Tag Archives: Hesperelaea

Hesperelaea palmeri A. Gray

Palmer’s Hesperelaea (Hesperelaea palmeri)  

This species was described in 1876, it was the sole member of its monotypic genus.  

Palmer’s Hesperelaea was a rather compact tree-like shrub, 6 to 7 m tall, the leaves were up to 5 cm long and broadly lanceolate, the flowers were pale yellow.  

The species was endemic to the Isla Guadalupe, located 241 km off the west coast of the Baja California Peninsula, Mexico. It was already restricted to a relict population in a single canyon on the east side of the island when it was discovered in 1875.  

The island was heavily destroyed by introduced goats, which ate almost the entire vegetation, Palmer’s Hesperelaea was only one of several victims of their unappeasable hunger.  

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References:  

[1] Reid Moran: The flora of Guadalupe Island, Mexico. Memoirs of the California Academy of Sciences 19: 1-190. 1996  

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Photo from: ‘Reid Moran: The flora of Guadalupe Island, Mexico. Memoirs of the California Academy of Sciences 19: 1-190. 1996’ 

(under creative commons license (3.0)) 
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

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edited: 07.11.2017