Illustration by Jeanne R. Janish from Vascular plants of the Pacific Northwest by C. Leo Hitchcock et al„ 1959, University of Washington, Seattle. Reprinted with permission.
Editor’s note: This is the twentieth volume of the INPS newsletter, and the first “winter” issue of the new Sage Notes schedule (details on back page). In this issue we welcome the new “Kinnikinnick” chapter in Sandpoint and have last minute news about the Rare Plant Conference, February 10-11, in Boise. Be sure to look over the list of other events planned for RPC week. Thanks again to Karen Gray for our winter cover.
In this issue
Original Prairie Lands, Constance Hatch 1
Perspectives from a 1990s Wildlife Biologist, Jay Shepherd 2
A New INPS Chapter at Sandpoint With an Exciting Proposal, Lois Wythe 2
The Importance of Hollow Trees to Wildlife, Evelyn L. Bull 3
The Bryophyte Connection of North Central Idaho, Leonard Lake 4
Plant Profile: Tripterocladium leucocladulum, Karen Gray 7
Arkansas Postcard: In Praise of Spring-Flowering Hardwoods, Wayne Owen 8
Chapter News 9
Fourteenth Annual Rare Plant Conference— and More, Nancy Cole 10
Idaho Native Plant Society List of Idaho’s Rare Flora: Criteria for Inclusion, Ranking, and
Recommendations to Agencies, Nancy Cole and Bob Moseley 10
INPS Board Meeting Minutes, Leonard Lake 13
Think summer! 13
Review: Wild Trees of Idaho 14
Review: Flora of the Pacific Northwest CD-ROM 15
News and Notes 16
Dues Notice
Please check your mailing label. You will no longer receive Sage Notes when your dues lapse .
Winter 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (1)
Original Prairie Lands
From ‘The Craigmont Years” by Constance Talbott Hatch
The author was born in 1906 and now resides in Kamiah. She grew up on a farm just north of Craigmont, Idaho.
As we went to the mailbox we went past a small comer of Aunt Ella’s place that had never been plowed. There were some rocks at its lower end, and a trickle of creek ran along its side in the springtime when the snow was melting. Maybe it was an acre of land, maybe less. It was a good place to stop and enjoy the wildflowers and leam a lot about them too. Mama had studied botany when she attended the university in Moscow and so she knew most of the plants that grew there. I use the scientific names, although I know that I am opening the way for people to call me a “haughty culturisf ’. If you ask six people the common name of a plant you will probably get four different answers. Some that I remember are:
Buttercup ( Ranunculus glaberrimus) early, on rocky slopes Yellow bells ( Fritillaria pudica )
Lamb tongue ( Erythronium grandiflorum )
Johnny-jump-up ( Viola sp.)
Yellow Camas ( Camassia quamash )
Poison camas ( Zigadenus venenosus ) grows with blue camas Blue bells ( Mertensia sp.)
Sugar bowls ( Clematis hirsutissima )
Cat ears ( Calochortus elegans )
Wild tulip ( Calochortus macrocarpus ) dry rocky hillsides
These were the flowering plants. I know that there were many grasses, but I didn’t leam their names except rattlesnake grass ( Bromus brizaeformis ). There were many squirrels, a badger, and numerous field mice. At least one pair of prairie chickens built a nest there.
Prairie chickens were still quite common when I was a very small child, but by the time I was 18 years old, we never saw them anymore. They built their nests on the open prairie, all of which was soon plowed, mostly in the spring when the birds were nesting. There was no open hunting season, but still people shot them. Once in the early morning in a winter “whiteout”, a large covey of them flew over the house and into the bam roof which they could not see because it was covered by a light skiff of snow. Eighteen or twenty of them were killed and fell into the barnyard. Papa gathered them up, and we had a real Thanksgiving feast on illegal chicken. The folks had at first thought that they should report the kill to the game warden, but finally decided to accept the birds as manna from Heaven.
Other animals I remember were deer, bear, cougar, wolf (very scarce), bobcats, raccoons, coyotes (numerous). Columbia ground squirrels were everywhere; badgers caught them, weasels too. There were gophers, moles and field mice.
Birds in the area included Canada geese, various ducks, snow geese, swans flying north in spring and
Sunflower ( Balsamorhiza sagittata) dry rocky spots Salt and pepper ( Hesperochiron pumilus) next to creek Violets ( Viola sp.)
Shooting stars, bird bills ( Dodecatheon sp.)
Wild rose ( Rosa nutkana )
Wild hyacinth ( Brodiaea douglasii)
Wild geranium ( Geranium sp.)
Wild onion ( Allium sp.)
Grass widow ( Olsynium grandiflora ) [ =Olsynium douglasii ]
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Winter 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20(1)
Jacqueline E. Moore
south in fall (they seldom landed in the fields), mountain bluebirds, blackbirds, red-winged blackbirds, meadowlarks, chipping sparrows, robins, flickers, woodpeckers, sparrow hawks, eagles, owls (various kinds such as bam, pygmy and snowy); mourning doves were plentiful, and condors very scarce.
....Perspectives from a 1990s Wildlife Biologist Constance Talbott Hatch Jay Shepherd, White Pine Chapter was probably using the
common name of the
period when she referred to prairie chickens. These birds were most likely Columbian sharp-tailed grouse ( Tympanuchus phasianellus columbianus ) from what we can understand from present day range maps and the journals of Lewis and Clark. Paul Russell Cutright in “Lewis and Clark: Pioneering Naturalists” writes “the [Columbian sharp-tailed] Grouse or Prairie hen is peculiarly the inhabitant of the Great Plains of Columbia.” The lesser and greater prairie-chickens ( Tympanuchus pallidicinctus and Tympanuchus cupido respectively) are species of the great plains of the Midwest. The sharp-tailed grouse is a widespread species that occurs from the four comers area of the Southwest to Alaska and east to Ontario; including the Columbia plateau and its associated grasslands. “Condor” was probably the colloquial term of the period for the turkey vulture ( Cathartes aura ) which is in the same family, Cathartidae, as our continent’s only condor, the Californian condor ( Gymnogyps calif omianus). These species have similar appearances if not sizes.
A New INPS Chapter at Sandpoint with an Exciting Proposal
Lois Wythe, Kinnikinnick Chapter
Last April Lois Wythe, Sandpoint Master Gardener and herbalist, convened more than 60 native plant enthusiasts to discuss field trips, programs, and the possibility of becoming a chapter of INPS. An enthusiastic group resulted complete with steering committee, a monthly newsletter, and temporary officers. The group decided to wait until
fall to vote on INPS membership, to have the summer to get to know each other, to determine if the initial interest would be sustained, and to learn more about what such membership would entail.
During the summer members were busy. They attended Calypso Chapter field trips and organized outings of their own, thanks to Valle Novak.
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Winter 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (1)
Program speakers included Calypso member Jill Blake, who spoke about rare native species, and Ben Silverman, who gave a presentation on the use of natives in landscaping. Members were kept informed by Mike and Phil Franklin’s monthly newsletter. A Board member of the Montana Native Plant Society, Dennis Nichols, explained the workings of native plant societies.
A popular feature at meetings is the “information table” to which members bring books, plant specimens, articles, or catalogs. One native plant is discussed in detail at each meeting.
In November the group voted to apply for
membership to the state society, and 55 members sent applications to INPS President Kristin Fletcher for board approval. The new chapter was approved unanimously at the January Board meeting (see INPS Board Meeting Minutes p. 13).
The chapter has an exciting proposal: a North Idaho Native Plant Arboretum, to be constructed and maintained by the chapter, with invitation to local young people who could later act as guides.
Upcoming Kinnikinnick Chapter events are listed in Chapter News on p. 9. The Chapter ’s address and officers are listed on the back of Sage Notes.
The Importance of Hollow Trees to Wildlife
Evelyn L. Bull, USFS Pacific Northwest Research Station
Although the value of snags to wildlife has been well documented, the importance of hollow trees has only recently been recognized. A hollow tree is created when heart-rot fungi invade the heartwood of a living tree, and decay progresses to the point that the cylinder of decayed heartwood eventually detaches from the sapwood and slumps downward, leaving a hollow chamber. This process begins only in a living tree and can take decades to produce a chamber large enough for wildlife to use. Because this particular decay process is dependent on living trees, the only way to obtain a hollow dead tree or log is to start with a living tree hollowed out by decay.
Pileated woodpeckers ( Dryocopus pileatus ) use hollow trees for roosting at night; they excavate their own entrance holes into the hollow chamber and do not depend on broken tops for access. Entrance holes excavated by the woodpeckers allow other species to enter, such as flying squirrels ( Glaucomys sabrinus ), bushy- tailed woodrats ( Neotoma drier ea), bats, American martens ( Martes americana), northern flickers ( Colaptes auratus), and Vaux’s swifts ( Chaetura vauxi).
Martens frequently use hollow trees for denning, as well as for resting and hunting. Martens also rely heavily on hollow logs in both the summer and winter. Vaux’s swifts, a species that nests in the Pacific Northwest but winters in Central America, must have hollow trees for both nesting and roosting in
Vaux’s swifts circling hollow tree in which they are nesting, by Susan Lindstedt
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Winter 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (1)
forests.
Hollow trees with broken tops provide some black bears ( Ursus americanus ) with winter den sites in the Pacific Northwest. These arboreal dens provide females and subadults with sites that are safe from predaceous, large, male bears.
To be of value to wildlife, typically the hollow tree must be at least 20 inches (51 cm) in diameter. The large diameter tree is required because the hollow portion consists only of the former heartwood, which is only a portion of the entire tree girth. In recent studies, trees used by black bears averaged over 43 inches (109 cm) in diameter, while trees used by pileated woodpeckers averaged 28 inches (71 cm) in diameter.
In eastern Oregon, grand fir ( Abies grandis) and western larch ( Larix occidentalis ) make up most of
the hollow trees used by wildlife. I suspect hollow chambers may be common in old western red cedar ( Thuja plicata ) in Idaho, as well. Large, hollow trees are uncommon in managed landscapes and typically are found only in late- and old-seral stands. Because of the unique structural features and wildlife values that hollow trees possess and because it can take decades to form hollow chambers, these trees should be retained in forested stands.
Ms. Bull adapted this article for Sage Notes from "Trees and Logs Important to Wildlife in the Interior Columbia River Basin” by Evelyn L. Bull, Catherine G. Parks, and Torolf R. Torgersen, available from Forestry & Range Sciences Lab, 1401 Gekeler Lane, La Grande, OR 97850.
The Bryophyte Connection of North Central Idaho
Leonard. Lake, Nez Perce National Forest
Over the last couple of years I have become impressed with the diversity of non-vascular plant life in and around the Salmon River and Clearwater River drainages. The rugged topography provides a diversity of microclimates relative to elevation, moisture, aspect, and slope position. The different rock types and plant communities provide a variety of substrates to which mosses and liverworts can attach. Bryophytes with mainly a coastal distribution can be found in the mild wet canyons of the Clearwater River, while those normally found in the hot country of the Great Basin extend into the dry slopes of the lower Salmon River. The southern distribution of many boreal species extends down the Northern Rocky Mountains into the Salmon/Clearwater basins. The small fens that punctuate the headwaters of many streams provide habitat for Sphagnum and other wetland species. Limestone outcrops along Slate Creek, John Day Creek and Papoose Creek attract many species with an affinity for calcareous substrate.
The attached list is based on personal collecting over the last few years, and a few publications that document taxa from Idaho County (Dewey 1983,
Hong 1976, Moseley and Pitner 1996). The names follow Anderson et. al. 1990. The list is approaching 250 taxa. It should be viewed as extremely preliminary, since no doubt there are numerous species that have been overlooked. However, it does provide a reasonable starting point for those interested in the local distribution of Idaho’s bryological flora.
Literature Cited
Anderson, L. E., H. A. Crum, and W. R. Buck. 1990. List of the mosses of North America north of Mexico. Bryologist 93:448-499.
Dewey, R. M. 1983. Bryophytes of the Tenmile Creek drainage, Idaho. Bryologist 86:114-116.
Hong, W. S. 1976. Annotated checklist of the hepaucs of Idaho. Bryologist 79:422-436.
Moseley, R. K. and A. Pitner. 1996. Rare bryophytes and lichens in Idaho: State of our knowledge. Idaho Dept. Fish and Game. Unpublished Report.
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Winter 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES
A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (1)
Preliminary List of the Bryophytes of Idaho County:
Amblystegiumpolygamum B.S.G. Amblystegium serpens (Hedw.) B.S.G. Amblystegium serpens juratzkanum (Schimp.)
Anacolia menziesii baueri (Hampel) How Antitrichia californica Sull.
Antitrichia curtipendula (Hedw.) BricL Atrichum selwynii Aust.
Aulacomnium androgynum (Hedw.) Schwaegr.
