Until now, scientists believed, Chrysocoma cilliata, a flowering plant colonizing degraded land in the Lesotho Highlands, was an invasive species. But new research suggests the plant, a member of the daisy family, has been around for at least 4,000 years.

The Lesotho Highlands are formed by the intersection of the Drakensberg and Maloti mountain ranges in Lesotho, a small, landlocked county in Southern Africa.

Invasive species often colonize degraded habitat, and Chrysocoma cilliata continues to thrive on overgrazed land and abandoned cattle stations where top soil and other forms of vegetation are lacking. The species has also proven resilient to drought.

Ecologists perceived the proliferation of Chrysocoma cilliata as a threat.

When analyzing the pollen record in sediment cores collected from the Lesotho Highlands, researchers at Wits University, in South Africa, found traces of Chrysocoma cilliata pollen going back 4,000 years.

Until now, researchers believed the plant was accidentally transported from the South African Karoo to the west by migrating cattle farmers around 100 years ago.

The new research proves the plant has been around for much longer. But the findings -- detailed in the journal Biological Invasions -- don't necessarily prove whether the flowering plant is invasive.

Humans have been visiting the Lesotho Highlands for at least 80,000 years, so it's possible the plant was transported by early settlers.

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