From Plant Press Vol. 17 no. 1, January 2014.
A joint research initiative carried out by scientists from the Smithsonian Institution, Saint Louis University and the Universidad de Los Andes in Venezuela, has resulted in the discovery of an exciting new species from the daisy family. Two expeditions in the paramos high up in the Venezuelan Andes were crowned by the discovery of the beautiful and extraordinary, Coespeletia palustris. The study was published in the open access journal Phytokeys.
The species of the genus Coespeletia are typical for high elevations and six of seven described species in total are endemic to the heights of the Venezuelan Andes; the seventh species comes from northern Colombia, but needs further revision according to the authors of the study. Most of the species are restricted to very high elevations, in a range between 3,800 - 4,800 meters. The specifics of such habitat are believed to be the reason behind the peculiar and unrepeated pollen characteristics of the genus.
Continue reading "New Daisy Species Discovered in Venezuela " »