Aulacomnium palustre (Hedw.) Schwaegr. Barbula acuta (Brid.) Brid., Muse.
Barbula rubiginosa Mitt.
Bartramia pomiformis Hedw. Brachythecium albicans (Hedw.) B.S.G. Brachythecium asperrimum (C.Muell.) Sull
Brachythecium frigidum (C.Mull.) Besch. Brachythecium holzingeri (Grout) Grout Brachythecium hylotapetum B.Hig. & N.Hig.
Brachythecium leibergii Grout. Brachythecium velutinum (Hedw.) B.S.G. Bryum argenteum Hedw.
Bryum caespiticium Hedw.
Bryum capillare Hedw.
Bryum creberrimum Tayl.
Bryum miniatum Lesq.
Bryum muehlenbeckii B.S.G.
Bryum pallescens Schleich. ex Schwaegr. Bryum weigelii Spreng.
Buxbaumia aphylla Hedw.
Buxbaumia piperi Best Buxbaumia viridis (DC.) Moug. & Nestl. Calliergon cordifolium (Hedw.) Kindb. Calliergon stramineum (Brid.) Kindb. Campylium chrysophyllum (Brid.) J. Lange
Campylium hispidulum (Brid.) Mitt. Ceratodon purpureus (Hedw.) Brid. Claopodium bolanderi Best Claopodium crispifolium (Hook.) Ren. & Card.
Climacium dendroides (Hedw.) Web. & Mohr.
Coscinodon calyptrata (Hook, in Drumm) C. Jen ex. Kindb.
Cratoneuron commutatum (Hedw.) Roth. Crossidium squamiferum var. pottioideum (De Not.) Monk.
Cynodontium jenneri (Schimp. in Howie) Stirt.
Desmatodon convolutus (Brid.) Grout. Desmatodon latifolius (Hedw.) Brid.
Mosses
Dichodontium olympicum Ren. & Card. Dicranella rufescens (With.) Schimp. Dicranoweisia cirrata (Hedw.) Lindb. Dicranum pallidisetum (Baily ex Holz) Irl. Dicranum howellii Ren. & Card.
Dicranum scoparium Hedw.
Dicranum tauricum Sapeh.
Didymodon recurvirostris (Hedw.) Jenn. Didymodon tophaceus (Brid.) Lisa Didymodon vinealis (Brid.) Zand. Distichium capillaceum (Hedw) Bruch & Schimp
Distichium inclinatum (Hedw.) B.S.G. Ditrichum flexicaule (Schwaegr.) Hampe Drepanocladus aduncus (Hedw.) Wamst. Drepanocladus capillifolius (Wamst.) Drepanocladus fluitans (Hedw.) Wamst Drepanocladus uncinatus (Hedw.) Wamst. Dryptodon patens (Hedw.) Brid.
Encalypta ciliata Hedw.
Encalypta rhaptocarpa Schwaegr. Encalypta vulgaris Hedw.
Eucladium verticillatum (Brid.) Bruch & Schimp.
Eurhynchium praelongum (Hedw.)
Schimp.
Eurhynchium pulchellum (Hedw.) Jenn. Eabronia pusilla Raddi Fissidens bryoides Hedw.
Fontinalis neo-mexicana Sull. & Lesq. Funaria hygrometrica Hedw.
Grimmia anodon B.S.G.
Grimmia laevigata (Brid.) Brid.
Grimmia ovalis (Hedw.) Lindb.
Grimmia pulvinata (Hedw.) Sm.
Grimmia tenerrima Ren. & Card.
Grimmia torquata Homsch. var. torquata Grimmia trichophylla Grev.
Hedwigia ciliata (Hedw.) P. Beauv. Helodium blandowii (Web. & Mohr.) Wamst.
Heterocladium macounii Best Heterocladium procurrens (Mitt.) Jaeg. Homalothecium aeneum (Mitt.) Lawt. Homalotheciumfulgescens (Mitt.) Lawt. Homalothecium nevadense (Lesq.) Ren. & Card.
Hookeria lucens (Hedw.) Sm. Hygrohypnum molle (Hedw.) Loeske Hygrohypnum ochraceum (Turn, ex Wils.) Loeske
Hylocomium splendens (Hedw.) Schimp. Hymenostylium recurvirostre (Hedw.)
Dix.
Hypnum circinale Hook.
Hypnum cupressiforme Hedw.
Hypnum dieckii Ren. & Card.
Hypnum lindbergii Mitt.
Hypnum revolutum (Mitt.) Lindb.
Hypnum subimponens Lesq.
Hypnum vaucheri Lesq.
Isothecium myosuroides Brid.
Kiaeria starkei (Web. & Mohr) Hag. Leptobryum pyriforme (Hedw.) Wils. Leptodictyum humile (P. Beauv.) Ochyra Leucolepis menziesii (Hook.) Steere Meesia triquetra (Richt.) Aongstr.
Messia uliginosa Hedw.
Metaneckera menziesii (Hook.) Steere Mnium arizonicum Amann.
Mniumblytii Bruch & Schimp. in B.S.G. Mnium spinulosum B.S.G.
Neckera douglasii Hook.
Orthotrichum affine Brid.
Orthotrichum alpestre Homsch. Orthotrichum cupulatum Brid. Orthotrichum laevigatum Zett. Orthotrichum pumilum Sw.
Orthotrichum rupestre Schleich. ex Schwaegr.
Orthotrichum speciosum Nees in Sturm. Orthotrichum striatum Hedw.
Phascum cuspidatum Hedw.
Philonotis americana (Dism.) Row. Philonotis fontana Hedw.
Plagiomnium cuspidatum (Hedw.) T. Kop. Plagiomnium insigne (Mitt.) T.Kop. Plagiomnium medium (B.S.G.) Koponen Plagiomnium rostratum (Schrad.) T.Kop. Plagiomnium venustum (Mitt.) T.Kop. Plagiothecium denticulatum (Hedw.) B.S.G.
Plagiothecium laetum Schimp. in B.S.G. Pleurozium schreberi (Brid.) Mitt. Pogonatum urnigerum (Hedw.) P.Beauv. Pohlia bulbifera (Wamst.) Wamst.
Pohlia cruda (Hedw.) Lindb.
Pohlia nutans (Hedw.) Lindb.
Pohlia obtusifolia (Brid.) L. Koch. Polytrichastrum alpinum (Hedw.) G.L.Sm. Polytrichum juniperinum Hedw. Polytrichum longisetum Brid. Polytrichum lyallii (Mitt.) Kindb. Polytrichum piliferum Hedw.
Porotrichum bigelovii (Sull.) Kindb. Pseudoleskea incurvata (Hedw.) Loeske Pseudoleskea patens (Lindb.) Kindb. Pseudoleskea radicosa (Mitt.)
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Winter 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES
A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (1)
Mac&Kindb.
Pseudoleskea stenophylla Ren. & Card. Pseudoleskeella tectorum (Funck) Kindb. Pterigynandrum filiforme Hedw. Pterygoneurum ovatum (Hedw.) Dix. Ptilium crista-castrensis (Hedw.) De Not. Ptychomitrium gardneri Lesq. Racomitrium aciculare (Hedw.) Brid Racomitrium aquaiicum (Brid.ex Schrad.) Brid.
Racomitrium canescens (Hedw.) Hampe Racomitrium heterostichum (Hedw.) Bnd. Racomitrium macounii Kindb. in Mac. Racomitrium occidentale (Ren. & Card.) Ren. & Card.
Rhizomnium glabrescens (Kindb.) T.Kop. Rhizomnium magnifolium (Horik.) T. Kop.
Anastrophyllum hellerianum (Ness.) Schust.
Anastrophyllum michauxii (Web.) Buch. Aneura pinguis (L.) Dum.
Asterlla lindenbergiana (Corda) Lindb. Athalamia hyalina (Sommerf.) Hatt. Barbilophozia floerkei (Web&Mohr) Loeska
Blepharostoma trichophyllum (L.) Dum. Calypogeja integristipula Steph. Calypogeia sphagnicola (H. Amell & J. Perss.)
Calypogeia suecica (Am. & Perss.) K. Mull.
Cephalozia bicuspidata subsp. bicuspidata (L.) Dum.
Cephalozia plencips (Aust.) Lindb. Cephalozia lunulifolia (Dum.) Dum. Cephaloziella divaricata (Franc) Schiffn. Chiloscyphus pallescens (Ehrh.) Dum. Chiloscyphus polyanthus (L.) Corda. Conocephalum conicum (L.) Dum. Diplophyllum taxifolium (Wahlenb.)
Rhytidiadelphus loreus (Hedw.) Wamst. Rhytidiadelphus squarrosus (Hedw.) Warnst.
Rhytidiadelphus triquetrus (Hedw.)
Warnst.
Rhytidiopsis robusta (Hook.) Broth. Roellia roellii (Broth.) Andrews ex Cram Schistidium agassizii Sull. & Lesq. Schistidium apocarpum (Hedw.) Bruch & Schimp.
Scleropodium obtusifolium (Jaeg.) Kindb. Scleropodium touretii (Brid.) L. Koch. Scouleria aquatica Hook, in Drumm. Sphagnum angustifolium (C.Jens. ex Russ.) C. Jens.
Sphagnum capillifolium (Ehrh.) Hedw. Sphagnum mendocinum Sull. & Lesq. Sphagnum russowii Wamst.
Liverworts
Dum.
Geocalyx graveolens (Schrad.) Nees Jamesoniella autumnalis (DC.) Steph. Jungermannia lanceolata L.
Lepidozia replans (L.) Dum.
Lophocolea cuspidata (Nees.) Limpr. Lophozia alpestris (Schleich. ex. Web.) Evans
Lophozia barbata (Schmid.) Dum. Lophozia bicrenata (Schmid, ex Hoffm.) Dum.
Lophozia excisa (Dicks) Dum.
Lophozia hatcheri (Evans) Steph. Lophozia heterocolpa (Thed.) M.A. Howe Lophozia incisa (Schrad.) Dum.
Lophozia kunzeana (Hub.) Evans Lophozia lycopodioides (Wallr.) Cogn. Lophozia obtusa (Lindb.) Evans Lophozia porphyroleuca (Nees) Schiffn. Lophozia ventricosa (Dicks.) Dum. Lophozia wenzelii (Nees) Steph.
Mannia fragrans (Balbis) Frye & Clark Marsupella ustulata (Hub.) Spruce
Sphagnum squarrosum Crome Sphagnum subsecumdum Nees.
Sphagnum teres (Schimp.) Angstr. Sphagnum warnstorfii Russow.
Tetraphis pellucida Hedw.
Thamnobryum neckeroides (Hook.) Lawt. Thuidium abietinum (Hedw.) B.S.G. Timmia austriaca Hedw.
Tortella tortuosa (Hedw.) Limpr.
Tortula bartramii Steere
Tortula norvegica (Web.) Wahlenb. ex
Lindb.
Tortula papillosissima (Coppey) Broth. Tortula ruralis (Hedw.) Gaertn. Trachybryum megaptilum (Sull.) Schof. Tripterocladium leucocladulum (C.Mull.) Jaeg.
Weissia controversa Hedw.
Moerckiablytii (Moerck)
Plagiochila asplenioides (L.) Dum. Plagiochila porelloides Porella cordaeana (Hub.) Evans Porella platyphylla (L.) Lindb.
Porella roellii Steph.
Ptilidium pulcherrimum (Web.) Hampe. Radula bolanderi Gott.
Radula complanata (L.) Dum.
Riccardia latifrons Lindb.
Riccardia palmata (Hedw.) Carruth. Scapania bolanderi Aust.
Scapania curta (Mart.) Dum.
Scapania irrigua (Nees) Dum.
Scapania mucronata Buch.
Scapania paludosa (K. Mull.) K. Mull. Scapania umbrosa (Schrad.) Dum. Scapania undulata (L.) Dum.
Solenostoma sphaerocarpum (Hook.) Steph.
Tritomaria exsectiformis (Breidl) Schiffn.
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Winter 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (1)
Plant profile: Tripterocladium leucocladulum (C. Muell.) Jaeg.
Karen Gray, White Pine Chapter
John Leiberg lived in Hope, Idaho, in the late 1800s. While there, he collected mosses and other plants in Kootenai County. He sent the mosses to Elizabeth Britton in New York; she identified them and wrote them up for the Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club.
Among the many mosses he collected was Tripterocladium leucocladulum. He wrote,
"In April, 1 890, we first observed it, depending in long, wide festoons, sterile, from shelving granite ledges along the shores of Lake Pend d'Oreille, Idaho; a month later, up a canon, we found it again, abundantly fertile, growing very luxuriantly in large, compact masses, on ledges of dolomite as well as on the trunks and branches of Taxus brevifolia and Thuya gigantea [ Thuja plicata ]. Last spring we met it again, fertile, on ledges of porphyritic granite" (Leiberg 1892:7). The canyon he referred to was North Gold Creek.
