{
  "id": 4573647,
  "title": "‘Lost’ for 170 years, rare plant recorded in Sri Lanka",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/31/lost-for-170-years-rare-plant-recorded-in-sri-lanka",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-08-31T04:35:55.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Mongabay",
    "slug": "mongabay",
    "url": "https://news.mongabay.com/short-article/2026/08/lost-for-170-years-rare-plant-recorded-in-sri-lanka/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A rare plant species, last seen in Sri Lanka over 170 years ago, has been discovered growing in a lowland forest. Researchers found a population of Indianthus virgatus, a critically endangered plant with small white flowers, in a fragment of forest along the Sitawaka Ganga River in 2025. The plant, which was presumed extinct in the wild, had only been recorded once in Sri Lanka, in 1855. Using historical records and predictive habitat modeling, researchers identified potential habitats in southwestern Sri Lanka and discovered the population of 70 to 100 individuals. The species is unique, found only in the Indian subcontinent and Sri Lanka, with populations separated by a large geographical gap. This discovery sheds light on the plant's evolutionary and biogeographical context.",
  "summary": "Researchers have a population of an extremely rare plant species, last recorded in Sri Lanka in 1855, growing in a lowland forest fragment along the Sitawaka Ganga River. Documenting the finding in a recent study, researchers write that the plant, Indianthus virgatus, while officially listed as critically endangered in Sri Lanka, was presumed possibly […]",
  "key_points": [
    "Rare plant species Indianthus virgatus last seen in Sri Lanka 170 years ago rediscovered",
    "Population of 70 to 100 individuals found in lowland forest along Sitawaka Ganga River in 2025"
  ],
  "editors_take": "The rediscovery of Indianthus virgatus in Sri Lanka provides new insights into the plant's evolutionary and biogeographical context, and potentially informs conservation efforts for this critically endangered species.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}