Endangered orchids I feel bad.

[SFLguy]

Same thing happened with orchids in Florida, overharvested to be sold as flower arrangements. Now many are gone

[pipsxlch]

I still remember seeing tons of E. tampensis when I was a kid- those days are long gone, although the stands I saw were destroyed by habitat destruction. I think the ones I collected were the only ones that were taken out (that I saw anyhow)- I didn't know better then, though I couldn't reach much like an adult could either. Almost all of mine were deadfall or off cut down trees at construction sites I went to check out.

I wonder- does eBay forbid trade in CITES/endangered plants as it does in animal products from endangered species? Is there a place/way to report these vendors? Could the higher authorities get involved if they had names/addresses?

I'm not saying you should (and it sounds as if the plant is happy with you, so maybe you shouldn't!), but if it were mine, I'd probably try to find a skilled reputable grower working to species conservation, and pass it on to them. Easy for me to say, I don't have anything 'important' in my collection. Closest is a purchased at a show (so don't know background) tampensis and an Epi. magnoliae I collected from deadfall on a friend's property. All my other handful of (common) species were purchased at shows as babies or from commercial US nurseries.

[SFLguy]

Originally Posted by pipsxlch

I still remember seeing tons of E. tampensis when I was a kid- those days are long gone, although the stands I saw were destroyed by habitat destruction. I think the ones I collected were the only ones that were taken out (that I saw anyhow)- I didn't know better then, though I couldn't reach much like an adult could either. Almost all of mine were deadfall or off cut down trees at construction sites I went to check out.

I wonder- does eBay forbid trade in CITES/endangered plants as it does in animal products from endangered species? Is there a place/way to report these vendors? Could the higher authorities get involved if they had names/addresses?

I'm not saying you should (and it sounds as if the plant is happy with you, so maybe you shouldn't!), but if it were mine, I'd probably try to find a skilled reputable grower working to species conservation, and pass it on to them. Easy for me to say, I don't have anything 'important' in my collection. Closest is a purchased at a show (so don't know background) tampensis and an Epi. magnoliae I collected from deadfall on a friend's property. All my other handful of (common) species were purchased at shows as babies or from commercial US nurseries.

And those are the most common epiphytic orchid left in Florida, magnoliae is a rarer one. I don't think ebay really cares unfortunately

[ChrisV]

Have you considered posting a grow thread where you post the details of the plant(s) and their journey? I'm not familiar with this species, but if it's quite rare, then your experimentation and success/failures will guide others (assuming that there are legal sources some day).

You mention that the plants are doing well. How are you maintaining them?

Trying to make lemonade out of this one...

Originally Posted by snowflake311

I bought a Paphiopedilum micranthum from China a month ago. The plant is doing well. It has a new leaf roots look good. BUT I just now found that it is Critically Endangered.

I feel awful I did not know. If I end up killing this plant I will feel REALLY REALLY BAD. So far it is fine.

Have any of you made this mistake before?
Do any of you have an Endangered plant?

[Bohata]

Originally Posted by disalover

I try and base my collection on rare and endangered plants. So that means i killed at least 50 or so rare things!

Just as long as they weren't wild collected. When you buy a plant from vendors who propagate the plants they sell, you give them an incentive to continue propagating that type.

But you already know this, right?

[disalover]

I dont buy wild collected or collect wild myself. Vendors i get from are imported or deflasked

[Whimgrinder]

eBay pays lip service to plant and animal protection regulations, but their real interest is much more aligned with keeping eBay profitable.

[estación seca]

Amazon also offers plant material from overseas, and usually makes no mention of required import permits, nor phytosanitary certificates. Some vendors offer to send a phyto, but an import permit is also often required.

Amazon sometimes shows the material will be shipped from a US address on behalf of the overseas vendor. This makes me wonder which party views themselves as responsible for following import regulations to get the material into the US in the first place. Probably, nobody thought of it on either end, or, if they did, they're not talking.