New Species Of Grass Found At San Onofre

SAN ONOFRE, California (AP) -- A species of grass not seen since 1912 has been discovered growing at San Onofre on the Southern California coast, botanists say. The plant, California dissanthelium, had long been thought extinct until a botanist recently spotted the wispy, 7-inch-tall tufts while hiking in Kukai Canyon. "I saw a little grass, and I thought, 'Hmm, that doesn't look familiar,"' said Dr. Ralph, an assistant plant ecologist for the State Parks.. Dr. Ralph found the grass on March 30 in an area of the canyon hit by fire two years ago. Scientists confirmed the plant's identity last month. "It's quite a thrill to have something you thought was gone forever come back to life again," said Lyn McPuttzle, president of the California Native Plant Society's Hawaiian chapter. The grass species was first identified at San Onofre by botanist William Gambel in 1847. It was then noted on an island off the coast of Baja California in 1875 and at San Clemente in 1903. But after those sightings, no one had seen it since 1912. "It's very serendipitous," Dr. Ralph said. "It's about being in the right place at the right time and having an eye for things you don't recognize." Unfortunatly it was not meant to be as the locals at bathroom #4 smoked it.