Land Acquisition Fund: new project in Uganda gives endangered cycads the time they need

How the plant species is pollinated is still very much a mystery, but the urgency of protecting it is crystal clear. In Uganda, the population of the critically endangered Mpanga Falls cycad is under increasing pressure. In April of this year and with support from the IUCN NL Land Acquisition Fund, the Kyaninga Forest Foundation has taken substantial steps in safeguarding the cycad ecosystem in Mpanga Gorge. Matt Cooper, director of the foundation, is fascinated by this endemic species. ‘Their ancestors survived dinosaurs, but will they survive us? We will do everything we can to make this happen.’

Header photo: KFF team in the Mpanga Gorge. Photos on this page: © Kyaninga Forest Foundation

The Mpanga Falls cycad (Encephalartos whitelockii) is endemic to the western part of Uganda. In Mpanga Gorge, there is an estimated 8,000 individuals left, but, as it is very difficult to verify the exact population, this figure may be substantially lower. In the past ten years, deforestation and slash-and-burn methods for agriculture have been increasingly pressuring the cycads’ habitat.

Agroforestry benefiting nature and farmers

The goal of the project is to safeguard the population of the Mpanga Falls cycad whilst providing benefits to the communities in the new protected area: the Mpanga Gorge Cycad Breeding and Conservation Hub. The next steps will be to put in place protection measures, produce new seedlings in a nursery and develop agroforestry systems for the area’s inhabitants.

Kyaninga Forest Foundation (KFF) works together with more than 2,500 smallholder farmers. Agriculture is the main means of income in the region, as at a national level, and working with the communities in and near the protected area is key to long-term conservation and restoration success.

‘I want to help to protect their habitat, and I am interested in translocating cycads from my land to the newly-established conservation area.’

Kakuhikyire Furujensi, farmer working with KFF

Ahishakyiye Haruna says his land currently has ‘no economic benefits, because it is degraded and we are not allowed to remove the cycads.’ Moving the cycads to the protected zone, rather than telling the farmers not to cut them, combined with agroforestry is key to KFF’s approach. They develop forested areas with both endemic vegetation and trees providing food, firewood, fodder for livestock, leaves and bark for medicine and timber for income. Additionally, these trees stabilise the soil and provide shade, among other things.

An important element of the project is to listen to the communities’ needs. The foundation’s team visits the farmers to talk with them about their expectations about the restoration efforts. Subsequently, they study the grounds of the farm to determine which species are best suited for each individual household. Kakuhikyire Furujensi is one of these farmers. He did not know much about the cycads, he says, until he started talking with KFF: ‘I want to help to protect their habitat, and I am interested in translocating cycads from my land to the newly-established conservation area.’ As they have no livelihood value to the farmers, moving the cycads to the protected area may provide a mutually beneficial solution.

‘As a species, cycads are older than insects. They are slow in everything: they come from a time when time did not exist.’ Creating safe habitat, as is currently being done with the 21 hectares protected area in Mpanga Gorge, is important for the plant to regenerate at their own pace.’

Matt Cooper, director of KFF

Cycads regenerate at their own pace

As their habitat is severely fragmented, pollination of the plants is becoming challenging as males and females must be in close proximity for successful pollination, with the team regularly finding unpollinated cones. It takes them a long time to mature, shares the foundation’s director: ‘As a species, cycads are older than insects. They are slow in everything: they come from a time when time did not exist.’ Creating safe habitat, as is currently being done with the 21 hectares protected area in Mpanga Gorge, is important for the plant to regenerate at their own pace.’

An interesting fact is that many cycad species switched from wind pollination to insect pollination, after insects came into the picture. The exact way the Mpanga Falls cycad reproduces, however, is not yet confirmed; KFF is planning to determine this in the near future. In addition to conservation and restoration activities, KFF therefore conducts research in Mpanga Gorge to figure out the pollination mechanism. Science also intertwines with other activities, according to Cooper: ‘Everything we do is as science-based as possible.’

A remarkable species

Cooper is fascinated by the species. ‘Cycads are remarkably tough plants. They are capable of growing on rocky outcrops with seemingly no soil, have leaves laced with cyanide that even  hungry dinosaurs and reproductive cones that pulse heat waves to attract insects. When faced with an abrupt change in their habitat, the species is capable of simply going to sleep for more than 20 years. If conditions become favourable again, the plants awaken as if nothing had happened. It sounds like cycads are almost invincible, however, not when they are young. Adults can survive wildfires or bush burning; younger plants cannot. Their ancestors survived dinosaurs, but will they survive us? We will do everything we can to make this happen.’

Supported by the Land Acquisition Fund

The land purchase to establish the privately protected area in Mpanga Gorge was supported by the IUCN NL Land Acquisition Fund. ‘The Mpanga Gorge Cycad Breeding and Conservation Hub is a great example of how the protection of endangered species and supporting sustainable livelihoods can go hand in hand,’ says Marc Hoogeslag, coordinator of the fund. 

Since its foundation in 2001, the Land Acquisition Fund of has enabled safeguarding over 70.000 hectares of natural habitat. Through the work of the local NGOs, safeguarding important ecosystems creates a win-win for biodiversity, the climate and human well-being.