Cinchona scrobiculata
Overview
A detailed profile for this species is sourced from the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species as assessments become available.
Cinchona scrobiculata faces severe pressure from deforestation and agricultural expansion throughout its Andean cloud forest range. Historical overharvesting for quinine extraction decimated wild populations, while ongoing habitat fragmentation from cattle ranching and crop cultivation continues to reduce suitable montane forest areas. Climate change poses an additional threat as warming temperatures push optimal growing conditions to higher elevations where suitable habitat becomes increasingly scarce.
Habitat
This species inhabits humid montane cloud forests and forest edges at elevations between 1,500-3,000 meters in the Andes. It typically grows in areas with consistent moisture and cool temperatures, often on steep slopes with well-drained soils in primary and secondary forest formations.