In Idaho, it has been collected east of Myrtle by Daubenmire in 1946, and by F. G. Meyer, in 1936, along Sheep Creek in the Snake River Canyon. Louis H. Henderson also made collections in Latah County in 1894, in Juliaetta Canyon.
Besides Idaho, it is known to occur in British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, and California In his 1969 paper "Phytogeography of northwestern North America: Bryophytes and vascular plants," Schofield lists it under "species that have a wide range but are rare" (Schofield 1969:161).
I have found some along Highway 12 between Lewiston and Orofino, growing on moist basalt rubble under syringa and chokecherry. It is a polymorphic moss, sometimes depending in great festoons, but in this case in more of a cushion or tuft. The branches are very fine, irregularly pinnate, and almost threadlike. Its distribution is not well understood; searches by the Kinnikinnick Chapter of the Idaho Native Plant Society to relocate Leiberg's populations or to locate new populations would be a valuable contribution.
capsule'*’'.
Bibliography
Britton, E.G. 1891. Contributions to American Bryology- 11, A supplementary enumeration of the mosses collected by Mr. John B. Leiberg in Idaho, with descriptions of two new species. Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club 18:49- 56.
Cardot, J. and I. Theriot. 1902. New or unrecorded mosses of North America. Bryologist 5:47-49.
Chamberlain, E.B. 1915. John B. Leiberg. Bryologist 18:47-48.
Leiberg, J. B. 1892. Some notes on Tripterocladium leucocladulum , Muell. Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club 19:7-9.
Schofield, W.B. 1969. Phytogeography of northwestern North America: Bryophytes and vascular plants. Madrono 20: 155-207.
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Winter 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (1)
Arkansas Postcard: In Praise of Spring-flowering Hardwoods
Wayne Owen, Botanist, Ouachita National Forest
The one thing I most wanted to experience when I moved to Armadillo-land was the legendary hardwood forests of colonial America, Daniel Boone, and Li’l Abner. Don’t get me wrong. When I close my eyes and call forth images of the perfect landscape, I envision gnarled and bannered whitebark pines dotting ridgelines, and broad- skirted clumps of subalpine fir punctuating the softer slopes. I imagine places that are open and bright with sunlight, with flowers that are large and close to the ground, places that are sheer and rocky, where the wind embraces you with both hands. But no one can live on their favorite foods alone, and so I don’t feel the sharp pangs of infidelity when speaking lovingly of the broad-leaf, hussy forests of the south.
By the time you read this, the vernal witchhazel (. Hamamelis vemalis) will be blooming. In January and February, still winter in the Ouachita Mountains, the shiny, naked gray stems of this large shrub (sometimes small tree) will sprout forth scant garlands of pale yellow flowers. The early spring burlesque show continues with the flowering of the eastern serviceberry. This smallish tree produces an abundance of bright-white flowers before leafing out, and lives most of its life deep in the shade of overstory trees. In very early spring however, before the leaves of the oaks and hickories capture most of the sky, the serviceberry is the queen (or Lady Godiva?) of the forest.
As beautiful as the preseason exhibition is, it’s only the warm-up act for the real stars of the spring tree season. In March and April the woods pulse with the vibrant red and white of dogwoods and redbuds. Dogwood flowers can seem cliche. You see them everywhere in the spring; on calendars, in fake-flower bouquets, in catalogs, and especially in the suburbs. Although dogwood is a favorite landscape tree in Hot Springs, no lawn-trained dogwood in the world can equal the spectacle of rolling hillsides scattered with thousands of untamed dogwoods. Just as wild dogwoods far outshine their domestic cousins, wild redbud trees with their rose-magenta pea blooms are best appreciated when seen scattered through acres of hillside, commingled with dogwoods under the sheltering arms of larger trees.
Dogwoods and redbuds are the heralds of the season, but the true beauty of spring in eastern forests is in the diversity. In March and April,
Carolina silverbells ( Halesia tetraptera) dangle out fat clusters of inch-long, white flowers. The first warm days of spring also coax into bloom the bashful, yet exotic, red-brown, leathery flowers of the pawpaw ( Asimina triloba ). These bizarre blossoms are precursors to the delectable custard banana, a fruit sought after by possums and people alike. My favorite of the many local native hawthorns is the early flowering parsley-leaved haw ( Crataegus marshallii ). Its finely divided leaves keep it interesting when it is not bearing its cheery, red-anthered, white flowers. The most outstanding feature of the pasture hawthorn (C. spathulata ), another early flowering haw, is its trunk. Its dark gray outer bark peels readily from the sinewy trunk to reveal a cinnamon colored inner covering. American plum ( Prunus americctna ), a species familiar to Idahoans, flowers in late March. The flavorful, red plums ripen in mid to late summer and are one of my favorite wild edibles. Wild hogs love them too, and most plum groves attract the notice of rooting razorbacks. As April begins, the magnolias start to flower. Most spectacular is the umbrella magnolia, with flowers as broad as 10 inches and leaves that can reach 3 feet in length.
The evergreen southern magnolia is not native to Arkansas, but it is widely planted and commonly grows wild in the woods. The fragrance of its fleshy, white flowers is the scent of the south.
Not all spring-flowering trees are quite so showy. In April and May the nut trees bloom.
Oaks, hickories, hazelnut, and beech all trot out their goodies in the first months of spring. Heavy tassels of staminate catkins droop from high branches and rain down pollen on everyone and everything of the forest floor before falling spent to the ground themselves. The pistillate flowers of these trees are less conspicuous, but if you look closely (whip out that hand lens) you’ll see intricately branched crystalline stigmas that glisten with rainbow colors in the bright spring sunshine. The female flowers won’t mature nuts for several months but every creature that walks or flies in the forest awaits that gravid harvest.
The oaks, the archetypal eastern forest trees, are lumped into one of two groups: red oaks or white oaks. In general, red oak leaves have pointed lobes and white oak leaves have rounded lobes. White oak ( Quercus alba ) is a common and stately tree that occurs throughout the eastern half of the U.S. It is
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commonly planted as a shade tree, and the half whiskey barrel on your porch with the dead petunias in it is almost certainly made of white oak staves. Northern red oak ( Q . rubra ) is also very common. It is an important timber species and is also an important ornamental. Southern red oak ( Q . falcata ), like most oaks, forms hybrids with a variety of closely related species. It apparently doesn’t hybridize with northern red oak. In the south, old wounds run deep. Quercus nigra (water oak, not black oak) is also in the red oak group. As often as not, water oak lives in the dry uplands rather than wet bottomlands. Black oak ( Q . velutina), also in the red oak group, produces a
beautiful yellow dye in its inner bark. Black oak is sometimes called yellow oak, but so is Q. muehlenbergii, more commonly known as chinquapin oak (and sometimes as Q. prinoides ). Confused yet? Me too.
Spring comes early in the South. Hallelujah. If you are snow-bound (or crud-bound if you live in Boise) and looking for a quick escape, you can check out the web-sites below for a view of spring in the eastern deciduous forests.
gopher://wiscinfo.vvisc.edu:70/l l/.data/.bot/.veg/.list http://www. sueetside.com/plants/floridata/lists/treelist.huu
Chapter News
Calypso Chapter
The Calypso Chapter, in cooperation with local FS and BLM offices, is assembling wildflower trunks to loan to local teachers who want to teach plant anatomy, basic systematics, or habitat concepts for native plant species in northern Idaho. The trunks travel among school districts, and are filled with teaching materials like specimens, hand lenses, plant games, exercises on making a key, etc. They will be part of the local Nature Watch program, a joint venture of the BLM, FS, and IDFG. Additional funding is being sought from grants and cost-share arrangements for future trunks related to rare plants and weeds.
A November meeting featured a talk on lichens by Mark Mousseaux. The chapter held a gift exchange and potluck in December. Calypso Chapter will co-host (with White Pine Chapter) this summer’s field trip to north Idaho peatlands.
• February 19: work on learning trunks, 7:00 PM, Coeur d’Alene Tidymans Store. Contact is Mark Mousseaux, (208) 765-7417.
• March 19: "Special Forest Products” by Chris Schneph, 7:00 PM, Coeur d’Alene Extension Office. Contact is Mark Mousseaux, (208) 765- 7417.
• April 26: field trip to Tubbs Hill in Coeur d’Alene, 1:00 PM. Contact is Mark Mousseaux, (208) 765-7417.
• May 17: field trip to Quemlin Trails in Post Falls, 1:00 PM. Contact is Mark Mousseaux, (208) 765-7417.
Kinnikinnick Chapter
The chapter has held several meetings for the
general membership and the steering committee, and a potluck at president Gretchen Hellar’s home in December. Upcoming events focus on the proposed arboretum (see “A New INPS Chapter at Sandpoint With an Exciting Proposal” p. 2).
• January 31: “When is a Wild Plant a Native Plant” by Forest Service Botanist Betsy Hammet, 10:00 AM, Bonner County Cooperative Extension. Contact is Lois Wythe, (208) 263-8038.
Pahove Chapter
In November Mark Shumar organized a work day at the Idaho Botanical Garden. The chapter held a Christmas get together at a local restaurant.
• January 15: “Plants in Arkansas” by Boise National Forest Botanist Christine Frisbee, 7:30 PM, Science Nursing Building, Room 218, BSU campus. Contact is Kay Beall, (208) 343-2823.
White Pine Chapter
On January 24 the chapter held a winter field trip to Kamiak Butte near Palouse, WA. The large turnout shows that winter botanizing is popular! Mosses were in full bloom. Dave Noble of the Calypso Chapter drove down from Spokane. Thanks to Karen Gray, Jim Roberts, and Bertie Weddell for leading, and providing an excellent species list including bryophytes.
• February 19: “Herbarium Night at University of Idaho” with Angela Sondenaa, 7:00 PM, Herbarium, Life Sciences South, Room 454, University of Idaho, Moscow. Contact is Bertie Weddell, (509) 334-0737.
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• March 5: “Ethnobotany— Plants used in Foods, Medicine and Technology” by Joy Mastrogiuseppe, 7:30 PM, Room 213, College of Forestry, Wildlife, & Range Sciences, University of Idaho, Moscow. Contact is Roger Blanchard, (208) 883-1804.
• March 26: “Spring Mushrooms” Dr. Lori Carris, 7:30 PM, Room 213, College of Forestry, Wildlife, & Range Sciences, University of Idaho, Moscow. Contact is Roger Blanchard, (208) 883- 1804.
Fourteenth Annual Rare Plant Conference— and More
Nancy Cole, Rare Plant Conference Chairwoman
Some highlights from the agenda sent out in December, and a few new items:
• The Rare Plant Conference begins Tuesday, February 10 at 8:30 AM and ends at noon on Wednesday February 11. Contact is Nancy Cole, (208) 388-2351.
• The Plant Community Conservation Workshop begins Wednesday, February 1 1 at 1:00 PM and ends at noon on Thursday February 12. Contact is Steve Rust, (208) 334-3402.
• The Bryophyte Working Group will meet on Monday, February 9. Contact is Michael Mancuso, (208) 334-3402.
• The Bryophyte field trip will be near Boise on Thursday afternoon, February 12, weather permitting. Contact is Michael Mancuso, (208) 334-3402.
The latest information on Spircmthes diluvialis , the federally listed orchid that’s causing such a stir across central Idaho this year, will be presented by Bob Moseley of the Conservation Data Center, on the first day of the Rare Plant Conference.
Fear not, there will be the usual Tuesday evening festivities. The Conference will be held as usual at the Idaho Power Company Headquarters in Boise. Registration is $12 before January 31 or $17 after. An additional charge of $10 will pay the registration for the Community Conservation Workshop. There is no charge for the bryophyte field trip.
Parking near the Idaho Power Building requires vigilance and many quarters— plan to stay within walking distance and bring walking shoes!
Please contact Nancy Cole, (208) 388-2351, if you have new information for a taxon on the Priority 1, Priority 2, Sensitive, Monitor, or Review Lists. If you have slides for the rare plant slide set, please bring them. Don’t forget to bring your rare plant booklets (if you are missing some, they will be available at the door for $4 each). See you there!
Idaho Native Plant Society List of Idaho’s Rare Flora: Criteria for Inclusion, Ranking, and Recommendations to Agencies
Nancy Cole, Chair, INPS Rare Plant Committee, and Bob Moseley, Director, Conservation Data Center
The following article is based on a presentation before a joint meeting of the Idaho chapters of the American Fisheries Society and The Wildlife Society, by Nancy Cole and Bob Moseley, in February 1997 .
