Letters of support from Cogent and the Global Crop Diversity Trust

Both the International Coconut Genetic Resources Network and the Global Crop Diversity Trust have provided letters of support to the Polymotu project.

Polymotu and the Global Coconut Conservation Strategy

COGENT (the International Coconut Genetic Resources Network) had conducted several consultations on the conservation and use of coconut diversity to assist coconut growing countries to develop a progressive conservation strategy.

The Global Coconut Conservation Strategy is now available on line. This strategy was reviewed during a meeting gathering genebank managers, international experts and the COGENT Steering Committee in December 2007. The strategy aims to optimize the conservation of as much representative diversity as possible in the most cost-effective manner for the short, medium and long term.

The Polymotu approach was included in the global coconut strategy, as shown in the following extracts:

Page 16:

"A new conservation strategy, which involves planting of single coconut varieties on small islands, serves both conservation and breeding purposes. The geographical remoteness of the islets will ensure isolated reproductive systems that are needed for true-to-type breeding, avoiding the use of the costly technique of controlled pollination. This strategy includes both in situ and ex situ conservation – an Indonesian Islet, for instance, could be planted either with a local variety or a Polynesian variety."

Page 20:

"Promoting conservation through use by supporting national coconut breeding efforts in a globally coordinated breeding programme; testing new approaches to conservation such as the use of islets for in situ conservation as well as for breeding and seed nut production; linking with research activities to serve as platform for the utilization of conserved diversity; and developing catalogues of conserved germplasm and farmers’ varieties, high-value products and coconut food recipes, and other public awareness materials to increase coconut consumption.

Motu (coral islands) born from a coconut palm !

Location of Tuamotu Archipelago

Par R. Bourdeix and Tehira (C.A. Tshonfo), 2011

During 2009, the IFRECOR (French Initiative for Coral Reefs) and CRIOBE (Island Research Centre and Observatory of the Environment) funded a scientific survey on the atoll of Fakarava, Tuamotu Archipelago, French Polynesia.

You can click on photos and maps to enlarge them.




Location of Fakarava Atoll in the Tuamotu Archipelago

The objective of this survey  was to conduct an inventory of coconut varieties and assess the potential conservation of traditional varieties on the many small motu (coral islands) of the atoll.

Fakarava, Havaiki-te-araro, Havai'i or Farea is  is the second largest of the Tuamotu atolls.

Fakarava map and location of a small motu

The shape of Fakarava Atoll is roughly rectangular and its length is 60 km and its width 21 km.

Approximatively 700 inhabitants are living here. Fakarava  is among seven atolls that have been grouped together as part of the UNESCO Man and the Biosphere (MAB) global network until October 2008.

Precise location of a small motu

At the time, Mr. Cyril Tshonfo Ayee said Tehira was president of the Association of the Biosphere Reserve of the Municipality of Fakarava. He welcomed us with great hospitality and he gave us a great deal of valuable information. We also took a boat to visit the numerous motu of the attoll. One of the smallest of the motu was particularly interesting...

Tehira indicates that for the Polynesian, a motu is defined as a small island on which vegetation grows. A rock or a sand without vegetation are not motu. According Tehira, in many cases, "it is the coconut tree which creates the motu." Tehira said and have seen over the years, some sandbanks become small motu.



bird on a coconut seedling strongly carenced

The photographs illustrate the various stages of this process.

Coconuts brought by sea germinate on a sandbar that has not yet stabilized.

Then the birds come to rest on the palms. Their feathers or their droppings, the birds carry seeds that are deposited on the sand around the coconut. Bird droppings enrich the soil.

Detailed view of the motu

In most cases, a single coconut tree manages to survive to adulthood. Gradually, vegetation grows at the foot of a coconut tree. The roots of the coconut palm and other plants help to establish and maintain the sandbank.

We observed this small motu with only one adult coconut palms. This motu is located at 750 m from another motu where 20 to 30 adult coconut palms are growing. According to the main direction of the  wind and to the 750 m distance, it is very improbable that the coconut pollen can reach this motu. Studies conducted in Africa have shown that a 300 m distance is sufficient to obtain a high reproductive isolation.

The unique coconut palm of the small motu was bearing 9 fruits bigger than a fist. On the ground at the basis of its stems, 15 coconuts were counted. 13 of these coconuts looks  the same shape, and we think that they originates from the unique adult palm of the motu. Some of theses coconuts, when they were shaken, made the usual sound of normal mature nuts containing a normal amount of coconut water.

"Family relationships" between islands ?

In the future, we would like to try to develop a concept « Family relationship » between the small islands used for conservation purposes in the Framework of the Polymotu project. 

For instance, once a coconut variety is isolated in a small island, it becomes quite cheap and easy to transfer this variety to another small island, possibly for instance less endangered by climate change, for safety duplication and use. 

So, both from the biodiversity and the allegorical points of view, the first island will become a kind of the “mother” of the second one. We are searching for Polynesian or islanders traditions using such a concept of family relationship between islands, but up to now we did not find such legends. If you find, please tell me...