Cathaya argyrophylla. Cathaya argyrophylla

Cathaya argyrophylla is the sole species in the genus and is considered an endangered conifer. The genus was a flourishing plant group in Europe prior to the Pleistocene ice ages because fossils are present in brown coal deposits dating from 10 to 30 million years ago. The existence of this plant species was unreported in scientific literature until 1955. Recent work suggests that there were at least 4 separate glacial refugia with little evidence of long distance dispersal or population expansion. Analysis of organelles is the first step toward management.