Scilla morrisii

The Morris squill, also called the pallid squill, Scilla morrisii, is a perennial bulb-forming herb of the family Asparagaceae that grows only on the island of Cyprus and is classified as Critically Endangered by the IUCN. It stands up to 35 centimetres tall, with three to six thick, straight leaves up to 70 centimetres long and small star-shaped flowers, usually purple, blue or white, that open in March and April. Like the other species of its genus it is somewhat toxic. It is known from just three sites in the north-west of the island, two near the village of Panagia and one near the Aghios Neophytos monastery, at about 250 to 900 metres, where it grows in moist crevices, often under old oaks and terebinths. An estimated 600 plants were counted in 2006, all within less than 2 square kilometres, and the loss of old oak stands to logging, road construction and farmland conversion threatens them.