An endemic tulip species long thought to be extinct has been rediscovered in northern Türkiye’s Amasya province after 130 years, thanks to the keen eye of a local nature enthusiast.
The plant, known as the “Lost Amasya tulip,” was last recorded in the wild in 1896 and had since been considered lost in botanical literature.
Ercan Eftelioglu, a nature enthusiast in Amasya, spotted an unusual tulip during a walk in the countryside and sent photographs of the plant to botanists for identification.
Botanists Ismail Eker of Bolu Abant Izzet Baysal University and Salih Sercan Kanoglu of Istanbul’s Nezahat Gokyigit Botanical Garden later visited the area and confirmed that the plant was the Lost Amasya tulip.
Speaking to reporters, Eker said the species was first collected in 1892 and last documented in the wild in 1896.
He said many Turkish and international researchers, including himself, had searched for the species in the region over the past 130 years but had failed to locate it.
“Today is an important day because we thought this plant had been lost,” Eker said. “But after 130 years, we have seen that it has not disappeared from Amasya, that it is still alive, although its habitat is quite limited.”
Eker said the next step would be to place the species under protection and ensure its long-term survival.
Eftelioglu said the tulip caught his eye during one of his walks.
“I am always searching in nature. I saw that it looked very much like Amasya’s lost tulip, so I took two samples and photographed it,” he said. “We sent it to our botanist colleagues. They determined that it was Amasya’s lost tulip, and our professors came and saw it on site.”