Moraea aristata
Encyclopedia
Moraea aristata is a critically endangered
species of plant in the genus
Moraea
, that is endemic to the city of Cape Town
and is now restricted to the grounds of the Observatory in the Cape Town suburb of Observatory
.
Moraea aristata is a winter-flowering bulb (geophyte) that produces large and striking flower
s. The petals are white, but each has a large spot of iridescent blue at its base.
This plant naturally only occurs in Peninsula Shale Renosterveld
vegetation in northern Cape Town. Due to the growth of the city, its habitat now mostly lies under urban sprawl. Consequently it is critically endangered and naturally survives only in the grounds of the National Observatory in the suburb of Observatory
near the foot of Devil's Peak. This tiny, isolated population is too small to be sustainable in the long term. In the wild, its natural pollinators are the Monkey beetles but these are also on the decline in the city of Cape Town.
In spite of its extraordinary rarity in the wild, it can actually easily be cultivated in sunny gardens with sandy or clay soils.
Critically endangered
Version 2010.3 of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species identified 3744 Critically Endangered species, subspecies and varieties, stocks and subpopulations.Critically Endangered by kingdom:*1993 Animalia*2 Fungi*1745 Plantae*4 Protista-References:...
species of plant in the genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Moraea
Moraea
Moraea is a genus of plants in the family Iridaceae. The genus name is a tribute to the English botanist Robert Moore.The technical botanical material in this entry is abstracted largely from “The Genera of Southern African Flowering Plants”-Description:...
, that is endemic to the city of Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
and is now restricted to the grounds of the Observatory in the Cape Town suburb of Observatory
Observatory, Cape Town
Observatory is a suburb in Cape Town, South Africa, bordered by Mowbray to the south, and Salt River to the north. The area is best known as student neighborhood, most of whom attend the University of Cape Town located close by, and for being the home of the South African Astronomical Observatory...
.
Moraea aristata is a winter-flowering bulb (geophyte) that produces large and striking flower
Flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to effect reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism for the union of sperm with eggs...
s. The petals are white, but each has a large spot of iridescent blue at its base.
This plant naturally only occurs in Peninsula Shale Renosterveld
Peninsula Shale Renosterveld
Peninsula Shale Renosterveld is a unique vegetation type that is found only on the slopes of Signal Hill and Devil's Peak in Cape Town, South Africa. It is critically endangered and exists nowhere else...
vegetation in northern Cape Town. Due to the growth of the city, its habitat now mostly lies under urban sprawl. Consequently it is critically endangered and naturally survives only in the grounds of the National Observatory in the suburb of Observatory
Observatory, Cape Town
Observatory is a suburb in Cape Town, South Africa, bordered by Mowbray to the south, and Salt River to the north. The area is best known as student neighborhood, most of whom attend the University of Cape Town located close by, and for being the home of the South African Astronomical Observatory...
near the foot of Devil's Peak. This tiny, isolated population is too small to be sustainable in the long term. In the wild, its natural pollinators are the Monkey beetles but these are also on the decline in the city of Cape Town.
In spite of its extraordinary rarity in the wild, it can actually easily be cultivated in sunny gardens with sandy or clay soils.