The plant, formally known as Ovicula biradiata, is especially notable for being the simultaneous discovery of a new species and genus. It was found with help from the community science app iNaturalist.

Researchers say odd-looking plants discovered by a volunteer and supervisory interpretive park ranger at a U.S. National Park are a new species. The unique plant was found growing on desert rocks in a remote area of Big Bend National Park in Texas.

The Wooly Devil, or Ovicula biradiata​, was first spotted by botany volunteer Deb Manley and a park ranger in Big Bend National Park in Texas in March 2024.

Deb Manley was exploring a remote area of Big Bend National Park when she spotted something unusual on the ground. Tiny, fuzzy, flowering plants were sprouting up from between the desert rocks in the Texas park’s northern region.

The wooly devil is only the latest in a series of remarkable finds in the park. In recent years, scientists have uncovered fossils of a new duck-billed dinosaur and rediscovered a species of oak once thought extinct.

The small plant, officially named “Ovicula biradiata" and more affectionately called “wooly devil,” was first spotted in March 2024, sprinkled among

A new fuzzy plant species called the "Wooly Devil" has been discovered amongst the arid landscapes of Big Bend National Park in Texas.

A new plant species was recently discovered in Texas’ Big Bend National Park. It’s being called the “wooly devil.”

Genetic analysis revealed that not only is it a new species, but it’s also a new genus. It’s in the same family as daisies. Researchers named it Ovicula biradiata. Ovicula is Latin for tiny sheep, for the fuzz that resembles wool covering it.