'Extinct’ plant rediscovered on cliffs near Land’s End
24 August 2010
The discovery of a plant thought to be extinct in England on cliffs near Land’s End has sent waves of excitement through the botanical community in both Cornwall and further afield.
Perennial centaury, otherwise confined in Britain to a short length of coastline in Pembrokeshire, had not been seen in Cornwall (and England) for almost 50 years. That was until keen naturalists, Laurie and Helen Oakes, out walking on the South West Coast Path in early summer saw and photographed a distinctive pink flower at two locations on south facing cliffs near Land’s End.
Photos of the two populations each holding between 50 and 100 separate plants with hundreds of individual flowers were sent to Ian Bennallick, East Cornwall recorder of the Botanical Society for the British Isles. Ian said: “When I saw the photos I knew immediately that it was this species and my heart leapt as myself and others have been searching for the plant for years. I arranged to go down to the site straight away with Laurie and Helen to confirm the find and the plants were flowering magnificently in places where we have walked straight past in previous years.”
A member of the gentian family with small leaves and larger striking pink flowers, Perennial centaury is found in the Azores and along the Atlantic fringe of western Europe in Portugal, Spain and north-west France but nowhere else in the world. The British populations of the plant, in Pembrokeshire and now again in Cornwall, lie at the extreme northern limit of this highly restricted range.
Simon Leach, a plant specialist with Natural England, the Government’s nature conservation agency said: “When we heard the news we were, frankly, stunned as the species hasn’t been seen in Cornwall since 1962. Botanists had returned to these cliffs to search for it on numerous occasions, and to be honest we’d pretty much given up hope of it still being there. Of course, we don’t know if the plants found this year have been there all along, whether they have sprung up from a long-buried seed-bank or are the result of colonisation of seeds washed up from the sea.”
Much of the coastline between Porthgwarra and Land’s End lies within a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). The areas on the cliff tops have been grazed by cattle under a Higher Level Stewardship agreement – an agri-environment scheme that provides funding to farmers and other land managers to deliver environmental management on their land.
Peter Bowden, Natural England’s Land Management team leader in Cornwall said: “The Perennial centaury appears to favour cliff-top grassland and maritime heath, exactly the sorts of habitat that we are trying to encourage through our Environmental Stewardship funding in West Penwith. We think the management here, particularly the re-introduction of grazing on the cliffs, has helped to maintain open conditions in an area that would otherwise be liable to encroachment by scrub and bracken. This has not only benefited the Perennial centaury but also a wide range of other wildlife.”
Another beneficiary from conservation grazing in Cornwall is the emblematic Chough, which returned to cliffs on the Lizard in 2001 following an absence from the county of over 50 years. Environmental payments have subsequently encouraged traditional forms of livestock grazing on coastal grassland and heathland and the resulting short pasture provides the bird with its invertebrate food source. Since 2002, the pioneering pair of choughs has nested every year raising a total of 32 young many of which have survived and some have raised their own young. The return of the chough has also attracted huge numbers of visitors which has brought a valuable contribution to the local economy.
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For more details, images and interviews please contact; Martin Gershon, Communications Specialist on 07900 608364 or email: martin.gershon@naturalengland.org.uk
In England, Perennial centaury (Centaurium scilloides) has only ever been recorded as a native species in Cornwall. It was first discovered near Porthgwarra in 1952 and from a second site at Sandymouth, near Bude, in 1956. Until this year it was thought to have become extinct at Porthgwarra in the early 1960s, and is still presumed to be extinct at Sandymouth where numerous searches over the last 30 years have failed to re-discover it. The first British record of the plant is in Pembrokeshire, Wales in 1918.
Produced to coincide with the International Year of Biodiversity, Natural England’s Lost Life: England’s Lost and Threatened Species report
identifies nearly 500 animals and plants that have become extinct in England – practically all within the last two centuries. It also highlights how habitat loss, inappropriate management, environmental pollution and pressure from non-native species have all played a part in the erosion of England’s biodiversity. Higher Level Stewardship (HLS), the upper tier of the suite of Environmental Stewardship schemes, aims to deliver significant environmental benefits in high priority situations and areas. A wide range of management options are available, targeted to support key characteristics of the different areas.
Options include:
Resource protection
Fallow plots for ground-nesting birds
Creation of wet grassland areas
Restoration of traditional water meadows and orchards
Management of hedgerows
Ancient trees in arable fields
Woodlands, parkland and wood pastures
Protection of the historic environment
Permissive footpath access and educational access
More information on HLS
About Natural England
Natural England is the government’s independent advisor on the natural environment. Established in 2006 our work is focused on enhancing England’s wildlife and landscapes and maximising the benefits they bring to the public.
We establish and care for England’s main wildlife and geological sites, ensuring that over 4,000 National Nature Reserves and Sites of Special Scientific Interest are looked after and improved.
We work to ensure that England’s landscapes are effectively protected, designating England’s National Parks, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and Marine Conservation Zones, and advising widely on their conservation.
We run England’s Environmental Stewardship green farming schemes that deliver over £400 million a year to farmers and landowners, enabling them to enhance the natural environment across two thirds of England’s farmland.
We fund, manage, and provide scientific expertise for hundreds of conservation projects each year, improving the prospects for thousands of England’s species and habitats.
We promote access to the wider countryside, helping establish National Trails and coastal trails and ensuring that the public can enjoy and benefit from them.
For further information about Natural England please visit; www.naturalengland.org.uk
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