''Hieracium snowdoniense'', the Snowdonia hawkweed, is a species of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

within 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 ...

. The species is

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 ...

Snowdonia Snowdonia or Eryri (), is a mountainous region in northwestern Wales and a national park of in area. It was the first to be designated of the three national parks in Wales, in 1951. Name and extent It was a commonly held belief that the nam ...

North Wales , area_land_km2 = 6,172 , postal_code_type = Postcode , postal_code = LL, CH, SY , image_map1 = Wales North Wales locator map.svg , map_caption1 = Six principal areas of Wales common ...

. It was believed to have become extinct in the early 1950s as a result of

overgrazing Overgrazing occurs when plants are exposed to intensive grazing for extended periods of time, or without sufficient recovery periods. It can be caused by either livestock in poorly managed agricultural applications, game reserves, or nature res ...

sheep on the habitat. In 2002, three plants of the species were re-discovered on steep slopes in the

Cwm Idwal Cwm Idwal is a cirque (or corrie) in the Glyderau range of mountains in northern Snowdonia, the national park in the mountainous region of North Wales. Its main interest is to hill walkers and rock climbers, but it is also of interest to geologist ...

National Nature Reserve above Bethesda. In 2021 it appeared that the population had doubled to six plants, but they were in an extremely inaccessible place, making it impossible to confirm that all six were in fact ''Hieracium snowdoniense''. In order to conserve the population, conservationists have removed sheep from the area. Seeds of the species were also collected, and captive specimens are being cultivated at the

National Botanic Garden of Wales The National Botanic Garden of Wales ( cy, Gardd Fotaneg Genedlaethol Cymru) is a botanical garden located in Llanarthney in the River Tywi valley, Carmarthenshire, Wales. The garden is both a visitor attraction and a centre for botanical rese ...

Description

''Hieracium snowdoniense'' is a perennial species, which possesses a rosette of leaves at the base of the plant. Leaves are lanceolate to ovate, toothed weakly and narrow at the base. Both sides of the leaf possess hairs. Stems of the plant reach up to 40 cm and host flowers. Peduncles are varied in length and support golden-yellow

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed o ...

References

External links

* * * snowdoniense Snowdonia Endemic flora of Wales Plants described in 1955 Environment of Gwynedd Environment of Conwy County Borough Capel Curig Llandygai {{Cichorieae-stub