Marco Crisciotti A flower considered extinct for a century has been found in northern Chile
IN 2021, a team of scientists made the amazing discovery of a plant believed to have been extinct for almost a century: the “sacred thistle” known scientifically as Argemone crassifolia. It is native to the Atacama region in northern Chile. Because the American botanist Ivan Murray Johnston had not documented the flower since at least 1925, it was considered extinct. It was like it had simply vanished into the void and would never be heard from again.
The story of Argemone crassifolia
Argemone crassifolia is an endemic plant species of the Atacama region, originally described by Johnston in 1925. He collected it at a place called “Quebrada Cañas”, whose precise geographic location was unknown. Nobody succeeded in finding this species again, in spite of several searches during subsequent decades. Therefore, it was classified as extinct by the Ministry of Environment of Chile in 2010, based on the fact that no recent records of its sighting or collection existed.
It is a tall plant with big, compound leaves and showy flowers, a member of the poppy family, and with a quite different morphology compared to other Argemone species found in Chile. The common name for it is “sacred thistle”, and it indeed looks very much like thistles, though, unlike many species of thistles, some specimens of Argemone crassifolia were wholly spineless-a feature that could be confirmed only after its 2021 rediscovery.
Rediscovery of Argemone crassifolia
This miraculous discovery is credited to a team led by Sergio Ibáñez from the Base Seed Bank of INIA Intihuasi, an agricultural research institute in Chile. The team carried out a complicated and exhaustive study that started with the examination of the only herbarium specimen collected by Johnston back in 1925 and preserved in Vicuña. This specimen did indeed include vague but significant geographic clues indicating that it was collected in an area between the Quebrada de Paipote and the Sierra San Miguel east of Copiapó.
Ibáñez and his team used these hints to consult old databases and topographic maps in search of all places that included the word “Cañas” or close variants. After some of the most promising locations had been spotted, they reduced their attention to a small area next to Copiapó whose environmental conditions fitted the descriptions of Johnston.
In 2021, taking advantage of an atypically rainy season, the Chilean spring was conducted by the team through a series of field expeditions, where this condition may encourage the blooming of the plant. After an extensive search, finally, the scientists located a population of Argemone crassifolia, which was considered a lost species. The comeback provided a great opportunity for new scientific findings.
Species’ characteristics and diversity
One interesting characteristic of Argemone crassifolia is its variability in form. Ibáñez’s group noticed that, together with spineless specimens like the one deposited in the herbarium, there are spiny ones. This makes identifications somewhat confusing with other species, but a careful analysis ratified that these spiny individuals belong to this same species, distinguished only by a few unique characters.
Generally, the plant bears a high stem with flowers at the top supported by intensive basal foliage. Its natural habitats are arid and semi-arid zones such as the Atacama region, considered one of the driest places on Earth.
Ecological importance and conservation
The rediscovery of Argemone crassifolia is of exceptional ecological and scientific relevance. As Ibáñez said, this plant is supposed to be the second most important flora species of the Atacama region. The most famous flora of that region is considered to be the highly popular Leontochir ovallei or commonly called the “lion’s claw.” In addition to the fact above, Argemone crassifolia belongs to a plant family that has been considered valuable for its biochemical compounds with potential medical applications. Historically, the plant was recognized for its medicinal properties, especially against scabies and to sooth cough, and its rediscovery opens perspectives for new pharmacological research.
However, its survival is seriously threatened by the intense mining activity of the region. The area in which the Argemone crassifolia was found is in a highly mineral-rich zone, and therefore presents a very serious risk for the conservation of the plant in its habitat.
In order to avoid this risk, the scientists of the INIA have gathered seeds from the found specimens and preserved them at the Base Seed Bank of the INIA Intihuasi. That way, when the habitat of this plant is destroyed, it will not mean the loss of the species forever.
Source: Gayana Botanica
