Around 50% of Central Asian tulips are Threatened with extinction

The IUCN (the International Union for Conservation) Red List is a crucial resource for conservation (https://www.iucnredlist.org/). It is the go to for understanding which species are threatened and hence is used heavily in policy making by governmental agencies. It also provides an important database for wildlife departments, NGOs, natural resource planners, educational organisations, students, and …

Tulipa toktogulica, the story of a new tulip species

In 2019, in the pasturelands near Toktogul reservoir in western Kyrgyzstan the sun was beginning to dip towards the horizon. Light became a murky orange-yellow and the landscape came alive with long shadows. It was here where we were standing after a long drive over the mountains that we came across a little yellow tulip. …

The land of mountains

It was with great excitement that I set off for Central Asia for the first time since the Spring of 2019. After a few years of global pandemic that had left me organising expeditions in Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan which I could not be part of, it was finally time to return to the wild! Although …

A code red for Humanity… but the impacts of climate change also threaten the future of wild tulips

Wild tulips are threatened by many localised activities such as livestock overgrazing, mining, urbanisation, and opportunistic collection of flowers and bulbs. These are currently damaging specific populations and causing numbers of individuals to decline. Yet what if there was a threat that occurred across the whole distribution of tulips? What if there was something that …

Welcome to the Balkans!

Tulips can be found growing in many of the temperate mountainous areas of Eurasia. As we know from previous work, Central Asia is the most species-diverse region, yet many tulips are found in Iran, Turkey and the Caucasus as well. Nonetheless, there is another corner of the world that has several exciting and recently described …

Pandemic or no pandemic: The tulips will grow

As we enter the days of late autumnal sun, and lockdown drags on here in the U.K. and in many countries around the world, the tulip season creeps up on us once again. Although many things in the future remain uncertain, including whether our fieldwork will take place in the spring of next year, one …

Tulips in a Pandemic

As we, as a global community, continue to fight against Covid-19, I thought it might provide some comfort to know that out there, tulips have once again sprouted and flowered. Moreover, that our work to protect these elegant plants is continuing in earnest. So here I am writing a short blog to update you all …

A year to remember

The lengthy time between blogs has not been because there hasn’t been anything to write, but because so much has been going on. I have now found the time to sit down and type up this year’s story, and so it is with great excitement that I can present the newest blog that will bring …

500 miles

Our car made to look small by the overpowering landscape. I would walk 500 miles… Between the 26th and the 29th of April the tulip team assembled again to head into the north-east region of Kemin. Georgii, Ormon, Isken, and I were now well acquainted and formed quite the formidable team. The bitter cold had …

Heading deep into southern Kyrgyzstan

On Tuesday the 9th of April I set off from London Stansted on my way to begin the first fieldwork period of the tulip conservation project. After two flights and little sleep I arrived in Bishkek on Wednesday and was warmly welcomed by Dr. Jarkyn Samanchina of the Kyrgyz Fauna and Flora International branch. There …