An Instagram post was simply supposed to show a selfie. Instead, it ended up revealing a new species. Scientists say a 2021 photo taken in Colombia’s Inirida region led them to a previously unknown giant water lily, now named Colombian Victoria and described this week in the newspaper Phytotaxaaccording to Gizmodo. Botanist Carlos Magdalena of Britain’s Royal Botanic Gardens-Kew spotted the image online and noted that the plant – which, according to Phys.org, comes with pads up to 2 meters in diameter and which, according to a horticultural historian, can “be seen from space” – should not exist where it appeared.
Satellite images, coordination with Colombian researchers and help from indigenous community members followed, culminating in a five-day expedition that almost ended empty, until the final night, when the team finally found a flower in bloom, the proof they needed. The discovery expands the known species in the Victoria like five, though V. colombiana may already be on the brink.
Researchers estimate that only 30 to 50 plants remain in the wild and plan to apply for the “critically endangered” label from the International Union for Conservation of Nature. They are now working to establish monitored populations in local lakes and cultivate the plant in Colombian and British botanical gardens – an effort that Magdalena calls a rare blend of indigenous knowledge, horticultural expertise and technology “in your pocket, whether it’s Instagram or WhatsApp.”
Gn world
