Acianthera hirsutula

This species has been collected from scattered localities across much of the central highlands of Jamaica. Most localities where this species has been recorded from are unprotected, and as a result are likely threatened by encroachment for agriculture. Limestone hilltops often remain forested due to their unsuitability for cultivation, but are usually subject to degradation caused by activities such as woodcutting for yam cultivation and charcoal burning. Mining for bauxite and limestone is a significant threat to wet forest across much of central Jamaica (Schipper 2024). While none of the collecting localities for this species appear to be directly impacted by mining at present, there are several mines near Mt. Diablo in St. Ann parish, where this species is known to occur. The main threat at Mt. Diablo, which consists of a mixture of forest reserves and unprotected forested land, is illegal selective logging (K. Campbell pers. comm. 2024), which may directly impact epiphytes such as A. hirsutula. The largest area of intact wet montane limestone forest in central Jamaica is the Cockpit Country. Much of the Cockpit Country is protected from mining within the Cockpit Country Conservation Area, although small-scale clearance for agriculture, logging, and woodcutting still occur within its boundaries (Newman et al. 2014).

All orchid species are included in Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). This species occurs in the Cockpit Country, much of which is protected within the Cockpit Country Conservation Area. It is not held in any ex situ conservation collections (BGCI 2024), although it may be cultivated by some specialist orchid growers.