Spiranthes hachijoensis was hiding in plain sight
Masayuki Ishibashi
A brand new orchid species – a fragile cousin of a identified orchid – has been recognized in Japan.
Japan’s flora has been exhaustively studied, and so botanists have been below the impression that the mainland is dwelling to only one species from the Spiranthes genus of orchids: Spiranthes australis. But in May 2015, Kenji Suetsugu at Kobe University in Japan stumbled upon an uncommon kind of orchid whereas on a area journey exploring the grasslands of the Chiba prefecture.
Suetsugu noticed a cluster of rosy petals …
Source: www.newscientist.com