Victorin’s gentian COSEWIC assessment and status report: chapter 9

Special Significance of the Species

The species is of interest to scientists because it draws attention to the issue of the origin and diversification of the endemic flora of the estuarine shores of the St. Lawrence River (Marie Victorin, 1995). Along with Victorin’s gentian, Bouchard et al. (1983) list the following 12 taxa as St. Lawrence estuarine endemics: Bidens eatonii, Cicuta maculata var. victorinii, Epilobium cliliatum var. ecomosum, Erigeron philadelphicus var. provancheri, Eriocaulon parkeri, Gratiola neglecta var. glaberrima, Lycopus americanus var. laurentianus, Physostegia virginiana var. granulosa, Polygonum punctatum var. parvum and Zizania aquatica var. brevis.

Given the beauty of this plant, it is a symbol of the conservation of estuarine environments and of the protection of threatened or vulnerable species.

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