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Chionanthus pygmaeus
Also called Pygmy Fringe Tree
Chionanthus pygmaeus is a rare species of flowering plant in the olive family known by the common name pygmy fringetree. It is endemic to Florida, where there are 46 known occurrences as of 2010. The plant is found in increasingly rare habitat in Central Florida that is being consumed for development, and some protected areas are not managed adequately. Most populations are small. It is a federally listed endangered species of the United States.
The plant grows in Florida scrub, sandhills, hammocks, flatwoods, and transition zones between these habitats. Many of these ecosystems are endangered and degraded, with remaining fragments under pressure from destructive forces. It is a plant of the well-drained yellow and white sands that remain from the ancient dunes that once covered this section of Central Florida. Many populations are known to have been extirpated because they occurred on valuable private land and were destroyed when the properties were developed. Most of its 46 occurrences are located on protected property, such as Lake Wales Ridge National Wildlife Refuge. Not all of this protected land is managed properly, however. Most of the habitats in which the plants grow, such as scrub and sandhills, are dependent on periodic fires for their health and maintenance. When a fire occurs now it is generally quickly extinguished, preventing the natural fire regime. Many areas, even in protected, conserved sites, are overgrown today because they have not burned in many years.
Chionanthus albidiflorus · Chionanthus balgooyana · Chionanthus callophylloides · Chionanthus callophyllus · Chionanthus cordulatus · Chionanthus crassifolius · Chionanthus crispus · Chionanthus curvicarpus · Chionanthus evenius · Chionanthus globosus · Chionanthus havilandii · Chionanthus henryae
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Chionanthus pygmaeus by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts are shared under the same licence.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
