''Gayella valparadisaea'' is a species of

plant Plants are the eukaryotes that form the Kingdom (biology), kingdom Plantae; they are predominantly Photosynthesis, photosynthetic. This means that they obtain their energy from sunlight, using chloroplasts derived from endosymbiosis with c ...

in the family

Sapotaceae 240px, '' Madhuca longifolia'' var. ''latifolia'' in Narsapur, Medak district, India The Sapotaceae are a family of flowering plants belonging to the order (biology)">order Ericales">family (biology)">family of flowering plants belonging to th ...

. It is the sole species in genus ''Gayella''. It is a tree

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to the coastal areas of central

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

. Due to the current rates of habitat loss, this species is classified as

Endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching, inv ...

.Morales et al. (2015). Combining Niche Modelling, Land-Use Change, and Genetic Information to Assess the Conservation Status of Pouteria splendens Populations in Central Chile. International Journal of Ecology. http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2015/612194 It produces an edible fruit similar to that of

lúcuma ''Lucuma bifera'' (synonym ''Pouteria lucuma'') is a species of tree in the family Sapotaceae, cultivated for its fruit, the lúcuma. It is native to the Andean valleys of Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, and northern Chile. Description This ...

fruit.

References

Chrysophylloideae Sapotaceae genera Monotypic Ericales genera Endemic flora of Chile Flora of central Chile Flora of the Chilean Matorral Near threatened plants Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Taxa described in 1890 Taxa named by Jean Baptiste Louis Pierre {{Sapotaceae-stub