She looks like a small lantern illuminating the dark forest floor. For more than 30 years, this unusual plant was considered extinct. Now scientists have reported the rediscovery of the species.
Thismia kobensis grows in the middle of the forest floor where no light falls. Only their colorful flowers protrude from the ground. The plant, which belongs to the order Dioscoreales, is also known as the fairy lantern because of the peculiar shape of these flowers. Unlike most other plants, Thismia kobensis does not cover its energy requirements through photosynthesis, but with the help of fungi. It gets the nutrients it needs for survival from these.
About 90 Thismia species worldwide are known so far. However, some of them are believed to be extinct. Thismia kobensis was one of them until recently. This fairy lantern was originally discovered in 1992 near the Japanese city of Kobe. But despite decades of intensive searches, no other representatives could be found.
Scientists from the University of Kobe have now reported the rediscovery of the species. They found specimens of this species near the city of Sanda, about 30 kilometers from Kobe. This discovery site makes Thismia kobensis the northernmost known Asian fairy lantern species. The find could shed a whole new light on their evolutionary history. By examining the plants more closely, the scientists now hope to gain new insights into the distribution and development of fairy lanterns.