Munchkin liveforever facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Munchkin liveforever |
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| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Dudleya
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| Species: |
gnoma
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The Dudleya gnoma is a very rare type of succulent plant. It belongs to the stonecrop family. People often call it the munchkin liveforever or munchkin dudleya. This plant is special because it only grows in one place. That place is Santa Rosa Island, which is one of the Channel Islands of California.
Scientists have found only one group of these plants. This group has about 3,200 plants in it. The plant was first found in the 1950s. But it wasn't officially named by scientists until 1997.
What Makes It Special?
This little plant is quite small and grows in a compact way. It has a thick stem called a caudex. On top of this stem, you'll find clumps of leaves. These clumps are called rosettes. Each rosette can be up to 5 centimeters (about 2 inches) wide. It can have up to 20 small leaves.
The leaves are fleshy and shaped like triangles. They can be green, have a red tint, or even look white. They often have a waxy, powdery coating. Each leaf is about 2 centimeters (less than an inch) long and 1 centimeter wide.
Flowers and How It Grows
The Dudleya gnoma produces a flower stalk. This stalk can grow up to 13 centimeters (about 5 inches) tall. It has small, triangular leaves along its stem.
Each plant can have up to 10 flowers. These flowers are tiny, less than a centimeter long. They have bright yellow petals.
Why Is It Rare?
The Dudleya gnoma is very rare because it only lives in one small area. This makes it vulnerable to many dangers. For example, a fence protects the plants from cattle that graze nearby. However, deer can still get past the fence and eat the plants.
Another problem is that all the plants are very similar. This means they have a limited gene pool. If a big problem happens, like a severe drought, it could wipe out the entire group of plants.
Even though it's rare in the wild, some gardeners grow this dudleya. They are often fans of succulent plants. There's even a special type grown by people called 'White Sprite'.
Images for kids
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Growing in the shallow Miocene volcanic substrate on Santa Rosa.
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Population in habitat.
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In cultivation.
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The straight species of Dudleya gnoma produced from tissue culture at Tree of Life Nursery.
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Detail of the flowers, from a tissue culture plant.
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The rosette of a tissue culture plant, which is larger compared to the commonly available 'White Sprite' cultivar.
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The flowers.
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