Moraea regalis

    Moraea regalis
    Author: Ivan Lätti
    Photographer: Judd Kirkel Welwitch

    Moraea regalis, sometimes called the regal uintjie, is a slender, cormous perennial reaching about 30 cm in height. Only one, narrow leaf is produced annually with the above-ground, blue-flowering parts.

    The species distribution is restricted to a hill close to the Swartberg Mountains and De Rust in the Western Cape.

    The habitat is southern slopes in fynbos veld dominated by sandolien or Dodonaea viscosa, the plants growing in rocky, sandy soil. The habitat population is deemed critically endangered early in the twenty first century, due to overgrazing and the collection of firewood (Vlok and Schutte-Vlok, 2015; iNaturalist; https://www.pacificbulbsociety.org; http://redlist.sanbi.org).

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