The late Douglass Henderson once estimated that Idaho’s vascular flora numbered approximately 3,000 taxa. The rare plant list administered by the Idaho Native Plant Society includes 360 species, roughly 10% of the known vascular flora. A rare taxon may be endemic to Idaho, rare across many states, or on the edge of its range in Idaho. How that list is maintained and updated is the topic of this article. We’d like to review the history of
development of the rare plant list in Idaho and then describe how the list is updated and used today. From its humble beginnings, the rare plant list has developed to the point where it has a significant influence on the policies of federal agencies managing public land in Idaho.
The history of the list in Idaho actually began with efforts of the Idaho State Federation of Garden Clubs, Inc. in the early 60s, when they spearheaded
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a state law to protect wildflowers and shrubs along Idaho highways. The law included language that prohibited collection of a number of species. Fortuitously, some of those species are considered rare in Idaho today, but most of them were included in the law because of their visual appeal. Although not enforced, the law later proved invaluable in the development of rare plant conservation in Idaho.
Development of the first Idaho rare plant list began shortly after the 1973 Endangered Species Act was passed by Congress.
In 1974 the Smithsonian Institution was charged with developing a national list of Threatened and Endangered plant species.
Although the Smithsonian evaluation was done by some of the best known botanists in the country, there was no expert familiar with Idaho’s flora sitting on the evaluation team. Sixty- eight species on the Smithsonian list were known from Idaho. A small group of volunteers working with the Idaho Natural Areas Council, mostly academic professionals, formed the Rare and Endangered Plants Technical Committee in 1974 and reevaluated the rarity of the 68 species.
After the dust cleared, the group recommended droppin:
14 species from the list and changing the ranks of several others.
The list that resulted from the efforts of the committee, referred to as the Redbook, was published in 1977.
Four field seasons later, the committee reconvened with some additional members and a lot more information and reviewed the status of 351 vascular plant taxa. A second, much larger Redbook resulted. It recognized species that were rare globally and rare within the political boundaries of the state of Idaho. Classification of rarity was based on the federal definitions for Endangered and Threatened species that appeared in the Federal Register: any species thought to be in danger throughout all or a significant portion of its range was defined as Endangered; Threatened species are
those likely to become endangered in the foreseeable future. For classifying nationally rare species the definition was applied using all knowledge available regarding the species’ distribution and abundance. For classifying rare species in the state of Idaho, the definition was modified to include the species’ distribution and abundance as circumscribed by Idaho’s political boundary. The second Redbook served as the
“jumping off point” for future discussions on Idaho’s rare plant species. As federal agencies began meeting the intent of national
environmental policy and law, and more actively collecting information on rare plant species, the need to “institutionalize” the Redbook ’s rare species list grew.
The first annual meeting to discuss new information about rare plant species and evaluate ranks was held in 1984. Early meetings were hosted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) under the direction of Bob Parenti. Soon though, INPS took on the responsibility of organizing what is now known as the Idaho Rare Plant Conference (RPC). What started out as a small group of people gathering to talk about the limited information that was available has blossomed into an annual gathering of 70 to 80 people.
During these early years, use of the terms ‘Threatened” and “Endangered” for federal and state rare species created confusion. Efforts to rename and redefine categories took about four years to iron out. Up until a few years ago, every annual meeting included discussion (sometimes heated) about whether the rarity of a species should be evaluated only in the context of biologically meaningless political boundaries.
Ultimately, the meeting attendees settled on five definitions that incorporated federal and state rare
Illustration by Jeanne R. Janish from Vascular plants of the Pacific Northwest by C. Leo Hitchcock et al., 1959, University of Washington, Seattle. Reprinted with permission.
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species. The definitions do not provide thresholds for the number of extant individuals or occurrences nor for the percent of habitat lost. Definitions are designed to be flexible enough to address considerations such as species biology and conservation needs. Decisions about which category applies to a species are arrived at by discussion among people familiar with the species. For the most high-profile species, several individuals deliberate and come to consensus. In the past this has made for sometimes lengthy debate over how a species ought to be classified (ranked). Perhaps surprisingly, the rank of even the most hotly contested species is fairly stable. For the less well known species it is not uncommon for a single individual to be the source of all or most information. In that case, the group generally defers to the individual’s recommendation for appropriate classification.
Keeping track of the reasons behind changes in status is often a challenge for participants during and after the RPC. For that reason, the Conference Planning Committee began preparing “rare plant booklets” to assist participants with tracking new information and changes in status. The first year, federal candidate species were the focus of the booklet. Every year since, the booklet has featured a specific category. Each species has a separate page with basic information provided: status, distribution, number of state occurrences, and habitat. There is a lot of space at the bottom of each page for notes— useful for keeping track of changes over the years. The idea behind the pages is to provide the same basic information to everyone at the conference so that recommendations regarding status can be evaluated with all the information at hand. Recent editions provide anecdotal information and contact names useful for report preparation.
In 1996, the FWS redefined how it maintains lists of species to be considered for listing under the Endangered Species Act. The more than 60 plant species that were listed or had the potential for listing were reduced to two listed species and one Candidate species. Most of the remaining species had been recategorized as “Species of Concern.” In response, the 1996 Rare Plant Conference attendees renamed the Federal Candidate species list as the “Globally Rare Species” list. In place of the defunct Candidate Ranks, Global Ranks, patterned after the current Heritage Program protocol, were used to indicate rarity. Immediacy and magnitude of threats to continued persistence were applied using the scale devised by the FWS to assign listing priority.
In the end there were still many globally rare species embedded in the INPS list in the state
categories because they were not listed or federal candidates. During the 1997 Rare Plant Conference these species were moved to the Globally Rare list. As in 1996, Global Ranks and degree of threat were assigned to each species. Using the Heritage Program ranking system in classifying the rarity of the Globally Rare species has proven to be advantageous to the INPS and Idaho Conservation Data Center. Prior to 1996, the Global Ranks were decided by one or sometimes two people. The Rare Plant Conference now provides a peer review process for these global ranking decisions.
All decisions regarding changes in rank are made by consensus. Traditionally, the job of the RPC has been to discuss any new information and debate the accuracy of the status of each species on the INPS list from federally listed species all the way to Review species. Ideally, changes in status are incremental. For example, a taxon on the Priority 2 list turns out to be more common or have a significantly lessened threat; following discussion the taxon is then moved to the next lowest rank, in this case, Sensitive. As more information is accumulated, the species may be moved to the Monitor List, then dropped from the list all together if warranted.
These incremental changes are also applied to moving species up the list to the more rare classifications. This is primarily a reflection of the amount of information available. If a thorough inventory for a particular species sitting on the Review List indicates extreme rarity or severe threats to persistence, then the recommendation for the species may not be incremental.
After the list is critiqued, the meeting is opened to recommendations for additions. The additions may be new taxa found in the state in the last year, a newly reclassified species, or a species that adjacent states recognize as rare and potentially occurring in Idaho. Anyone can recommend additions. Any information known about the taxon being considered as an addition is discussed, and the group decides whether or not to add it to the Review List. Occasionally, there is enough information about a new taxon to merit placement elsewhere on the INPS list if there is consensus among the participants of the RPC.
The last task of the RPC is to develop a list of species to be considered for Candidate status or listing in order of priority. It is the INPS’s version of the Top Ten List. The recommendations are then given to the FWS to use as a guide during their own evaluation process. Historically, the FWS incorporated INPS suggestions directly into the Federal Register; however, with the 1996 change to
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more strict review of species to be incorporated on the Federal Register list, the FWS has not elected to follow INPS suggestions.
The Top Ten List is also highlighted in the published results of the RPC. Shortly after the conference is over, a copy of the new rare plant list, with each taxon listed under the appropriate category, is provided to RPC participants. The list is then used to update and prioritize work for the upcoming year. The U.S. Bureau of Land Management in Idaho updates its Special Status Species list on the basis of the Globally Rare,
Priority 1, Priority 2, and Sensitive categories on the INPS list. The U.S. Forest Service (FS) uses the list as a guide during its regular evaluation of Sensitive Species. The FS is discussing the possibility of using Heritage Ranks to determine which species should be on their Sensitive Species lists. Should the Forest Service decide to use Heritage Ranks, then the INPS list will be a valuable organizational tool for use in maintaining their lists.
INPS Board Meeting Minutes
Leonard Lake, INPS Secretary
The Board met via conference call January 17,
1998.
Attending: Kristin Fletcher, INPS President; Alexia Cochrane, Vice-President; Janice Hill, Treasurer; Leonard Lake, Secretary; Loring Jones, Member-at- Large; Nancy Cole, Rare Plant Conference Chair; Sarah Walker, Newsletter Editor; Kay Beall, Vice- President Pahove Chapter; Karl Holte, Representative Sah-Wah-Be Chapter; Roger Blanchard, President White Pine Chapter; Dick Springs, President Wood River Chapter. Not able to attend: Calypso Chapter, Past President, Conservation Chair.
Treasurer’s Report: Current balance $2,622.00. Current INPS membership at 365.
New Chapter: The board voted to accept the Kinnikinnick Chapter as die sixth chapter of the INPS. We would like to welcome the new chapter to INPS and hope to see you all at the Rare Plant Conference.
Elections: Both Kristin Fletcher (President) and Janice Hill (Treasurer) have decided not to seek reelection. Alexia Cochrane (Vice-President) and Leonard Lake (Secretary) have agreed to stay on for another term. The nominating committee will be searching for nominees for the offices of president and treasurer.
New schedule for Sage Notes: Winter issue will come out in February, spring issue in May, summer issue in September, and late fall issue in December. Articles and information are due to the Editor no later than the 15th of the preceding month.
Future discussion: The board will be reviewing policies pertaining to reimbursement for invited speakers, involvement in Idaho plant conservation
issues, and how INPS maintains membership records. The board will also be discussing changes to our by-laws concerning election of officers and length of office.
Next meeting: February 9th at 7:00 PM in Boise.
w
Think summer!
The INPS annual state field trip, July 24-26, will be held in north Idaho where we will explore low elevation peatlands near the southern end of Priest Lake. Watch the spring issue of Sage Notes for details. The trip is co-hosted by the Calypso and White Pine Chapters.
Elephant’s head Pedicularis groerdandiea
Illustration by Jeanne R. Janish from Vascular plants of the Pacific Northwest by C. Leo Hitchcock et ah, 1959, University of Washington,
Seattle. Reprinted with permission.
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Reviews
Wild Trees of Idaho. Frederic D. Johnson. University of Idaho Press, 1995. ISBN 0-89301- 145-2, 212 pp., $39.95.
Review by Stephen F. Arno, USFS Rocky Mountain Research Station
New books about trees are continually springing up in the marketplace; but in my opinion good books about trees are rare. Most “tree books” are aids to identification accompanied by a superficial rehash of characteristics of the species. Many people appreciate trees, but few authors seem able to convey the unique attributes and ecological characteristics that make each species so interesting.
Fortunately, Fred Johnson’s book “Wild Trees of Idaho” is a delightful exception. It is an authoritative and comprehensive catalog and description of the surprisingly diverse tree flora of Idaho. This includes 88 species and 19 varieties, two-thirds of which are native —the rest having escaped cultivation. “Wild Trees of Idaho” has several useful features that set it apart from most tree books. It has an extensive introduction which explains why Idaho is such a diverse habitat for trees. The state’s vegetation zones are presented and explained in a manner that is readily understandable but also consistent with ecological science. Identification is made relatively user-friendly by reducing reliance on technical keys in favor of identifying features and good illustrations of leaves and twigs. The book also offers 80 excellent color photographs of tree characteristics.
The author spent much of his career investigating and teaching forest ecology at the University of Idaho. His studies have taken him throughout the state, and thus he is uniquely qualified to describe Idaho’s trees and their habitats. The book’s appeal is enhanced by Idaho’s extraordinarily rich tree flora. Idaho harbors most of the trees associated with the Rocky Mountain region (such as lodgepole pine and aspen), but also a large number of Pacific Coast trees (e.g., red alder, Pacific dogwood, and western hemlock) as well as several species from deserts to the south (e.g., netleaf hackberry, singleleaf pinyon, tamarisk). Idaho, unlike most inland states, holds many national records for the largest tree of a given species. The book lists the largest individual of each species in Idaho and notes which of these are also national record trees.
Reviewers have an obligation to point out shortcomings, but there are few here. Some terms
in the introduction (e.g., “rainshadow,”
“cordillera,” and “relict”) may be unfamiliar to lay audiences and are not clarified where first used. However, technical terms in the species descriptions are minimal and are illustrated or described in the glossary. The only deficiency I noted in the entire text was in the description of whitebark pine ecology, which is understandable since much of this knowledge has only been obtained during the last 10-20 years; whitebark pine cones do not normally “fall from the tree” unless they are cut down by a red squirrel, which is a major source of depredation not mentioned here.
