Zoya's Yellow Desert Candle

Eremurus zoae

Status: VU. A narrowly endemic species of the Kyrgyz Range.

Description. Herbaceous, rhizomatous, short-lived plant, geophyte, xeromesophyte. Stem naked, 25-40 cm tall. Leaves linear, pointed, 5-6 mm wide. Inflorescence multi-flowered, cylindrical. Bracts at the base broadly triangular, pointed upwards, longer than the flower stalks, 1.5-2 cm long. Petals of the bell-shaped perianth yellow with prominent veins, 15-16 mm long. Capsule smooth, spherical.

Biological features. Flowers in IV - V; fruits in V

Distribution overall and in the country. Northern slope of the Kyrgyz Range between the Issyk-Ata and Kegety gorges.

Habitat. Slopes with gypsum soils in the lower mountain belt.

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 of highest species concentration, monitoring of population status.

Zoya’s Yellow Desert Candle
Eremurus zoae Vved.
Status: VU. This is a rare ornamental plant endemic to Northern Tien Shan, known from Issyk-Ata and Boom Ravines in the Alexander Mountain Range. It populates stony slopes in piedmonts, flowers in April - May, fruits in May. Data on the number (stock in nature) and cultivation are unknown. Limiting factors: economic development of lands, spring pasture, mass collection of flowers and rhizomes. At present, it is unprotected. The creation of special wildlife areas in sites with maximal numbers, prohibition of cattle grazing, and prohibition of flower and rhizome collection, as well as monitoring, are recommended to protect the species.