Coelogyne chinensis

The biggest threat to this orchid is likely to be from over-harvesting for ornamental purposes and Chinese folk medicine, which is still used today by 75% of China's population (Hu post 1950): the species is used as a remedy for tuberculosis, internal bleeding, toothache and stomach conditions; 'large quantities' are collected, and whole plants are brought to the markets of Hong Kong daily (Hu post 1950). Additionally, all of the ecoregions from which the specimens have been collected are suffering from varying (mostly high) degrees of conversion to agriculture, shifting cultivation, logging, human settlement and hunting (WWF 2001). This is causing habitat fragmentation and degradation of the remaining vegetation.

This species has been recorded in several Rapid Biodiversity Assessments carried out in nature reserves across southern China in recent years (for example, Fellowes et al. 2002a,b, 2003). There are many protected areas of various types scattered across the range of this species and so it is likely that they afford certain populations some degree of protection, although many parks are small and are said to be 'paper parks', whereby there are few effective protection measures in place. Further survey work and monitoring is needed in order to avoid any population decline due to over-collection. It is listed in Appendix II of the Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). No seeds have been stored in the Millennium Seed Bank, UK. It is not known to have been assessed previously.