Western white pine Pinus monticola
Illustration from Wild trees of Idaho by Frederic D. Johnson, 1995, University of Idaho Press, Moscow. Reprinted with permission
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Clark’s nutcrackers are indeed important, in fact they are considered essential for propagation of whitebark pine. “Camp robbers” are a different bird, the Canada or gray jay. Grizzly (and black) bears obtain the seed from cone caches made by squirrels. Readers interested in the fascinating ecological web involving whitebark pine seed are referred to Ron Lanner’s book, “Made for Each Other: A symbiosis of Birds and Pines’* (Oxford University Press, 1996).
But to keep things in perspective, “Wild Trees of Idaho” is virtually flawless in pointing out principal and often obscure ecological relationships of the over 100 trees in its purview. Idahoans are lucky to have such a splendid resource available to them.
! A
Flora of the Pacific
Northwest
CD-ROM Version 1.0
University of Washington Press R. U. Kistritz Consultants Ltd.
Flora of the Pacific Northwest CD-ROM, Version 1.0. 1997. University of Washington Press and R. U. Kistritz Consultants Ltd. Based on the books “Flora of the Pacific Northwest” and “Vascular Plants of the Pacific Northwest.” $55.00. ISBN 0-295-97652-7. System requirements: Microsoft Windows operating system, CD-ROM drive, 4 MB RAM (minimum), 386 processor (minimum).
Review by Bertie Weddell, White Pine Chapter
This software contains information on the more than 4,700 vascular plant taxa described in Hitchcock and Cronquisf s “Flora of the Pacific Northwest.” It also contains illustrations reproduced from the five-volume “Vascular Plants of the Pacific Northwest” by Hitchcock et al., from which the single-volume “Flora” was condensed. The program is easy to run. It takes the user immediately to a dialog box that allows searches by
scientific or common names, family, key w ords/habitat, and range. For instance, a search for “thistles” turned up 45 taxa (in four families) with the word “thistle” in their common names. The results of each search are listed in a column on the left, and the user can view an image and a detail sheet for each taxon. When viewed in the full screen format, the illustrations are excellent. The detail sheet provides information on scientific and common names, variety, taxonomic authority, family,
The accompanying notes state that this CD-ROM “is designed to be a companion to the plant identification keys in the book,” and that is quite true. The CD itself does not include keys, so it is no help with keying out unfamiliar taxa. But, if you don’t own “Vascular Plants of the Pacific Northwest” it might be worth purchasing this CD just to get the illustrations, especially if you plan to key grasses or sedges, for which the large illustrations from the “big book” are a tremendous asset. The CD is much less expensive, and takes up less room, than the five- volume set.
There are several drawbacks to this software, however. First, it contains no new information since the publication of Hitchcock’s “Flora,” so recent nomenclatural changes are not included, nor does it contain information on former names. Second, there are some disturbing omissions: the picture for Btechnum spicant is missing, and although some exotics are identified as such, many— -including the knapweeds and star-thistles, Centaurea spp., and most of the alien bromes, Bromus spp —are not. Finally, the sorting feature was disappointing. By letting you sort by category, this feature allows you to narrow down the possibilities for an unfamiliar taxon. This certainly was fun to play with. For example, I asked it to find circumboreal species in Idaho, and was rewarded with a list of 57 taxa. If I had collected an unfamiliar plant in a specialized habitat, such as a saline flat, and didn’t have the vaguest idea what it might be, this feature would be useful for zeroing in on likely candidates. Unfortunately, however, this didn’t work as well as I had hoped. Some habitats of interest, such as vernal pools and seeps, were not listed. In other cases, the searches failed to turn up appropriate species. For example, alkali bulrush, Scirpus maritimus, a plant of “alkaline or saline habitats” “throughout our range” did not turn up in a search of saline habitats in Idaho. This type of problem was especially evident with the commoner habitats. A search for species of coniferous habitats in Idaho turned up only 33 taxa! Some extremely common taxa, such as Ponderosa pine, Douglas-fir,
Winter 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (1)
common snowberry, and mallow ninebark, were missing from this list, presumably because the term “conif” does not appear in the habitat descriptions for these species.
In short, the pictures on this CD-ROM are great and the sorting feature is fun to play with, but I get
the impression the CD was prepared by making a fairly literal translation of information contained in Hitchcock’s “Flora” to the computer format. A lot was lost in the translation. If you purchase it, be aware of its limitations.
News and Notes
H.R. 2493, “The Forage Improvement Act,” introduced by Representative Bob Smith (R- OR) in September, dismisses the need to improve and restore fish and wildlife habitats on public rangelands. Instead, the bill adds procedural hurdles to make it difficult for the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management to protect and restore federal rangelands. A grazing fee for livestock permittees is proposed at an even lower rate than originally proposed by the 104th Congress. Grazing private livestock on public lands should be viewed as a privilege. With the passage of Smith’s bill, grazing on public land would be considered a private property right by allowing the livestock industry to claim ownership of certain range resources and the right to demand payments from the Treasury whenever grazing rights are limited to protect resources. The bill requires a 48- hour advance notice to the lessee before the BLM could have access across private land and onto public land to monitor a grazing allotment. The legislation further establishes advisory committees comprised of only local interests that oversee grazing on public lands. User groups such as hunters, campers and birders would have restricted use on these public lands, while livestock owners have priority. From “The Wildlifer," November- December 1997, © The Wildlife Society.
Northwest Penstemons, by Dee Strickler. 1997. Beautifully reproduced, full color photographs of 80 species and most of their varieties, 192 pages, with illustrations and a key to Penstemon in WA, OR, ID, and MT. $29.95 plus postage, hard cover. Available from The Flower Press, 192 Larch Lane, Columbia Falls, MT 59912.
Idaho Museum of Natural History’s Public Lecture Series. Dr. Daniel Simberloff, Professor of Environmental Science at the University of Tennessee, will present two lectures: “Biological Control: Green Alternative to Pesticides or Major Threat to Native Species?” on February 5th at 4:00 PM, and “Aliens in our Midst: The Enormous Global Costs of Introduced Species” on February 6th at 7:00 PM. Dr. Simberloff is a noted ecologist and conservation biologist who has authored many papers and books on issues in ecology and conservation biology. For further information contact Dr. Stefan Sommer, (208) 236-2335 or <sommstef@isu.edu>.
Annual Meeting of the Northwest Section of The Wildlife Society, April 6-10, at Cavanaugh’s Inn at the Park, Spokane. Hosted by the Oregon and Washington Chapters of The Wildlife Society. Invited plenary speakers include Dr. Jack Ward Thomas, former Chief of the Forest Service, Marybeth Lorbiecki, author of “Aldo Leopold: A Fierce Green Fire,” and Terry Anderson, environmental economist. There will be sessions on “Fire and Wildlife in the Pacific Northwest: Research, Policy, and Management” April 6-8; “Integrated Riparian Management for Wildlife and Fish” April 7-8; and “Sampling Design for Field Folks” April 7-8. More information, (800) 325-4000.
Conference on “Practical Approaches to Riparian and Wetland Restoration: From the Mountains to the Plains,” April 7-9, at the Holiday Inn Parkside, 200 South Pattee St., Missoula, MT 59802. Hosted by the School of Forestry, University of Montana. For more
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Winter 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (1)
information contact the web site <http://www.rwrp.umt.edu> or call Susan, (406) 243-2050. Registration $60 before March 15, $75.00 after.
Computer plant keys Macintosh version available. Keys are available for OR, WA, southern BC, ID, MT, and WY. For information contact Bruce Barnes, Flora ID Northwest, 135 SE 1st, Pendleton, OR 97801, (541) 278-2222 or <flora@ ucineLcom>.
Annual Meeting of the Society of Wetland Scientists— Pacific Northwest Chapter, May 20- 22, at the Sheraton Tacoma Hotel in Tacoma. This year’s theme is “Habitat, Setting the Stage for Wetland Life.” Field trips are scheduled for Friday, May 22. For more information contact Katie Walter, (206)633-6738, <klw@shanwil.com> or the SWS web site:
<http://www.sws.org/regional/pacificnw/>.
W
Annual Meeting of the Northwest Scientific Association, the Society for Northwestern Vertebrate Biology, and the Northwest Lichen Guild, March 25-28, at Evergreen College in Olympia, WA. There is a varied agenda with a session on rare plants and another on the ecology of lichens and mosses in the Pacific Northwest. Three field trips are scheduled: Fort Lewis Ecological Restoration Studies, Northwest Trek Wildlife Park, and the Wind River Canopy Crane. Abstracts are due February 15, and specific guidelines are indicated. Information is available at <http://www.evergreen.edu/nwsa98> or email at <nwsa@evergreen.edu>.
Nootka rose Rosa nutkana
Pearhip rose Rosa woodsii
W
Planning meeting for the Earth Day Festival at Idaho Museum of Natural History, February 12, 7:00 PM, at IMNH Auditorium classroom 222. Enthusiastic volunteers needed! The ECO FAIR will again be the central event along with environmental movies, Native American and children’s storytelling, scientists* presentations on biodiversity and conservation biology, alternative energy bike rides, tree plantings, nature walks, etc. Last year’s Earth Day Festival was a huge success with over 4,600 people participating. Contact is Dr. Stefan Sommer, (208) 236-2335 or email <sommstef@isu.edu>.
Baldhip rose Rosa gymnocarpa
Illustrations by C.V. Janda from Winter Field Key to the Native Shrubs of Montana, 1962, by Melvin S. Morris, Jack E. Schmautz, and Peter F. Stickney, Montana State University and U.S. Forest Service.
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Sage Notes is published in February, May, September, and December by the Idaho Native Plant Society, incorporated since 1977, under the laws of the State of Idaho. Newsletter ads: personal ads $2, commercial ads $5 for 1/8 page, $8 for 1/4 page, $15 for 1/2 page, and. $25 for full page. Ads should be sent with payment. Submissions: members and others are invited to submit material for publication. Articles in any form, even hand- written, are welcome, as is art work. Please provide a phone number in case there are questions. Material will not be returned. Send submissions directly to the editor,. Sarah Walker, PO Box 69, Peck, ID 83545, (208) 486-6231 or < dspeck@cleanvater.net>. Submission deadlines are January 15, April 15, August 15, November 15.
Officers: State Officers, PO Box 9451, Boise, ID 83707. President, Kristin Fletcher; Vice-President, Alexia Cochrane; Secretary, Leonard Lake; Treasurer, Janice Hill; Member-at- Large, Loring Jones; Past President, Susan Bematas; Rare Plant Conference Committee Chair, Nancy Cole; Conservation Committee Chair, Juanita Lichthardt; Newsletter Editor, Sarah Walker. Calypso Chapter, P.O. Box 331, Careywood, ID 83809. President, Mark Mousseaux; Vice-President, vacant; Secretary, Janet Benoit; Treasurer, Rebecca Brown-Thompson. Kinnikinnick Chapter, PO Box 578, Sandpoint, ID 83864. President, Gretchen Hellar; Vice-President, Dallas Hilton; Secretary. Nicole French; Treasurer, Beverly Hall; Newsletter Editors, Phil & Michael Franklin; Member Chair, Lois Wythe. Pahove Chapter, PO Box 9451, Boise, ID 83707.
President, vacant; Vice-President, Kay Beall; Secretary- Treasurer, Steve Rust. Sah-Wah-Be Chapter, 603 Willard, Pocatello, ID 83201. President, Ruth Moorhead; Treasurer- Secretary, Harry Giesbrecht. White Pine Chapter, PO Box 8481, Moscow, ID 83843. President, Roger Blanchard; Vice- President, Dr. Bertie Weddell; Secretary, Angela Sondenaa; Treasurer, Annette Brusven; Publicity Chair, Janet Campbell; Newsletter Editor, Nancy Miller; Past President, Juanita Lichthardt. Wood River Chapter, PO Box 3093, Hailey, ID 83333. President, Dick Springs; Vice-President, JoAnne Vassar;
Secretary-Treasurer, JoAnn Robbins; Member-at-large, Carol Blackburn. Newsletter staff: Editor, Sarah Walker; Technical Editor, Bertie Weddell; Circulation Manager, Juanita Lichthardt; Contributing Editors, Karen Gray and Valerie Geertson.
