The Dwarf-Flowered Heartleaf—A Native Carolina Species—Is No Longer Endangered
When thinking about endangered species, most will immediately think of animals, things like tigers or gorillas. However, there's more to the concept of endangered species than that. Did you know there's an endangered plant list as well?
There's some good news coming out of that list though, with a native Carolina plant species escaping its 'endangered' status.
Small But Mighty
The Dwarf-Flowered Heartleaf is a generally small, leafy plant found on the forest floors of North and South Carolina. As the name suggests, the leaves are heart-shaped, and at the base of these leaves are small, tri-petal flowers of a purple-red color.
This plant was on the endangered species since 1989, meaning it was rarely seen and generally coveted, but recent developments have helped it turn over a new, heart-like leaf.
Population Explosion
As announced in this press release from the U.S Fish and Wildlife Services, the Dwarf-Flowered Heartleaf is no longer on the federal list of endangered and threatened plants. It's no longer an endangered species.
When it was first listed as 'threatened,' there were 24 known populations across eight counties in North Carolina. Now, there are 119 known populations in 10 North Carolina and three South Carolina counties, with 28 of those populations containing over 1000 plants!
Not Without Help
One of the biggest partners involved in the restoration of the Heartleaf was Duke Energy, who helps conserve tens of thousands of plants along the Broad River. Cowpens NAtional Battlefield, Broad River Greenway, Foothills Conservancy, Catawba Lands Conservancy, and The Nature Conservancy all also played a role in helping the lands that let this plant not just survive, but thrive!
The North Carolina Department of Transportation secured some specific conservation land for the Heartleaf and other endangered plants, some along the Broad River Greenway.
The revival of the Dwarf-Flowered Heartleaf is just one victory among many for recent conservation efforts, but that doesn't mean the work is over either. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has created a post-delisting monitoring plan for the Heartleaf and will continue to track its status for the next five years, keeping a close eye on its population size and any threats it might face.
It's measures like these that help our planet not only regrow what it's lost, but keep that regrowth healthy for years to come.