Above illustration,
"Tillandsia stricta,"
by Margaret Mee,
© Smithsonian Institution,
used with permission.
Many of Florida's native bromeliads have been on the state's list of threatened and endangered species for some time, because their populations are so rare and require very specific habitat conditions. Development in south Florida continues to reduce the habitat available for bromeliads, and several species are now found only on the protected lands of state and national parks. Illegal collecting has also diminished populations of some species.
Another threat has appeared more recently, one which is much more dangerous because it does not distinguish park boundaries. This newer, deadlier threat is an insect pest, a weevil that immigrated to Florida on a shipment of imported bromeliads and has spread throughout the southern portion of the state.
Already, two species of native bromeliads previously abundant in Florida have been placed on the state's list of endangered species as a direct result of attack by the Mexican bromeliad weevil (Metamasius callizona), and populations of several other species that are already listed as threatened or endangered may potentially be destroyed as the weevil continues to advance. The Save Florida's Native Bromeliads project is an attempt to stop the weevil by managing it with biological control, and to save seeds of bromeliads at risk before it is too late.
| Bromeliad Species | Status in Florida | Status of Weevil Threat* |
|---|---|---|
| Catopsis berteroniana | Endangered | Likely |
| Catopsis floribunda | Endangered | Likely |
| Catopsis nutans | Endangered | Likely |
| Guzmania monostachia | Endangered | Likely |
| Tillandsia balbisiana | Threatened | Under attack |
| Tillandsia bartramii | Unlikely | |
| Tillandsia fasciculata | Endangered | Under attack and listed as endangered as a result of the weevil |
| Tillandsia flexuosa | Threatened | Under attack |
| Tillandsia paucifolia | Under attack | |
| Tillandsia pruinosa | Endangered | Likely |
| Tillandsia recurvata | Unlikely | |
| Tillandsia setacea | Unlikely | |
| Tillandsia simulata | Precinctive | Unlikely |
| Tillandsia usneoides | Unlikely | |
| Tillandsia utriculata | Endangered | Under attack and listed as endangered as a result of the weevil |
| Tillandsia variabilis | Threatened | Likely |
| Tillandsia x smalliana (hybrid) | Under attack |
Unlikely = Unlikely to be attacked; no signs of weevil attack on the plant despite weevil presence; probably not enough plant material present in this species to support weevil development
Under attack = Currently under attack by the weevil in at least one place.