【正文】
ogan 432003, China;2. College of Life Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China。 3. College of Life Science, Zhongshan University, Guangzhou 510275, ChinaAbstract: A population of wild Cycas fairylakea was discovered in November of 1999 in Tanglang Mountain, Shenzhen City. The total number of individuals is less than 2000. Thus, it is an endangered species according to the new criteria of IUCN Red Categories. The population can reproduce itself by sexual and asexual style so that genet population and clone population have been produced respectively. In this paper, in terms of two levelsgenet and clone population, the niche breadths and the potential utilization capability of C. fairylakea on soil resource were calculated and analyzed in order to guide the protection of the population. The results showed that the niche breadth of clone population was larger than that of genet population on soil resource position, ., organic matter, total nitrogen, readily available phosphorus and potassium, and moreover, the potential utilization of clone population on soil resource was better than that of genet population. Since the clone population had more actual resource utilization and bigger potential utilization capability, the asexual reproduction perhaps will be the main survival style of the population if the habit has been damaged gradually. According to the results when there were %~%organic matter, %~%total nitrogen, readily available phosphorus ~ mg/kg and readily available potassium ~ mg/kg in soil, the most individuals of C. fairylakea population appeared. Therefore perhaps these methods such as ameliorating the soil nutrition and forbidding the retrogression of forest will be helpful in recovering and developing the population.Key words: Cycas fairylakea。 niche breadth。 soil resource。 rare and endangered plant