is an extinct species of

thistle Thistle is the common name of a group of flowering plants characterised by leaves with sharp prickles on the margins, mostly in the family Asteraceae. Prickles can also occur all over the planton the stem and on the flat parts of the leaves. ...

in the family

Asteraceae The family Asteraceae, alternatively Compositae, consists of over 32,000 known species of flowering plants in over 1,900 genera within the order Asterales. Commonly referred to as the aster, daisy, composite, or sunflower family, Compositae w ...

that was

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to the

Bonin Islands The Bonin Islands, also known as the , are an archipelago of over 30 subtropical and tropical islands, some directly south of Tokyo, Japan and northwest of Guam. The name "Bonin Islands" comes from the Japanese word ''bunin'' (an archaic readi ...

of Tōkyō Metropolis, Japan.

Taxonomy

The species was first described by Japanese botanist Gen-ichi Koidzumi in 1919.

Description

''Cirsium toyoshimae'' had pale purple flowers and soft spines and was somewhat smaller than the extant ''

Cirsium boninense ''Cirsium boninense'' is a species of thistle in the family Asteraceae that is endemic to the Bonin Islands of Tōkyō Metropolis, Japan. Taxonomy The species was first described by Japanese botanist Gen-ichi Koidzumi in 1914. The specific e ...

''. It used to grow in wooded areas near the coast.

Conservation status

''Cirsium toyoshimae'' is classed as

extinct Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and ...

on the Ministry of the Environment Red List.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15597372 toyoshimae Flora of the Bonin Islands Endemic flora of Japan Plants described in 1919 Extinct flora of Asia