Generales

By Carlos Olimpo Restrepo S., Journalist at UdeA Communications Office 

A professor and two Master’s students in Biology from the Universidad Distrital in Bogotá discovered that this species belonged to a different botanical genus than previously thought. Their research also revealed distinct characteristics that set it apart from others, confirming it as a newly identified species. Two specimens of this tree grow on the Medellín campus of University City. 

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Ana María Trujillo López and Yeison Londoño Echeverri collect samples from a Dahlstedtia Colombiana at University City. Photo: UdeA Communications Office / Alejandra Uribe F. 

Hiding something in plain sight is a recurring theme in literature, movies, and television. In science, however, actual researchers—who observe nature with sharper insight than police officers or fictional detectives—make remarkable discoveries that often go unnoticed by most people, even when they occur in their surroundings. 

It is the case, for example, of Ana María Trujillo López and Yeison Londoño Echeverri, master’s students in Biology at UdeA, and William Ariza Cortés, a Biology master’s graduate and professor at Universidad Distrital Francisco José de Caldas in Bogotá. They became intrigued by a tree species listed in several herbarium records across the country as part of the Lonchocarpus genus. However, they noticed characteristics that didn’t align with any known species in this botanical group. 

“In 2017, we collected a sample in the municipality of Andes, Southwest Antioquia, near the banks of the San Juan River. At the time, we identified it as a plant from the Lonchocarpus genus,” recalled Londoño Echeverri. 

Trujillo López mentioned researchers had separated the genus Dahlstedtia from Lonchocarpus, and no species from it had been reported or recorded in Colombia. “The tree we encountered lacked flowers. It only had fruits, but it struck us as unusual, which is why we decided to collect it,” he explained. 

Professor William Ariza Cortés was conducting national research on the Fabaceae family, which includes the two genera mentioned earlier. During a visit to the Universidad de Antioquia’s Herbarium (HUA), where Ana María and Yeison were working on their academic projects, he expressed surprise that there were no records of Dahlstedtia in Colombia, despite reports of plants from this genus in Central America and the Amazon. 

The students shared their doubts about the specimen collected in the Andes, then expanded their search and found a collection at the Medellín Herbarium of Universidad Nacional. The specimen, with flowers, matched the one they had and was registered as Lonchocarpus. 

“By examining the flowers of this individual, collected by professors from the National University in 2001 in Santa Fe de Antioquia, in the Cauca River basin, we confirmed that it was Dahlstedtia. We then contacted Professor William to share our findings, informing him we had evidence of this genus in Colombia. Although we were still uncertain whether it was a new species,” explained Ana María Trujillo. 

New identity  

Between 2021 and 2022, they studied additional collections from across the country, including those from the Botanical Expedition (1783-1808), where they found fruits from specimens collected in the Magdalena Valley. They also examined plants from the Fauc Herbarium at the University of Caldas in Manizales, including specimens from Norcasia, Caldas, located in the Magdalena basin. Based on their observations and initial morphological studies, they began classifying the plant separately from the Dahlstedtia genus, ultimately establishing it as a new species for science. 

Since it is native to Colombia, they named it Dahlstedtia Colombiana. The species features leave with opposite leaflets, paniculate inflorescences (clustered flowers), and samaroid fruits (dry and flattened). 

While it shares some traits with other species in the genus, Dahlstedtia Colombiana has unique morphological features, including truncated or rounded leaflet bases, oblanceolate wing petals (broader in the center than at the base), and silky, khaki-colored fruits. 

This species thrives in tropical dry forest ecosystems within the inter-Andean valleys of the Cauca and Magdalena rivers, a region severely fragmented and threatened by deforestation. These forests, which now cover only 8% of their original extent, are essential to the country’s biodiversity. 

The Colombian Dahlstedtia has been proposed for classification as “vulnerable” under the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) criteria. With an occupancy area of only 40 km² and a fragmented distribution, this species faces significant threats from habitat loss and the encroachment of urban centers on its subpopulations. 

To address these risks, the researchers stressed the need for conservation strategies that focus on restoring tropical dry forests and establishing protected areas in the regions where the species lives. 

Living presence at the University City  

A record of the plant, identified as Dahlstedtia Colombiana, in the university herbarium. Photo: UdeA Communications Office / Alejandra Uribe F.  
 
The Universidad de Antioquia’s herbarium, located in block 2 of the University City in Medellín, houses preserved samples of Dahlstedtia Colombiana, which played a key role in its identification as a new species. In addition to the work of Ana María and Yeison, Ana Cristina Pareja made a crucial contribution by creating botanical illustrations essential for describing the plant’s morphology. These detailed illustrations highlight the structure of the flowers, leaves, fruits, and other key features. 
 
During their research, master’s students in Biology at UdeA’s Faculty of Exact and Natural Sciences identified two specimens of this new species on the Medellín Campus, in the green area between blocks 9 and 10. Their estimated height of nearly 20 meters suggests they have been growing there for over two decades.  

These trees thrive in a region outside their natural habitat, as University City sits at about 1,500 meters above sea level, whereas herbarium records come from areas below 1,200 meters. Despite this, they have successfully flowered and produced fruit, enabling researchers to confirm their taxonomic identity. 

The presence of these cultivated specimens highlights the vital role of academic spaces in biodiversity conservation and research. It also reinforces the importance of incorporating botanical gardens and living collections into scientific and educational initiatives.