Furcraea martinezii

Botanical Description

Furcraea martinezii is an evergreen, tree-like succulent plant developing an unbranched trunk that usually reaches 2 - 8 metres tall, exceptionally to 18 metres. The leaves develop as a rosette on top of the trunk[ 338 Title IUCN Red List of Threatened Species Publication Author Website http://www.iucnredlist.org/ Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat. ]. The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a source of fibre. The flowers are used locally to adorn churches during the Christian celebrations of Holy Week. The plant is prized as an ornamental in botanical gardens[ 338 Title IUCN Red List of Threatened Species Publication Author Website http://www.iucnredlist.org/ Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat. ]. Furcraea martinezii is a rare micro-endemic species with a total population estimated to be less than 2,500 mature individuals. Additionally, the number of mature individuals is experiencing a continuous decline due to the conversion of many natural landscapes into agricultural-livestock lands, causing direct mortality. Regarding this situation, a reduction of at least 20% is estimated to occur in the next 100 years. The plant is classified as 'Endangered' in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(2020)[ 338 Title IUCN Red List of Threatened Species Publication Author Website http://www.iucnredlist.org/ Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat. ].