Zenaida's Foxtail Lily

Eremurus Zenaidae

Status: VU. Endemic to the lower and middle belts of the Fergana and Alai mountain ranges.

Description. Herbaceous rhizomatous and tuberous plant, geophyte, xeromesophyte. Roots spindle-shaped, thickened, 6-7 mm in diameter. Stem glabrous, 50 - 80 cm in height. Leaves in a rosette, broad-linear, outer leaves 6 - 30 mm wide, keeled, broadly grooved, glabrous, bluish-green. Bracts narrow-triangular, relatively long, reflexed, hairy-fringed. Flower stalks 10-12 mm long, fruiting arching. Tepals about 10 mm long, purple-brown on the back, very pale pink, almost white at the edges, bent inward after flowering. Capsule spherical, smooth, 7-8 mm wide.

Biological features. Flowers in June; fruits in July.

General distribution and in the country. Fergana and Alai mountain ranges.

Habitat. Fine soil and gravel slopes in the lower and middle belts of the mountains. Population. No data.

Limiting factors. Economic activities in habitats: spring grazing of livestock, flower collection, digging up rhizomes.

Cultivation. No data.

Existing conservation measures. Not developed.

Recommended conservation measures. Establishment of botanical reserves in areas with the highest concentration of the species, monitoring the population status.

Zenaida’s Foxtail Lily

Zenaida’s Foxtail Lily
Eremurus zenaidae Vved. ex (E. Nikit.)
Status: VU. This rare species is endemic to Kyrgyzstan; an ornamental plant spread in the Fergana and Alai Mountain Ranges. Disseminated on metal and silty soil slopes in low- and mid-montane belts of mountains. Limiting factors: economic development of lands, pasture in spring, mass collection of flowers and rhizomes. Flowers in June, fruits in July. The number (stock in nature) is unknown. At present, it is out of any protection. The creation of special wildlife areas in sites with maximal numbers, the prohibition of cattle grazing, and the prohibition of collection of flowers and rhizomes, as well as monitoring, are recommended to protect the species.