The mountain star: the first species of the genus described in 50 yearsDayvid Couto / INMA
On the outcrops of the inselbergs (isolated rock hills) in Espírito Santo, there is a yellow flower that is very different from any other. Dubbed the mountain star (Wunderlichia capixaba), the species was discovered during a 2023 expedition to Pedra do Cabrito, in the municipality of Castelo, in the Atlantic Forest. It is distinguished from others of the genus by the fact that it does not lose its leaves when its flowers bloom, and it has been classified as critically endangered. “In addition to being microendemic, the species population is very small, with an estimated number of less than 50 individuals,” says Aristônio Teles, a botanist from the Federal University of Goiás. He adds that the inselbergs are suffering the consequences of human activity, with the mountain star’s habitat impacted by the extraction of ornamental stones and coffee farming (Agência Bori and Phytotaxa, September 9).
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