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Aug. 23, 2000 For more information, contact Delaware Natural Heritage Program botanist Bill McAvoy at 302-653-2880. Rare Plant Discovered at Delaware Seashore State ParkSeabeach amaranth (Amaranthus pumilus), a plant not seen in Delaware for 125 years, has been discovered at Delaware Seashore State Park. Wilmington botanist Albert Commons last documented the fleshy stemmed annual in 1875 on one of the former natural inlets to Indian River, according to Delaware Natural Heritage Program botanist William A. McAvoy. DNHP conducts an annual survey for the globally rare species (only 6-20 populations worldwide) as part of a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service-funded project. The federal agency named seabeach amaranth to its list of threatened species in 1993. Seabeach amaranth, which has reddish stems, small rounded leaves and inconspicuous flowers, occurs only on Atlantic coast beaches. It has been eliminated from two-thirds of its historic range and is now found in significant numbers only on Long Island and the barrier beaches of North Carolina. Two years ago it was found at Assateague National Seashore on the Delmarva Peninsula. When Division of Fish and Wildlife seasonal researcher Lisa Marie Kendall spotted what she thought was seabeach amaranth in early August, she alerted McAvoy, who confirmed the discovery and joined the search. They located a total of 40 plants in a stretch of primary dunes from the north end of Delaware Seashore State Park to Fenwick Island State Park. "It is a significant find for Delaware," says McAvoy. Symbolic fencing has been placed around each of the plants on the parks to protect them until they die in late fall. Seeds have been collected and stored for planting next summer and fresh plant material has been collected for DNA studies. "There is a chance plants were growing undiscovered on Delaware beaches in previous years," says McAvoy. "Seabeach amaranth is short-lived, growing where seeds happen to fall if the habitat is suitable. The seeds, which are dispersed by winds and currents, can remain viable for many years." -30- (Document number 40-01/00/08/24) |
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