By Liz Kimbrough
“Very exciting here!” exclaims botanist John L. Clark in an Instagram video posted during the summer of 2022. He and his team have just spotted a tiny, new-to-science plant species in a rare patch of northwestern Ecuadorian forest.
This scene marks the finding of Amalophyllon miraculum, an undescribed plant barely 5 centimeters (2 inches) tall, found clinging to a large boulder in a forest fragment near the town of Santo Domingo. The find, researchers say, highlights the importance of preserving even small patches of threatened ecosystems.
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