"Plant Panda"--- Taxus chinensis

Was "Skinning Boneless" and Was Carved Crafts

22:04:23 Sept.14th , 2014  Source: Guangzhou Daily

Reporter: Wensheng Huang, Yu Pu, Jianguang Yan

Yew is the first grade state protection of rare tree species, also known as Yew leaf, Red cypress pine, called panda in plant kingdom. It is the oldest tree species in the legacy of the quaternary glacial period as the rare and endangered species of the world. The endangered Taxus mairei for our unique species has been listed as the first grade state protection of rare tree species.

Taxus paclitaxel extracted from the bark and leaves of Taxus chinensis is known as the “last line of defense for the treatment of cancer”. Taxus becomes the object of criminals steal because of its magic pharmacological effect. In recent days, reporters in an interview around Guangdong found that the roots and barks of some wild Taxus after digging illegally were used as medicine, boil water, sparkling. While the trunks were used for making tea table, the branches were made into tea sets and other art crafts and some survivals were made into bonsai.

Departments remind that production, sale, purchase of Taxus belong to illegal behavior!

Status: Large number of Taxus were felled and bark in Shaoguan.

There are a large number of wild Taxus chinensis distributing in Shaoguan. The reporter learned yesterday, there are more than 0.1 millions strains of Taxus chinensis rooting in a small town,  over 300 square kilometers wide, Doqiao town in Ruyuan county, There are 127 strains over 50 cm in diameter among them and 7 below 5 cm in diameter located at an altitude of about 900 meters high limestone mountains. This place is currently the most dense growth of China wild Taxus chinensis.

In Zhangjia Cun of Daqiao Town, the reporter found two Texus above 1000 years old. One of them is over 5 meters in diameter, called “the king of Texus chinensis”. Experts believe that the age of growth to two thousand years is the oldest Taxus chinensis in Southern China area.

However, in Shaoguan, a lot of Taxus chinensis were wantonly destroyed by illegal personnel in recent years. The reporter understands that over 200 Taxus chinensises have been cut illegally by people only in Lechang city.

The reporter understands that those stolen Taxus chinensises are transported to the Pearl River Delta in order to cultivate. The survivals with root and new leaves will be sell in a certain price. Wild alive Taxus bonsai has been sold publically. Dead Taxus is skinned into tea production.

To strip 3 stains of Taxus is jailed for 2 years.