botha, J., Witkowski, E.T.F. and Shackleton, C.M. 2001. An inventory of medicinal plants traded on the western boundary of the Kruger National Park, South Africa. Koede 44(2):7-46.
Cocks, M. and Dold, A.P. 2004. The informal trade in Cassipourea flanaganii as a cosmetic in South Africa. In: T. Sunderland and O. Ndoye (eds.), Forest Products, Livelihoods and Conservation: Case Studies of Non-Timber Forest Product Systems (Vol. 2 - Africa, pp. 73-90), Centre for International Forestry Research, Jakarta.
Cocks, M.L. and Dold, A.P. 2002. In: F.S. Wyndham and R.K. Zarger (eds), The informal trade in Cassipourea flanaganii as a cosmetic in South Africa. Paper presented at the Ethnobiology and Biocultural Diversity. Proceedings of the 7th International Congress of Ethnobiology, University of Georgia Press.
Cunningham, A.B. 1988. An investigation of the herbal medicine trade in Natal/KwaZulu. Investigational Report No. 29. Institute of Natural Resources, Pietermaritzburg.
Dold, A.P. and Cocks, M.L. 2002. The trade in medicinal plants in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. South African Journal of Science 98:589-597.
Hall, A.V., De Winter, M., De Winter, B. and Van Oosterhout, S.A.M. 1980. Threatened plants of southern Africa. South African National Scienctific Programmes Report 45. CSIR, Pretoria.
Hilton-Taylor, C. 1996. Red data list of southern African plants. Strelitzia 4. South African National Botanical Institute, Pretoria.
Mucina, L. and Rutherford, M.C. (eds). 2006. The vegetation of South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland. Strelitzia 19. South African National Biodiversity Institute, Pretoria.
Raimondo, D., von Staden, L., Foden, W., Victor, J.E., Helme, N.A., Turner, R.C., Kamundi, D.A. and Manyama, P.A. 2009. Red List of South African Plants. Strelitzia 25. South African National Biodiversity Institute, Pretoria.
Williams, V.L. 2007. The design of a risk assessment model to determine the impact of the herbal medicine trade on the Witwatersrand on resources of indigenous plant species. Unpublished PhD Thesis, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg.
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Citation | | Williams, V.L., Raimondo, D., Dold, A.P., Crouch, N.R., Cunningham, A.B., Scott-Shaw, C.R., Lötter, M. & Ngwenya, A.M. 2008. Cassipourea flanaganii (Schinz) Alston. National Assessment: Red List of South African Plants version . Accessed on 2025/05/20 |
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