The Idaho Native Plant Society (INPS) is dedicated to promoting interest in native plants, plant communities and collecting and sharing information on all phases of the botany of native plants in Idaho, including educating the public to the values of the native flora and its habitats. Membership is open to anyone interested in our native flora. Send dues to Janice Hill, Treasurer, 2990 State Highway 3, Deary, ID 83823, and all correspondence to INPS, Box 9451, Boise, ID 83707
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Idaho Native Plant Society
Sage
Notes
Volume 20
Spring 1998
Number 2
In this issue
Idaho Native Plant Society 1998 State Field Trip (loose insert)
1998 INPS Ballot (loose insert)
A Visit With Nelle Tobias, Senior Idaho Conservationist, by Sarah Walker 1
Adopt a Plant: Rare Plants Need You! by Edna Rey-Vizgirdas 1
Evenden Deserves Thanks, Will Be Missed, by Juanita Lichthardt 2
Spiranthes porrifolia New to Idaho, by Karen Gray 3 '
Conserving Non-timber Forest Products from Northwestern Forests, by Bertie Weddell 4
An Opinion on Wildcrafting Natives, by Wayne Phillips 6
Big Weeds and Destructive Floods: Cottonwood Ecosystems and Related Conservation Issues,
by Michael Merigliano 7
Summary of Results from the 1998 Idaho Rare Plant Conference, by Michael Mancuso 8
Rare Plant Conference Field Trip, by Sarah Walker 10
Spring Springs Forth, by Kristin Fletcher 10
In Memory of Jeanne R. Janish, 1902-1998, by Linda Vorobik, Noel and Patricia Holmgren, and
Ann DeBolt 11
Review: Northwest Penstemons 13
Review: Macrolichens of the Pacific Northwest 13
Chapter News 14
INPS Board Meeting Minutes, by Leonard Lake 15
Letter to the Editor . 16
News and Notes 16
Cover: Synthyris missurica by Karen Gray
Spring 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (2)
A Visit With Nelle Tobias
Sarah Walker, Sage Notes Editor
On our way to the Rare Plant Conference we stopped in McCall to meet the Idaho conservationist for whom the rare plant Saxifraga bryophora var. tobiasiae is named. Nelle gave us a warm welcome, blackberry tea, and stimulating conversation about protecting plants and habitat in Idaho. At 91, it was she who energized us. Y ou may have seen her on Idaho Public Television’s Outdoor Idaho program “Living Legends,” where she is named
Left to right: Sarah Walker, Karen Gray, Nelle Tobias. Photo by Marilyn Olson. “gentle fighter” for her life-long
dedication to protecting the wild Idaho
she loves. She was involved with the designation of the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness, has published photos in national magazines to alert the public of clearcutting, overgrazing, and erosion, and has spoken up consistently for roadless areas. She keeps up on the issues and regularly attends and speaks up at local meetings whenever natural resources are discussed. She was recently honored by the Wilderness Society and by Albertson College. Her priority issues today? overpopulation, and the urgent need to educate people about the critical “building blocks”— plants— upon which we all depend.
Adopt a Plant: Rare Plants Need You!
Along the Boise foothills, the delicate pink flowers of Aase’s onion {Allium aaseae) are a sure sign that winter’s grasp has ended. Aase’s onion is just one of numerous rare plant species in Idaho, many of which are threatened with extinction. Rare plants are both an important part of our natural heritage and critical components of ecosystems throughout the state. Yet, trampling, off-road vehicle use, grazing, noxious weeds, and development continue to jeopardize native diversity.
A recent report by the World Conservation Union estimates that one out of every eight plant species in
Edna Rey-Vizgirdas, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
the world is vulnerable to extinction due to habitat loss and competition from non-native species. Species at risk include at least 14% of the rose family and 32% of lily and iris species. (See News and Notes, p. 16.)
Although we may not be able to protect plants in the rainforests of Brazil or Madagascar, we can directly influence the conservation of rare plant species in our own backyard. Most biologists and conservationists agree that globally rare species are our highest priority for conservation. However, funding for conservation is often unavailable and
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Spring 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (2)
information on many of Idaho’s unique native plant species is lacking. Although federal and state resource agencies are entrusted with preserving native species, agency biologists often have little time or funding for protecting or monitoring sensitive plants. Unfortunately, this causes many plant species to “fall through the cracks” and suffer from habitat degradation and ongoing threats.
Volunteers can serve an important role in helping to protect Idaho’s native flora. Sensitive plants like Aase’s onion, Idaho phlox, and Picabo milkvetch are found throughout the state from the foothills to the alpine zone. By “adopting” one or more rare plant species, volunteers can provide agencies with vital information regarding the species’ status and can assist in habitat enhancement efforts.
There are many examples of conservation efforts that owe their success to dedicated volunteers. Volunteers helped Wallowa-Whitman National Forest botanists monitor populations of the threatened MacFarlane’s four-o’clock ( Mirabilis macfarlanei.) During the past two summers. Forest Service volunteers helped inform the public about the endemic Greenman’s lomatium ( Lomatium greenmanii) and the importance of reducing trampling impacts in its fragile subalpine habitat on Mount Howard in eastern Oregon.
In Montana, volunteers helped the Forest Service protect the threatened water howellia ( Howellia
aquatilis) by fencing to reduce livestock impacts. In the Midwest, volunteers are working with The Nature Conservancy and Fish and Wildlife Service to save the eastern prairie fringed orchid ( Platanthera leucophaea) from extinction. After receiving training in hand-pollination and censusing methods, volunteers have provided reliable data for the past four years and made a valuable contribution to the recovery of this threatened orchid.
Volunteers can help Idaho’s rare plants by working with agency biologists to locate sensitive plant species in their area. In some areas, specific protection such as fencing or weed control is needed. Volunteers can document threats or changes in habitat conditions or population size that may occur in the future. Many agency biologists also need assistance in public education efforts about rare plants. Photographers can compile a photo album of rare plants for local ranger stations or visitor centers.
Depending on your interests and abilities— whether you’re an amateur botanist or are just interested in native plants— adopting a rare plant can be an interesting and rewarding experience. To find out what you can do for a native plant in your area, contact your local Forest Service or Bureau of Land Management botanist, or the Idaho Conservation Data Center in Boise (208) 334-3402. With your help, we can work to preserve Idaho’s wonderful natural heritage for future generations.
Evenden Deserves Thanks, Will Be Missed
Juanita Lichthardt, White Pine Chapter
Sometimes it is unfortunately true that you “don’t know what you’ve got ‘till its gone.” That may be the case with the departure of the Forest Service’s Research Natural Areas (RNA) program leader Dr. Angela (Angie) Evenden. Moving on with respect to geography and career, Angie left her position on April 3. For 11 years Angie has headed up the RNA program, first for Region 1 and the Intermountain Station, and then for Region 4 as well. Since 1987, she has helped oversee the establishment of 137 RNAs in both Regions. In Idaho, she built on the significant work of Chuck Wellner. She has been successful in raising the profile of the RNA program, which our society has been both cognizant and supportive of, but which has not been widely recognized by the public. She has worked hard to stimulate research within RNAs. In addition to establishment of RNAs, she has had the daunting task of setting management policies and devising a
record-keeping system for research projects and monitoring— of the areas themselves and the species and communities within. She was a conscientious and persuasive advocate for RNA policies when competing Forest Service objectives threatened to override them. The hardest part of her job has been to get the agency to recognize the importance of RNAs, both in principle and with monetary support.
Desiring to pursue “hands-on” botany and conservation, Angie will be dividing her time between Montana and Utah. She is presently putting her field skills to work for the Grand Staircase/Escalante National Monument and for The Nature Conservancy’s Western Regional Office and Utah Field Office. Her absence will be felt most by those of us who had the opportunity to work, hike, or botanize with her, but the effect on Natural Areas in the Northern Rocky Mountain Region may be profound if support for this program is not reinstated. (At this time, there is not a program leader at the Intermountain Station; responsibility for RNA programs lies with Steve Shelly at Region One in Missoula and A1 Winward at Region Four in Ogden.)
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Spring 1998 * SAGE NOTES
A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (2)
Spiranthes porrifolia New to Idaho
Karen Gray, White Pine Chapter
Charles Sheviak of the New York State Museum has identified a specimen collected at Garden Creek Ranch as Spiranthes porrifolia, western Ladies’ tresses. This is the first occurrence from Idaho. The distribution of this orchid is centered in northern California, with one site in Nevada, some sites in western Oregon, and a few in Washington near Bingen. This new site represents an extension of about 360 kilometers eastward from the location near Bingen.
Distribution of Spiranthes porrifolia
Adapted from a map by Charles Sheviak.
Garden Creek Ranch is owned partly by The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and partly by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), but it is managed jointly. Spiranthes porrifolia was collected by Sandra Robins during plant surveys that TNC and the BLM are conducting on the ranch. It was found growing in a seepy area on an old logging road. Several mosses and wetland plants grow in the wet roadbed; the seep probably provides water year-round or nearly so.
The road runs just below the breaks on the west aspect of Wapshilla Ridge (Craig Mountain), more or less following the 5,000-foot elevation contour. The habitat surrounding the road is a mosaic of bluebunch wheatgrass grasslands, shrubfields, and, on the more north-facing aspects, scattered Douglas fir.
Illustration by Jeanne R. Janish from Vascular Plants of the Pacific Northwest, by C.L. Hitchcock et al., 1959, Univ. of Wash. Press. Reprinted with permission.
The flowers of the genus Spiranthes are arranged spirally on stalks, giving the impression of braids or tresses.
Western Ladies’ tresses may at first glance look like Spiranthes romanzoffiana , the common Ladies’ tresses in this area, but Spiranthes porrifolia is more cream-colored or yellowish than S. romanzoffiana. The petals and sepals of S. romanzoffiana are united to form a hood, and the lip is pandurate or violin- shaped (constricted in the middle, then expanded at the tip). The petals and sepals of S. porrifolia do not form a hood. They are fused only about halfway, and the tips are spreading or sometimes recurved. The lip is more triangular, not violin-shaped, and has diagnostic short hairs or peg-like projections on the lip near the apex.
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Spring 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES
A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (2)
Conserving Non-timber Forest Products from Northwestern Forests
Bertie Weddell, White Pine Chapter
Forest plants have provided people with food, tools, medicines, fiber, building materials, ceremonial objects, and art supplies for millennia. Today, in spite of our obsession with timber, forests continue to offer diverse products. In fact, the so-called non-timber forest products industries in the Pacific Northwest employ thousands of people and gross millions of dollars annually.
The marketing of non-timber forest products has a certain appeal. The collection and marketing of such products in both temperate and tropical forests has been hailed as a method of conserving biodiversity while reaping economic and social gains for local users. Most non-timber products can be obtained without cutting down trees, so it is tempting to assume that they can be harvested indefinitely. (Think of maple syrup, for example.) At the same time, several economic analyses have suggested that the income derived from non-timber forest products can sometimes equal or even exceed the economic value of wood products from the same area. And if local users depend on forests for the non-timber products they provide, they may well be motivated to conserve the forest ecosystems that supply these products. But the harvest of these products has not always been good for forests or for people. For example, the New World rubber boom at the turn of the century brought environmental degradation as well as “human suffering, cultural destruction, and economic vassalage” to Amazonia (Taylor 1997:8).
In this article I will describe three types of non- timber products that are harvested from northwestern forests— medicinal products, mushrooms, and floral greenery— and then explore the implications of these harvests for forest conservation. I will be concerned only with harvests that provide income. (These can vary in scale from children collecting huckleberries for local buyers to corporations harvesting thousands of trees to obtain drugs.) I will not discuss the collection of forest products for subsistence use, which is another fascinating subject.
Medicinal products
Taxol is probably the best known pharmaceutical product obtained from forests of the Pacific Northwest. This chemical, which belongs to the class of compounds that includes camphor and peppermint, is derived from the bark of the western or Pacific yew ( Taxus brevifolia) and is remarkably effective against ovarian and breast cancer. Its effectiveness against tumor cells derives from its
ability to gum up the functioning of the microtubule apparatus that is required for cell division.
Unfortunately, yews grow slowly, occupy sensitive old-growth habitats, and yield only small amounts of the precious taxol. Trees must be 100 years old before they are harvestable, and it usually takes at least three yews to obtain enough taxol to treat one cancer patient. This has put considerable pressure on yew populations. To make matters worse, harvest practices have been allegedly wasteful and sometimes illegal, with collectors often taking only the easiest bark to reach and poachers harvesting without obtaining government permits. In response to this situation, the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management have both adopted guidelines for yew conservation. Fortunately, taxol can now be synthesized from precursors obtained from renewable biomass such as twigs and needles. The development of this process has relieved the pressure on yew trees.
Another but less well known compound that is derived from a western conifer and has pharmacologically interesting properties is termed arabinogalactan. This substance is a polysaccharide found in the wood of western larch ( Larix occidentalis). It can be extracted with hot water from wood chips destined for use in paper products. With this approach trees don’t have to be harvested specifically to obtain the compound. Arabinogalactan is non-toxic and is used as a filler or bulking agent in foods and pharmaceuticals. It is believed to have cholesterol-lowering properties, and preparations containing arabinogalactan are sold in health food stores for this purpose. Recently, arabinogalactan’ s affinity for liver tissue has generated considerable interest. When injected into animals or humans, arabinogalactan is withdrawn from the blood by a receptor found on liver cells. Pharmaceutical agents can be attached to arabinogalactan, which then delivers them to the liver and keeps them from accumulating in other cells. This liver-targeting property of arabinogalactan is being used in the development of pharmaceutical agents to treat viral hepatitis, to make contrast agents used to visualize liver cancer with magnetic resonance imaging, and to deliver genes to the liver for gene therapy.
