Heliconia lutheri
Overview
A detailed profile for this species is sourced from the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species as assessments become available.
Heliconia lutheri faces significant pressure from deforestation and agricultural expansion throughout its limited range in Central America. The species' dependence on intact forest understory makes it particularly vulnerable to habitat fragmentation, as small forest patches cannot support viable populations. Climate change poses an additional threat by altering precipitation patterns essential for this moisture-dependent plant's reproductive cycles.
Habitat
Heliconia lutheri inhabits the understory of tropical rainforests and cloud forests at elevations between 500-1,500 meters. The species requires consistently moist conditions and partial shade, typically growing along forest edges, stream banks, and in natural clearings within primary and mature secondary forests.