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Science & EnvironmentThe secret life of plants: Ten new species found this yearBy Helen BriggsBBC News21 December 2018
Media captionThe woman who draws plantsPlant collectors have searched for the hidden wondersof the plant world for centuries.Yet plants that are new to science are still being described,at a rate of about 2,000 a year.Scientists at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, discoveredand named more than 100 new plants in 2018.Their list of the top new plants includes carnivorous pitcherplants, exotic orchids and climbers with untappedmedicinal powers.Herb found in a waterfallProf Aiah Lebbie discovered an unusual plant clingingto rocks near a water fall in Sierra Leone. He collecteda specimen and sent it to
Kew, where it was identifiedas a new species. The plant, Lebbiea Grandiflora, hasbeen named after him.
Image copyrightRBG KEWImage captionAnaquatic herb found in a waterfall in the Sewa River"It's got unique characteristics, that are unlike anyother plant in that particular family and that straightaway indicated to me that we had come acrosssomething very unique," he told BBC News. "Myname will forever be linked to it."The plant has been classed as critically endangered.Found in an area that is under threat from miningand a hydro-electric project, the scientists believeit may be extinct within a few years.ADVERTISEMENTIt is thought that fish feed on the plants, strengtheningthe health of the ecosystem."Every single species of plant on earth is also importantfor our survival," said Prof Lebbie, of the NationalHerbarium of Sierra Leone."If we say we are not going to be custodians or guardiansof it and allow them to disappear, for me that is somethingthe world has lost, and as of now we don't even knowthe value of it."Bug-eater from a remote islandThere are more than 150 species of pitcher plant in the world.This new discovery, Nepenthes biak, only grows on the smallisland of Biak, off the north coast of Indonesian New Guinea.
copyrightMARTIN CHEEK, RBG KEWImage captionCarnivorous pitcher plant from New GuineaIt is threatened by tourism when ships stop at the island."It's known that the plant has been hunted to be dug upfrom the wild for sale to passing tourists," said Kew botanist,Dr Martin Cheek. "Unless something is done about protectingthis species it's heading for extinction."It is our job to protect these plants for future generationsto appreciate, he said. Pitcher plants, known as Nepenthes,have a number of potential uses in medicine, which haveyet to be fully explored.They are finding new things in plants all the time, LaraJewitt, nurseries manager at Kew, said. "We never knowwhat we are going to discover within these plants."Flower that could be a futurecancer medicineThe new plant, named Kindia gangan, is a member ofthe coffee family. Kew scientists on a field trip spottedit growing on sandstone cliffs near the town of Kindia in Guinea in West Africa.
Image copyrightMARTIN CHEEKImage captionA plant related to coffeeBiological extracts suggest the plant may havemedicinal applications, perhaps even anti-cancerproperties.Orchid on sale after beingsmuggled out of the wildA spectacular orchid was found being sold off theback of a barrow in Vientiane, the capital of Laos.The slipper orchid, Paphiopedilum papilio-laoticus,is gravely endangered.
Image copyrightADUNYADETHLUANGAPHAYImage captionSlipper orchid from LaosYam identified from an old photoThe climbing yam - a food crop in many parts of theworld - was initially seen in a photograph sent to Kewin 2002. More than a decade later, pressed, driedspecimens in Kew's herbarium were found to be amatch.The purple-flowered plant, Dioscorea hurteri, is foundin six locations in KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. It isclassed as vulnerable to extinction.
Image copyrightGARETH CHITTENDONImagecaptionA climbing yam from South AfricaVibrant flowering plant from VietnamThis brand new species, Oreocharis tribracteata, wasseen on an expedition to northern Vietnam. It wassubsequently grown in the UK.
Image copyrightSADIE BARBERImage captionBright-orange-flowered plant from VietnamTree from the rainforestThis large tree was seen growing in a rainforest inGuinea, West Africa. In the spring it has shockingpink flowers. Talbotiella cheekii was unknown toscience until 2015.
Image copyrightMARTIN CHEEKImage captionA rainforest tree from GuineaWild spice tree
Image copyrightTHAISVASCONSCELOS3Image captionA new tree from the spice familyThis tree, Pimenta berciliae, is related to the tree thatbrings us Allspice, a vital ingredient in food and beautyproducts.Flowering plant from thecloud forestThis plant with pink flowers was found in avalley in Bolivia.
Image copyrightMT MARTINEZImage captionA flowerfrom the valleys of BoliviaTree feared extinctOne tree from Cameroon, Vepris bali, is known to growonly in a forest reserve in the Bamenda Highlands.It is thought to be extinct already due to habitat destruction.Follow Helen on
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