Drug companies are not the only parties interested in obtaining medicines from forest plants, however.
In recent years the demand for North American herbal medicines has “mushroomed,” so to speak. This is due in part to the increasing popularity of natural remedies in this country, and in part to increasing demand from outside North America as supplies dwindle elsewhere.
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Spring 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES
A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (2)
A considerable amount of interest has been generated by the antidepressant properties of chemicals found in the non-native herb St. John’s- wort ( Hypericum perforatum ). Native herbs also supply potent medicinal products. For example, mad- dog skullcap ( Scutellaria lateriflora ) and devil’s club ( Oplopanax horridum ) are natives harvested from northwestern forests for medicinal purposes. The common name for Scutellaria lateriflora derives from the fact that a tea made from this species was once used as a folk remedy for rabies. Skullcap tea was also used as a sedative, nerve tonic, and antispasmodic, although high doses may be toxic. Laboratory investigations have confirmed the antispasmodic and calming effects of scutellarin, a flavonoid compound found in Scutellaria.
Regardless of whether they are driven by enthusiasm for traditional cures or by the lure of profits, pickers can certainly endanger native herbs by overharvesting them. United Plant Savers (UpS), a private organization “dedicated to protecting and replanting native medicinal plants and to ensuring the future of these important plant species for future generations” has developed a list of North American Indigenous Medicinal Plants at Risk. Several plants on the list occur in our region: echinacea ( Echinacea spp.), lady’s slipper orchid ( Cypripedium spp.), lomatium ( Lomatium dissectum), licorice-root (Ligusticum spp.), sundew ( Drosera spp.), and trillium ( Trillium spp.). (The designation “spp.” is used on this list whenever all North American members of a genus are at risk or if there is reason to believe that either through inability to locate the commonly used species, misidentification, or intentional collection, species besides the commonly used species in the genus might also be at risk.) If you have information about the status of any of these species or you wish to propose other plants for inclusion on the at risk list, please contact Richard A. (Richo) Cech at: herbsd@aol.com, P.O. Box 69, Williams, OR 97544.
A list of additional herbs that have been proposed for inclusion on the at risk list and more information about UpS can be obtained from <http://www.plantsavers.org/> or <info@plantsavers.org>.
Mushrooms
Morels ( Morchella spp.), chanterelles ( Cantharellus spp.), and matsutakes ( Tricholoma spp.) are among the mushrooms harvested commercially from forests of the Pacific Northwest. The white matsutake (T. magnivelare ) occurs in northwestern coniferous forests. Near the coast it is found in pine forests, but inland it favors mixed conifers and second-growth Douglas fir. This species, which David Arora has described as tasting like “a provocative compromise between ‘red hots’ and dirty
socks” (Arora 1986:191), is highly prized in Japan.
In autumn, thousands of pickers— most of them from southeast Asia— come to the Winema and Deschutes national forests of southwestern Oregon to search for the precious matsutake. The area is considered one of the most consistent matsutake fruiting areas on earth.
The most skilled pickers make thousands of dollars on a good day, but most make far less than that. Large amounts of cash, alcohol, and firearms are a volatile combination, and violence in the pickers’ camps has not been uncommon. In response to this situation, the Forest Service recently built camps run by a concessionaire and redesigned camp sites to spread them out. These measures seem to have eased tensions somewhat.
Like many fungi of northwestern forests, the matsutake is mycorrhizal, that is, it forms symbiotic relationships with tree roots. Studies have been initiated to assess the ecological impacts of the intense matsutake harvest in southwestern Oregon. The preliminary results of these studies suggest that harvest stimulates propagation.
Floral greenery
A variety of herbs and shrubs are harvested from northwestern forests for use in floral arrangements. Some of these, like the evergreen shrubs salal ( Gaultheria shallon ) and evergreen huckleberry (Vaccinium ovatum), are found only in the western part of our region. Others, like dwarf Oregon grape (Berberis nervosa), sword fern ( Polystichum munitum ), deer fern ( Blechnum spicant ), and beargrass ( Xerophyllum tenax) occur inland as well. Cones, evergreen boughs, and mosses are also sold for use in floral arrangements. The most valuable floral greens are typically obtained from maturing forests with semi-closed canopies. Steep, erosion- prone slopes may not be suitable for collecting these products.
Floral greens are harvested from private, federal, and state lands. Harvesters must obtain a permit to gather on public lands or a lease from the owner of private lands. The target species can usually be harvested without killing the donor plant, but if care is not taken mortality may result anyway. For instance, only the inner whorl of beargrass leaves is used, but sometimes harvesters pull the entire plant from the ground.
Implications
These examples suggest that there are several things that need to be considered when non-timber product harvests are evaluated. These include ecological and socioeconomic factors.
First, are the target species harvested in ways that are sustainable? Sustainability depends on whether
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Spring 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (2)
the removal of plant parts exceeds the plant’s ability to replenish tissues necessary for survival and reproduction. Non-timber product harvests need to be carefully considered on a case-by-case basis, and research needs to be done to answer the following questions: Are organisms killed outright? If not, are reproductive structures damaged? Is reproduction density dependent? (If it is, the removal of some seeds or young individuals from high density areas may actually improve growth and survival of those that are left behind.) Is enough vegetative material left to support continued growth? Does the removal of vegetative material stimulate growth? If so, under what conditions?
Second, we need to look beyond impacts on target species to other effects. Is the surrounding habitat damaged by trampling, uprooting, or other activities associated with collecting? Are the practices used in harvest unnecessarily destructive or wasteful? Is the habitat highly erodable or especially vulnerable for other reasons? Are the seeds of weedy species inadvertently brought into sensitive areas? What species attack the target species? What species depend on it for cover? Who are its mutualists? How are these species affected by changes in population levels of the harvested target species? The latter question is especially important in the case of fungi that have mycorrhizal associations with tree roots.
Finally, what are the economic realities of non- timber products harvests? Are huge financial gains at
stake? Is the market unpredictable? In either of these cases, there is likely to be tremendous economic incentive to maximize short-term profits and little incentive for conservation. Overexploitation is probable if such harvests are not regulated. If there is a regulatory framework in place, it should be flexible enough to respond if research indicates negative impacts from harvest.
Ultimately, if we look at these questions over a long enough time scale, the dichotomy between the ecological questions and the economic questions disappears, because harvests that are not sustainable in ecological terms cannot remain economically viable either. That which is not ecologically feasible, can’t remain economically profitable. If we recognize this and use our forests prudently, hopefully we will be able to enjoy the bounty of northwestern forest products for a long time to come.
Additional Reading
Arora, D. 1986. Mushrooms demystified. Ten Speed Press, Berkeley. 959 pp.
Joyce, C. 1993. Taxol: Search for a cancer drug. BioScience 43:133-136.
Schlosser, W. E., K. A. Blatner, and B. Zamora. 1992. Pacific Northwest forest land potential for floral greenery production. Northwest Sci. 66:44-55.
Taylor, D. A. 1997. Alternative products from woodlands. Environment 8:6-11, 33-36.
An Opinion on Wildcrafting Natives
From an editorial by Wayne Phillips in the spring issue of Kelseya, the Newsletter of the Montana Native Plant Society
“When Paul Buck knelt down to examine fresh diggings last summer in a native tallgrass prairie (in Oklahoma) he couldn’t believe the damage done. Just a few days before, the field had been carpeted with one of the prairie’s most beautiful wildflowers, the purple coneflower. But now the flower’s subtle pinks and pale lavenders were missing, with deep gashes and mounds of raw earth marking where the plants once stood. [Medicinal Plant] gatherers had taken every plant out of a field of at least 40 acres. There wasn’t a single one left...” (from Gary Lantz for National Wildlife Magazine.)
Coneflower ( Echinacea ) is the top selling herbal product in the U.S., with sales of about $80 million annually. Purple coneflower {E. purpurea ) is grown commercially, but most other Echinacea species are dug from wild populations, or “wildcrafted.” The herb industry is paying as much as $21 a pound for wildcrafted Echinacea roots (from Gary Lantz).
The genus Echinacea is unique to North America, with nine species represented. Two rare species of Echinacea in the southeast U.S. are listed as “endangered” by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
I believe that commercial wildcrafting of native species, like Echinacea, poses a serious threat to our native flora. In my view, herbs for the herb market should be grown commercially, which is easy to do in the case of Echinacea. Unfortunately, some herbalists have perpetuated the belief that wildcrafted herbs are “better.”
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Spring 1998 ♦> SAGE NOTES
A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (2)
Big Weeds and Destructive Floods: Cottonwood Ecosystems and Related
Conservation Issues
Michael F. Merigliano, University of Montana
To me an ancient cottonwood is the greatest of trees because in his youth he shaded the buffalo . . . and I like a young cottonwood because he may some day become ancient. Aldo Leopold
The first four words in the title capture the essence of conservation issues related to cottonwood ecosystems. “Big” serves as a metaphor for wildlife habitat, “Weeds” has a dual meaning related to cottonwood ecology and some social views towards the species, “Destructive” relates to common social views towards floods, and “Floods” themselves are a very important aspect of cottonwood ecosystems. Basic cottonwood ecology and stream processes provide a context for understanding conservation issues related to cottonwoods.
Cottonwood ecosystems can be defined as those areas where cottonwood is the most dominant woody species occurring under natural processes. These systems range from small groves dong a short reach of stream to extensive forests up to a mile wide and over 20 miles long. In Idaho, cottonwood ecosystems range from the nearly pristine with intact processes to mere shadows of what once was.
Two species prevail in Idaho: black cottonwood {Populus trichocarpa ) and narrowleaf cottonwood {P. angustifolia ). There are a few hybrid species; the most widespread is lanceleaf cottonwood (P. X acuminata ) which is considered a species by some.
An interesting hybrid between plains cottonwood (P. deltoides) and black cottonwood occurs along large rivers in north-central Idaho. Called Populus X generosa, it is a fairly recent discovery and has no common name. What may be naturally-occurring plains cottonwood range as far west as northeastern Oregon and southeastern Washington, but they are rare (J. Braatne, unpublished data.)
Cottonwood’s large stature provides shade to land and stream alike, and its large trunk is important to many cavity-nesting birds. Stout branches of old- growth trees are strong enough to support the huge nests of bald eagles, which prefer to live near water. Annual leaf fall provides nutrients to the stream’s food chain. The list can go on, and much of the value to wildlife may seem obvious to many today. But a short 20 years ago, cottonwood was viewed by many as a nuisance, a weed. Its low commercial value and relatively high water use left little incentive for retention. In some areas, cottonwood forests were
cleared for crop production or pasture improvement. Ornithologists in the southwest U.S. were probably the first to highlight the importance of cottonwoods for habitat and make an impact on land managers.
From such small beginnings, a mere grain of dust, as it were, do mighty trees take their rise. Thoreau’s early observation on cottonwood seeds still holds today. Cottonwood is aptly named, and its tiny seeds, weighing only about .00065 gram, are widely dispersed by wind and water every year. Its copious seed production intrigued the early botanist Charles Bessey, and a count of almost 28 million seeds from one tree highlights the enormous seed supply. Some early botanists assumed that cottonwood seeds were non-viable, or else there would be cottonwoods everywhere. But tests show that viability is very high; it is the lack of habitat that limits cottonwood reproduction. In order to germinate, cottonwood seeds need bare, moist mineral soil that is in full sunlight and safe from future disturbance. Cottonwood’s reproductive ecology is similar to many weed species.
When thinking about potential cottonwood seedling sites, remember Goldilocks. If the site is too low along the stream bank, seeds will merely float away during high flows, or if established, be wiped out by flows or ice soon after. Too high, and the site may be too dry later in the summer as flows recede. The “just right” is somewhere in between these extremes. People often ask, while standing in a mature cottonwood forest, “How can we get new
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Spring 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (2)
cottonwoods here?” Forest litter, shade, and lack of consistent moisture preclude seedling establishment in existing cottonwood forests. Cottonwood is a pioneer species, and its frontier is the new floodplain left in the wake of migrating stream channels.
Streams build extensive new floodplains during floods. A stream channel is sized to carry the amounts of water and sediment it usually experiences, and unusually high flows result in increased bank erosion and new floodplain deposition. Different stream types respond differently to floods, and have inherently different channel migration rates. Those that are more apt to support an extensive cottonwood forest have dynamic floodplains, or “turn over” their floodplains within the lifespan of cottonwood. A too rapid turnover does not allow trees to mature before the land they inhabit is eroded. A very slow turnover allows trees to die in place. The optimum turnover rate may not exist in nature, but broad forests with a wide range of age classes indicate a stream that moves often, far, or both.
