They recently discovered at the Royal Botanic Garden in London that they have the largest species of water lilies in the world.
For a long time, employees believed that the large water lily was a common species, Victoria amazonica, but it turned out to be a completely new species.
It is the species Victoria Boliviana, which is also the largest in the world. Writes CNN.
– Fantastic achievement
The record-breaking water lily has been in the London Botanic Gardens for several years, without realizing how special and unique it really is.
The water lily can reach more than three meters in width and can weigh up to 80 kilograms.
Taxonomist, botanist and field researcher Alex Munro said after the discovery: “Getting this new data for ‘Victoria’, and identifying new species in the genus, is a remarkable feat in botany.
Rare: Here the leaves of the rare Victoria boliviana water lily are examined by researcher and horticulturist Carlos Magdalena. Lily leaves can grow to a width of three meters. Photo: Dominic Lipinski/Pa Photos
Munro co-authored a study on the new species, which has been published in Frontiers in plant sciences.
He believes that proper identification and documentation of plant diversity can be crucial to protecting and sustainably benefiting the species.
The only one in the world
The aim of the study, of which Monroe was a part, was to improve knowledge of Victoria’s water lilies.
After discovering the Bolivian species, botanists were given a rare opportunity.
The Royal Botanic Garden is the only place in the world that grows the three species located next to Victoria side by side. This way, they can learn more about the different species.
Gives space: Here a leaf of Cruziana water lily is removed to make room for the new giant Bolivia species. Photo: Ashlee Ruggels / Pa Photos
The three types of Victoria are named: Boliviana, Amazonica, and Croziana.
Researcher and horticulturalist Carlos Magdalena, who was also part of the study, has suspected since 2006 that it could be a third species of Victoria.
—For nearly two decades, I checked every picture of Victoria’s wild waterlines on the Internet, he says.
Carlos describes searching the web as a luxury that botanists have today. It gives them the opportunity to study species from all over the world at the same time.
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