Cycas cupida

There are no immediate threats from land clearing or agriculture. Although Cycas cupida is widely scattered, all the known subpopulations occur at a single location which is on unsecured land.  All species of Cycas are potential host plants for the invasive Aulacaspis scale insect which has been observed to decimate cycad populations. This scale has not yet been detected in Australia and the area where C. cupida occurs is assessed as low to moderate suitability for the scale insect. A second threat is the impact of changing fire frequency and intensity which has caused rapid declines in other Australian species of Cycas (Liddle 2009); third, as a blue-leaved cycad, it is a potential target for plant cycad collectors although there have been no substantive reports of plant harvest since the species was described in 2001.

This species is listed in Appendix II of the CITES Appendices. It does not occur in any protected area. An education and awareness programme as well as the long-term monitoring of the population will support the conservation of this species.