Instagram Selfie Leads to Discovery of New Plant Species

Scientific discoveries sometimes begin where no one expects. Posting an ordinary selfie on Instagram led researchers to identify an unknown species of giant water lily in Colombia.

Sometimes scientific discoveries start from a place that no one expects. The publication of an ordinary selfie on Instagram has led researchers to identify a previously unknown species of giant water lily in Colombia.

In a new research, scientists have succeeded in identifying a species of water lily called Victoria colombiana, the first clue of its existence was seen in an image published on Instagram. This discovery was confirmed after nearly two years of investigation and a five-day exploratory trip to eastern Colombia.

The story goes back to December 2021; When Jeremiah Harris, the owner of a carnivorous plant breeding center in America, posted a picture of himself next to a giant water lily in the Inirida region of eastern Colombia.

Harris assumed that the plant in the image was a well-known species of giant Amazonian water lily (Victoria amazonica) that grows in the Amazon basin. But after seeing the photo, Magdalena noticed something unusual: according to the available information, such a species should not exist naturally near the Inirida River. This geographical difference raised the possibility of discovering an unknown species.

Carlos Magdalena, a researcher at the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew in the United Kingdom, first examined satellite images of the area and was able to identify the presence of Victoria plants there. He then called Harris and made sure the plants seen in the satellite images matched the ones he had seen up close.

After initial investigations, Magdalena collaborated with Mauricio Bernal Rodríguez, a researcher at one of Bogotá's botanical gardens, and members of the region's indigenous communities to organize an expedition to identify the plant. It took almost two years for the group to go to the region. However, even after arriving at the site, the discovery of the new species was not certain.

The researchers searched for several days during their five-day trip, but found only two specimens of water lilies, neither of which had flowers.

The lack of flowers was an important problem; Because for the scientific identification and formal description of the new species, the researchers needed a sample that includes the reproductive organs of the plant. After collection, this specimen is dried and pressed and kept as a document for examination and comparison with other species in botanical collections.

Finally, on the last night of the trip, when the group had almost lost their chance, Gustavo Mello, a local boatman, helped the researchers find another collection of water lilies. Fortunately, one of the plants had flowered and it was possible to collect the required sample.

The group identified and examined a total of seven plants in two lakes, and after finishing the work, they barely managed to fly back. The results of these investigations finally led to the official identification of the Victoria columbiana species. Details of the discovery have been published in the journal Phytotaxa.