Cadí-Moixeró counts 310 plants of a tiny forget-me-not, its only population in the Pyrenees
It's the third count since its discovery in 2014: 131 plants at first and 425 in 2021. No direct threats have been detected, but its area is so small that any disturbance would affect the whole population.
It stands about 7.5 centimetres tall, has pale blue flowers, and its entire Pyrenean population fits in a rocky corner. Cadí-Moixeró Natural Park, in the Catalan Pyrenees, has counted 310 Myosotis minutiflora this year, a miniature forget-me-not.
Three counts
This is the third check since the population was discovered in 2014. Park technicians count the plants in June, at full bloom.
| Count | Plants | Area |
|---|---|---|
| First | 131 | About 2 m² |
| 2021 | 425 | About 4 m² |
| 2026 | 310 | Not given |
As rare as it is fragile
It’s an annual herb of stony limestone soils, growing at the foot of crags and rock shelters. Its origins are southern, typical of southern ranges, which gives its presence in the Pyrenees great biogeographic value.
It’s listed as “endangered” in Catalonia’s Threatened Flora Catalogue and “critically endangered” under IUCN criteria applied there. The park notes it remains above 250 breeding individuals, the threshold between the two categories.
Is it in danger?
According to the park, no threats have been detected that put its survival at risk. Even so, experts consider it highly vulnerable because of its tiny range: any disturbance to the site would affect the whole core.
It remains under the park’s threatened flora monitoring plan, which covers 50 taxa of special interest and tracks 13 regularly, according to a 2023 study.
In the mountains, don’t pick plants or leave the path around rock and delicate flora: sometimes a few square metres is all a species has left.
Another high-mountain flower with a story is the edelweiss.
Sources and references
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