Colorado Researchers Discover New Plant In Leadville's High Country

DENVER (CBS4) - The head curator at the Denver Botanic Gardens says researchers discovered a new plant in Colorado's high country. The discovery led Dr. Jennifer Ackerfield, colleagues and the U.S. Forest Service to Mount Sherman, near Leadville.

Ackerfield first learned about the type of new plant in her Ph. D. research. She named it Cirsium funkiae in honor of her mentor, Dr. Vicki Funk.

"We acknowledge that Indigenous communities of Lake County, Colorado, may have discovered this plant many years ago, but Ackerfield's work gives this species a formal scientific name using a combination of physical, geographic and genetic data," the Denver Botanic Gardens stated in a news release. "We can't protect what we don't know is out there."

They found a thistle rose with yellow flowers among small alpine plants. Researchers say the thistle adapts differently than alpine plants by producing dense, woolly hairs around the flowers which help protect against the harsh winter conditions. The hairs also help feed pollinators and pikas.

"The Rocky Mountains harbor potentially many plant species, just waiting to be formally described by scientists as they unravel their genetic 'code,'" the gardens state.