Freycinetia aculeata

The lowlands of the Prafi river valley have undergone considerable forest loss since 2010, with the majority of the lowland areas being deforested for conversion to oil palm, transmigration villages and agriculture (Global Forest Watch 2024, Google Earth 2024). The majority of these losses took place after the collection of this pandan species at the type locality in 2009, so it is very likely that there has been a considerable decline in suitable habitat for this species in this area. The sloping sides of the valley are still forested, and are within the known elevational range of this species so it may persist at the edges of the valley, and further surveying is required to determine whether this is the case.

The known site for this species is not within a protected area (UNEP-WCMC and IUCN 2024) and it is also not known to be in any ex situ collections (BGCI 2024). However, the 'educational forest' Hutan Pendidikan Tuan Wowi is on the edge of the Prafi river valley and would be worth surveying for this species as it is mainly below the 200 metres asl upper known elevational limit for this pandan species.. This type of forest is used for the education of forestry students and implies a lower level protected status than a national nature reserve.