Chrysopsis delaneyi

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Chrysopsis delaneyi
Status TNC G4.svg
Apparently Secure  (NatureServe)
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Genus: Chrysopsis
Species:
C. delaneyi
Binomial name
Chrysopsis delaneyi

Chrysopsis delaneyi, or DeLaney's goldenaster, is one of the endemic species to the U.S. state of Florida, recently discovered in the genus Chrysopsis, a small group of herbaceous plants of the family Asteraceae, known commonly as the "golden asters" and primarily native and restricted to Florida.

Contents

History

Several species of Chrysopsis previously unknown to science have been discovered in recent decades. Among these, is Chrysopsis delaneyi, "DeLaney's goldenaster", which was discovered in the mid-1980s by Kris DeLaney, a central Florida botanist.

Habitat

Chrysopsis delaneyi is endemic to Florida, where it is highly endangered and has a very restricted range. By the mid 20th century most of its original longleaf pine / turkey oak sandhill ecosystem and habitat were removed by corporate citrus farming.

Most of the Chrysopsis species are endemic to Florida, being limited to relatively small regions of Florida's well-drained, sandy ridges. The plants occur in dry, nutrient-poor, xeric upland ecosystems, including sand pine scrub, longleaf pine / turkey oak sandhills. They are weakly perennial in habit, bright green, tall and leafy, produce large, "lettuce-like" rosettes, and are covered with viscid (resin-producing) hairs (glandular-stipitate trichomes). The flowers are borne at the tops of leafy stems that are up to 1.5 m tall, and are bright yellow and range from about 2.4 cm to 5.0 cm in diameter.

Description

Chrysopsis delaneyi is morphologically and genetically variable. It is represented by a complex of ecotypes and/or varieties associated and adapted to Florida's major ridges and discrete upland systems. The plant is restricted primarily to four major metapopulations: Lake Wales Ridge (LWR), Orange County Ridge (OCR), southern Atlantic Coastal Ridge (ACR), and a system of geologically younger, lower ridges between the LWR and ACR. [the ridges are generally as per described and mapped by William White (1970); Geomorphology of Florida, USGS].

Chrysopsis delaneyi was formally described in 2003, [1] and named in honor of its discoverer. Although locally abundant at some small sites, the species is highly endangered due to a near complete loss of its original habitat. Morphological and genetic analysis suggests that the metapopulations of C. delaneyi may actually represent distinct taxa which may have arisen from genetic bottle-necking and subsequent long-term, island-like biogeographic isolation.

Kris DeLaney (1951-*) has discovered many other new species of plants in central Florida, including a second golden aster, C. highlandsensis (Highlands County goldenaster).

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<i>Chrysopsis floridana</i> Species of plant

Chrysopsis floridana is a rare species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae, known by its common name, Florida golden aster. It is endemic to Florida in the United States, where it is known from Hillsborough, Hardee, Manatee, and Pinellas Counties. It is considered an endemic of the west-central coast of the state in the general vicinity of Tampa Bay. There are 17 to 20 occurrences, many of which have few individuals, but one of which has over one million plants. In 1986 the plant was added to the US endangered species list because it was becoming increasingly rare, it was growing only on private property, and its habitat was unprotected and being destroyed and degraded by a number of forces. It is found at Bell Creek Nature Preserve in Riverview, Florida.

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The Florida peninsula inland scrub is a shrubland community found on the Florida peninsula. The largest remaining blocks of inland scrub are in and around the Ocala National Forest and in the Lake Wales Ridge National Wildlife Refuge. The Archbold Biological Station near Lake Placid contains about 20 km2 (7.7 sq mi) of scrub habitat and sponsors biological research on it. The scrub occurs on a series of north-south running ridges composed of sand derived from ancient dune fields. The soil, a type of entisol, is derived from quartz and is low in organic matter, silt, and clay. Because the low-nutrient sandy soils do not retain moisture, the ecosystem is effectively an arid one.

Chrysopsis highlandsensis, called the Highlands goldenaster, is a North American species of flowering plant in the aster family. It has been found only in three counties in central Florida: Highlands, Polk, and Glades.

<i>Tephrosia mysteriosa</i> Species of legume

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Crataegus lassa, the sandhill hawthorn, is a species of hawthorn native to the southeastern United States. Small trees or large shrubs, they have a characteristic weeping or drooping habit, and grow in pine barrens, the Carolina sandhills region, the Florida longleaf pine sandhills, and similar areas with well-drained soils.

References

  1. DeLaney, K. R., R. P. Wunderlin, and J. C. Semple. (2003) Chrysopsis delaneyi (Asteraceae, Astereae), another new species from peninsular Florida Archived 2011-07-15 at the Wayback Machine . The Botanical Explorer.