Abstract
Yellow camellia is a taxon being at risk of diminishing populations owing to unregulated exploitation of flowers and flower buds from naturally growing trees, because of their highly economic value. This study aimed to elucidate ecological aspects of the yellow camellia, Camellia quephongensis, distributed in Que Phong, Nghe An, Vietnam to propose conservation methods. The present study revealed that this species inhabited the secondary forests aged 20-25 years old on the steep slopes, or the riparian forests with flood disturbances. This species can recover from the damage by disturbances through the development of lateral shoots, consequently becoming a multi-stemmed tree. This mechanism allows the species to persist in the vulnerable habitats. Analyzing the relationship between population size and age distribution, it indicated that population size was smaller in frequently disturbed sites with less saplings and young trees of inverted pyramid shaped age distribution. This species inhabits near the communities at low altitude, and around its habitats, young-tree forests, which are anthropogenically disturbed, are also distributed in a mosaic pattern. Protection area including young tree forests as a potential habitat and harvest planning are required for conservation of this species.
