Shreejana Raut
Department of Science and Technology
Orchids (commonly called as Sunakhari/Sungava in Nepali) are one the most fascinating and diverse group of flowering plants belonging to the family Orchidaceae found in every continent except Antartica. There are about 880 genera and 26000 species distributed worldwide. They are renowned for their beauty, colorful unique floral structure, fragrance and ecological importance. Orchids exhibit beautiful comical mimics in nature and take various shapes like insects, butterflies, birds etc. Nepal being a small country is very rich in orchid diversity due to its varied geography, ranging from tropical lowlands to alpine highlands. Orchids not only enhance Nepal’s natural beauty but also hold great cultural, medicinal, ornamental and economic value.
In Nepal around 500 species of orchids are distributed from Terai region (tropical climate) up to the Himalayan region (alpine climate). Dendrobium, Vanda, Cymbidium, Coelogyne, Bulbophyllum, Calanthe etc are the common genera of orchids that are found in Nepal. There are around 15-18 species of orchids endemic to Nepal. Some of them are Dendrobium densiflorum, Eria pokharensis, Bulbophyllum nepalense, Vanda cristata var. nepalensis etc. Orchids are mostly found in epiphytic (growing on trees), terrestrial (growing on soil) and lithophytic (growing on rocks) habitat in Nepal.
Orchids are advanced floral creatures that interact with mycorrhizal fungi for their growth and survival. Its diversity provides opportunities for research, education and conservation studies helping scientists understand plant evolution, ecology and plant adaptations. As orchids have high demand in international ornamental plant market, cultivation and tissue culture of orchid can support income generation, eco-tourism and rural livelihoods if promoted sustainably.
In Nepal many species of orchids are under threat due to deforestation, illegal trade, climate change, over collection, habitat destruction and many more. To protect them government along with other organizations should take several conservation measures. Some of them might be protecting old trees, planting new trees, conducting different types of awareness programme, strict implementation of rules and regulation, promoting ex-situ conservation and in-situ conservation, conduction of systematic research to develop better propagation technique, promoting legal, sustainable trade of cultivated orchids etc. Additionally, research documentation and DNA barcoding also play a significant role in conservation of orchids.
Shreejana Raut
Biology department
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