Protected Park Holds Colombia's Undocumented Plant

Researchers found Trichostigma guacharense in Cueva de los Guacharos National Natural Park, a protected area in Colombia’s southern Andes. So far, records place the shrub only inside the reserve, where scientists identified it as a species not previously documented. They called the discovery “a new biological treasure for the world.”

A discovery inside protected territory

The plant belongs to the Petiveriaceae family and grows in the park’s tropical mountain rainforest. It reaches about three meters in height, thriving in humid montane forests between 1,800 and 2,150 meters above sea level. Researchers distinguished it by its leaves, grooved petioles, stamen pattern, fruit shape and reddish-magenta inflorescences.

Trichostigma grows widely across Colombia, from sea level to 2,200 meters, but researchers have studied the genus little. During recent fieldwork in the park, scientists found a morphologically distinct taxon they couldn’t assign to any known Trichostigma species. This discovery came from examining a plant in the reserve, not from a broad survey of the genus: researchers identified a particular specimen whose features distinguish it from known species.

Cueva de los Guacharos National Natural Park spans 7,134 hectares across the municipalities of Acevedo and Palestina in Huila; San Jose del Fragua and Belen de Los Andakies in Caqueta; and Piamonte in Cauca. The park is considered a benchmark for well-preserved Andean and sub-Andean forests. Visitors can also hike, camp, watch birds and explore caves.

The species’ scientific name honors the park and the oilbird, Steatornis caripensis, a cave-dwelling bird linked to the territory’s protection. The oilbirds’ nesting cave served as the park’s initial main conservation objective. Colombia designated the territory its first protected area in 1960.

Who did the work, and who supported it

Scientists Andres F. Majin-Ladino, M. Alejandra Jaramillo, Laura I. Ramos, Gerardo A. Aymard and Pablo R. Stevenson led the field research and taxonomy. Researchers from Universidad Militar Nueva Granada and Universidad de los Andes also took part. Park rangers provided technical support, a contribution the report acknowledges alongside the universities’ work.

The researchers published their results in the international journal Brittonia. The report contains a taxonomic diagnosis, a detailed illustration of the specimen and an updated analytical key for identifying Trichostigma species. These materials explain how scientists distinguished the plant and offer a tool for identifying other members of the genus.

The report describes protected areas as potential research centers. It also says coordinated work among academia, the Government and local communities can strengthen the nation’s sovereign heritage. Here, the account names university researchers and park rangers, and places the discovery within a reserve whose original conservation focus was an oilbird nesting cave.

On Sept. 18, 1799, Alexander von Humboldt and Aime Bonpland first examined the oilbird, then introduced it to Western science. The plant’s name carries that history alongside the park’s name. Its recorded range remains limited to the reserve, where researchers identified it during fieldwork. It’s still known only from that protected area.