Monday, December 14, 2009

"Extinct" native plant rediscovered in San Francisco

While extinction is forever, rediscovery can be the one reprieve:
A San Francisco native plant thought extinct by botanists has been discovered near the Golden Gate Bridge.

The last, wild Franciscan Manzanita was believed to have perished in the 1940s when the city cemeteries where it grew were moved south to allow for neighborhood expansion.

But when construction crews recently cleared eucalyptus trees in the city's Presidio area, it exposed the only specimen known to exist in the wild.

While it appears that cultured varieties of the plant have been kept alive in nurseries, it's even better to have non-domesticated, wild individuals to re-establish the plant in its habitat.


Good news for the beginning of the week.

-Brian

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