About Babiana regia (G.J.Lewis) Goldblatt & J.C.Manning
Babiana regia is a perennial flowering geophyte that belongs to the genus Babiana. This species is endemic to the Western Cape, where it grows in fynbos and renosterveld vegetation between Agter-Paarl and Stellenbosch. Its total range covers an area of less than 10 km², and it is divided into just six small, fragmented subpopulations. The entire total population of the species numbers fewer than 1 000 individual plants. The species has already lost 95 percent of its original habitat, primarily to crop cultivation. The remaining subpopulations face threats from development, the absence of an appropriate fire management program, invasive plant species, overgrazing, eutrophication, and sand mining, among other factors.
