As mentioned earlier, if we did see hundreds of species for sale, let's say thousands, it will have to come from tissue cultured material and the likelihood of any being even worth cultivating is an entirely different story. While hybrids seems to be everywhere, every genus, there is a reason why that is. Perhaps people like them better? A hybrid is a true genetic strain. Unlike tc plants which may or may not be from more than a single origin, hybrids have the uniqueness of being individual. This is what is currently lacking in the species. Agristarts pours (dumps) hundreds of thousands of species into the market (yes, like Walmart, Home Depot, Lowes, etc. - not just hybrid orchids and bromeliads but true species of nepenthes) and I feel it is completely worthless and I would rather own hybrids. Anyone ones to start a new genetic colony from Agristart stock? Highly doubtful! Imagine 105,000 N. ventricosa for June 2005 alone! They're TRUE species, where do all these species end up? N. sanguinea, N. rafflesiana, etc. more and more species and guess what? Next month another hundred thousand!
Who said there are more hybrids on the market than species
While the possession of species in one's collection is just to pat ourselves on the back for "saving" nature. The natural populations of N. clipeata will probably be extinct in five years. While known populations of females are documented, the timing of a male clipeata and a female clipeata in flower at the same time is a remote chance. The seed of any such pollination effort would probably need to be secured and grown out to a decent size, reestablished on cliffs inaccessible to collectors and at the same time live in Never Never Land, cause it aint gonna happen. While the need for pure species increases, many natural populations suffer in losing some of their genetic bloodline for the sake for collectors to own a piece of the rock!
When seed grown material is available, it quickly exhausts due to demand, leaving just the tc plants remaining. Most collectors just buy ONE species. IF they are planning to help conserve genetic material, they should get a dozen or even 20! That way, YES, you are helping the natural populations by maintaining their genetic quality! For those who just owns the one, you are just helping yourself!
An individual owning just one specimen of a species, does not help in conservation, you're not giving that species a chance to perpetuate itself, by owning just ONE species you are NOT saving the planet! and if that was the case, Noah's Ark would just take one of each animal, please wake up and know that if anything you are destroying that species chance in nature by providing less than natural conditions and taking it away from potential breeding mates that could produce more seed and increase genetic make up.
If you just own one hamata, one ventricosa, one truncata, one sanguinea, one lowii, one sibuyanensis, one bellii, one ampullaria, and so forth, you have candidates for breeding hybrids!
Yes species are important, but did a N. macrophylla outlived the dinosaurs to live its existence in a cold terraria? I doubt so! But yet, we feel compelled to do this GREAT task!
We need more species!!!! Down with hybrids!!!
Afterall, after we decimate all the species by planting them in our aquarium, we can always grow the hybrids!
M