Cottonwood regeneration is not limited to stream- side areas or to sexual reproduction. Other processes provide cottonwood seedling habitat and these include landslides, newly-constructed irrigation ditches, and moist road cuts. All species of cottonwood can reproduce vegetatively from roots, cut stems, or stem fragments that wash up on streambanks. But few if any extensive stands are perpetuated this way. Any that are would be an important discovery.
The ideal places for cottonwood forests are unstable and tend to be at relatively low elevations. These settings were also ideal for early settlement and agriculture because of gentle topography, water supply, and fertile soils. Our quest for stability in terms of water flows and channel stability often conflicts with the long-term maintenance of cottonwood forests. Row regulation via dams, water
diversions, and channel stabilization projects such as levees and dikes takes an indirect but inexorable toll on many cottonwood forests. High levels of livestock grazing can also limit cottonwood regeneration.
Think about the streams supporting cottonwood that you know. How many are not dammed, diked, diverted, or pastured?
In terms of intact cottonwood ecosystems, Idaho is relatively fortunate. Although few cottonwood ecosystems in Idaho have intact processes, some come close, and many are more easily restored than in other parts of the West. But even a slight change in water or land management requires considerable coordination and trust among those affected. Cottonwood’s abundance along many impacted streams blurs the perception of a problem. But many of the cottonwood forests we see today are remnants of pre-water or land development. Some refer to these trees as “the living dead.” With awareness, public support, and hard work, many of our imperiled cottonwood ecosystems that once shaded a buffalo may do so again someday.
Bibliography
Bessey, C. 1904. The number and weight of cottonwood seeds. Science 20:118.
Eckenwalder, J. E. 1984. Natural intersectional hybridization between North American species of Populus (Salicaceae) in sections Aigeiros and Tacamahaca. II. Taxonomy. Can. J.
Bot. 62:325-335.
Everitt, B. L. 1968. Use of the cottonwood in an investigation of the recent histoiy of a flood plain. Am. J. Sci. 266:417-439. Merigliano, M. F. 1996. Ecology and management of the South Fork Snake River cottonwood forest. Bureau of Land Management Tech. Bull. 96-9.
Rood, S. B. and J. M. Mahoney. 1990. Collapse of riparian polar forests downstream from dams in western prairies: Probable causes and prospects for mitigation. Environmental Management 14:451-464.
Summary of Results from the 1998 Idaho Rare Plant Conference
Michael Mancuso, Idaho Conservation Data Center
Once again, botanists and other native plant enthusiasts from throughout Idaho and several adjacent states gathered together for the annual Idaho rare plant conference. The conference is sponsored by the Idaho Native Plant Society (INPS) and provides a forum to review and update the INPS rare plant list. The list is divided into several globally rare and state rare categories largely on the basis of distribution, abundance, threat, and trend criteria. There is also a Review category for taxa which may be of conservation concern in Idaho, but lack
sufficient information to be assigned for sure. The INPS rare plant list contains nearly 300 taxa, plus almost 70 Review species. The list is dominated by vascular plants, but also contains a number of bryophytes and lichens. Although the list is not as dynamic as several years ago, a number of changes are still made each year due to new information shared and discussed at the conference. The 1998 conference resulted in revisions to the status of 20 species on the state’s rare plant list. These changes are summarized below.
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Idaho Native Plant Society 1998 State Field Trip
Did you know cranberries are native to Idaho? These and many other species will be seen at the Idaho Native Plant Society 1998 State Field Trip, July 25 and 26.
Saturday, July 25, at 9:00 a.m. we’ll visit Kaniksu Marsh, 22 miles north of Priest River, Idaho. Kaniksu Marsh is a low-elevation fen and has been designated as a Research Natural Area. We will see floating and fixed spaghnam mats plus many rare and unusual species like "poor" carex ( Carex paupercula), crested shield fern ( Dryopteris cristata ), bob willow (Salix pedicellaris ), and those swamp cranberries ( Vaccinium oxycoccos ). Bring boots or tennis shoes that you don’t mind getting wet, lunch, drinks, and your best mosquito repellent. These mosquitos are reputed to be mean, nasty, and numerous.
On Sunday morning, we will meet at 9:00 a.m. at Hanna Flats near the Priest Lake Ranger Station. Hanna Flats is an old-growth western redcedar grove. There is a 1/2 mile loop trail, so access will be easy. Here we’ll see unusual plants such as northern beech fern ( Phegopteris connectilis ), grape-fern (. Botrychium minganense), and dwarf red blackberry ( Rubus pubescens).
Accommodations are available at Priest River Experimental Forest (PREF). Cost is $15 per person per night. Arrival time can be Friday afternoon or anytime on Saturday. Reservations are necessary to stay at PREF because of the limited number of beds. Please fill in the form below and mail it today. In re- turn, you will receive directions to PREF and a map of the sites we’ll be visiting. PREF has 3 cabins and a bunkhouse. All beds are singles and vary from 2 to 10 per room. Sheets, pillow cases, towels, wash- clothes, and blankets are furnished. Cabins and the bunkhouse also have bathrooms, showers, and kitch- ens (with plates, pots, pans, utensils, stoves, refrigerators, sinks, tables, etc.).
Meals:
Fri., July 25 Dinner: Eat before arriving at PREF or cook your own meal in one of the kitchens.
Sat., July 26 Breakfast: Cook your own breakfast in one of the kitchens. Pack a lunch.
Lunch: In the field.
Dinner: Potluck at the bunkhouse.
Sun., July 27 Breakfast: Cook your own breakfast in one of the kitchens. Pack a lunch.
Lunch: In the field.
Questions?: Contact Dennis Ferguson, 1 1 15 Estes Road, Moscow, Idaho 83843, 208-882-8062
Please RSVP even if you do not plan to stay at PREF. It will help in planning for a successful meeting.
Name
Address
Number of people Telephone.
Number of beds you want reserved at PREF
Please mail completed form to Dennis Ferguson at the address above.
INPS 1998 BALLOT
I. Election of State Board of Directors New Officers will be announced at the Annual State Field Trip this summer.
Please vote for one nominee in each category:
President: In spite of the efforts of the Nominating Committee, no candidates have been found for President. The Board will work to resolve this problem.
Vice-President:
Mark Mousseaux
Write-in
Secretary:
Leonard Lake
Write-in
Treasurer:
Steve Rust
Write-in
II. Proposed Amendment to By-Laws
Currently, all INPS State Officers are elected each year. The amendment proposes that officers shall serve two year staggered terms.
Proposed amendment:
ARTICLE VI - ELECTIONS
(Add: )
Section 5. Term of Office
The officers shall be elected to a two year term. The elections of officers shall be staggered so that two of the four officers are scheduled for election each year. Elections for President and Treasurer shall be conducted in the same year, while elections for Vice-President and Secretary will be in the following year.
FOR adding Section 5 to the bylaws
AGAINST adding Section 5 to the bylaws
(pCease fold, stamp and return by JlltlC 25 (other side is addressed)
^Ihan^you.
Idaho Native Plant Society Elections Committee P.O. Box 9451 Boise, ID 83707
Spring 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES
A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (2)
Asplenium trichomanes (Maidenhair spleenwort)— prior to 1997, this species was believed to be extirpated from Idaho. There are lots of nooks, crannies, and other places to hide in Idaho, so it is understandable that some species are not seen for many years, even when they are actively looked for.
A report of the rediscovery of this fern was made by Mark Mousseaux, botanist with the Panhandle National Forest. INPS welcomes this species into its State Priority 1 category.
Astragalus cusickii var. packardiae (Packard’s milkvetch)— was moved from the INPS Review to the Global Priority 1 category. This species was described in 1989 on the basis of a single collection from Payette County made in 1980 by Jim Grimes and Pat Packard. Because so little was known about this species it was originally placed in the INPS Review category. A population discovered in 1997 verified that the species still occurs in Idaho. In recognition of its rarity, a status change to the highest category on the INPS list was deemed appropriate. Presently, this species is known only from the Big Willow Creek area, east of Payette.
Astragalus leptaleus (Park milkvetch)— the discovery of new populations and their ability to persist in areas open to livestock grazing resulted in this species being moved from the State Sensitive to the State Monitor category.
Botrychium minganense (mingan moon wort) — because several new populations were found in 1997, the status of this species was downgraded from State Priority 2 to the State Sensitive category.
Botrychium pedunculosum (moon wort)— reported for Idaho and added to the Review category.
Carex hendersonii (Henderson’s sedge)— additional populations have been discovered in Kootenai County. This extends the known distribution for Henderson’s sedge in Idaho further north. For this reason this species was moved from the Sensitive to the Monitor category.
Carex lacustris (lake-bank sedge)— the status of this species was changed from the Review category to State Priority 1 . It has recently been documented from MacArthur Lake, near the town of Naples in the Idaho Panhandle. Populations in Idaho are disjunct from the species’ main range to the east. Botanists in northern Idaho should be on the lookout for this sedge in the future.
Carex occidentals (western sedge)— the status of this sedge was also changed from Review to State Priority 1. Western sedge has been collected from the lava plains about 10 miles southwest of Idaho Falls, in Bonneville County. Be on the lookout for this sedge if you are prowling around this part of Idaho. The main distribution of this species is to the south of Idaho.
Cyperus rivularis (shining flatsedge)— was moved from the Review category to State Priority 1. Shining
flatsedge is widespread, but in Idaho it is known only from a few populations in the southwestern part of the state.
Juncus hallii (Hall’s rush)— the occurrence and conservation status of this species in Idaho are not well documented. Because of this uncertainty Hall’s rush was moved from the State Sensitive to the Review category.
Lewisia kelloggii (Kellogg’s lewisia)— The status of this species was changed from Global Priority 2 to the State Priority 1 category. The previous ranking was based on the premise that Idaho populations probably represented a unique entity. This alternative taxonomic disposition is now known to be premature.
Mimulus ampliatus (spacious monkeyflower) — recent taxonomic studies of several annual, yellow- flowered monkeyflower species have shown this taxon is not part of the Mimulus washingtonensis complex, as had been originally thought. For this reason, it was recommended that INPS change the name on its list from Mimulus washingtonensis ssp. ampliatus to Mimulus ampliatus. This species is apparently endemic to Idaho and remains in the Global Priority 1 category.
Petasites frigidus var. palmatus (sweet coltsfoot)— a new addition to the State Priority 1 category. This west Cascadian species was recently found to occur in northern Idaho. A related species, Petasites sagittatus (arrowleaf coltsfoot), is already on the INPS Monitor List.
Scirpus rollandii (Rolland’s bulrush)— this species was documented for the first time in Idaho when it was collected at two intermontane wetlands in the east-central part of the state during the 1997 field season. This species is known from several other western states as well. Rolland’s bulrush was added to the INPS Global Priority 3 category on the basis of this new information.
Each INPS Globally rare species that is not currently listed as Endangered or Threatened under the Endangered Species Act receives a Threat Priority rank as part of its INPS rank. This is a one-twelve ranking, with one being the highest threat and twelve the lowest. The threat priority rank is based largely on the magnitude and immediacy of the threats and was revised for three species during the conference. Penstemon idahoensis (Idaho penstemon) remains on the INPS Global Priority 1 list but had its threat priority reduced from 2 to 11. Carex idahoa (Idaho sedge) and Dermatocarpon lorenzianum (a lichen) are both on the INPS Global Priority 2 list but had no threat priority assigned to them in the past. On the basis of recent assessments, the former was assigned a threat priority rank of 8, the latter a rank of 1 1.
Three species were dropped from the rare plant list because recent field work has shown them to be more common than previously thought. The dropped species are Phlox kelseyi var. kelseyi (Kelsey’s
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Spring 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES
A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (2)
phlox), Scutellaria nana var. nana (dwarf skullcap), and Stanleya viridiflora (green prince’s plume).
There will undoubtedly be lots of new information to share and further revisions and fine-tuning of the
list made at next year’s conference. In the meantime, I wish everyone many days and miles of enjoying Idaho’s flora in 1998.
Rare Plant Conference Field Trip
Sarah Walker, Sage Notes Editor
More people are becoming interested in learning about mosses. A moss field trip was offered at the end of this year’s Rare Plant Conference in Boise, and 20 people took to the streets to learn from leaders Robin Jones and Roger Rosentreter. Learning to identify the so-called “lower plants” was fun, and challenged professionals and beginners alike who struggled with long and unfamiliar names, tiny parts, and curious life cycles. The trip was arranged by the newly formed Bryophyte Working Group, which is compiling information for the Idaho Conservation Data Center on Idaho’s rare bryophytes (mosses, liverworts and homworts) as well as lichens. If you are among those who have recently become interested and want to learn more, some helpful references are listed below.
Additional Reading
Flowers, S. 1973. Mosses: Utah and the west. Brigham Young University Press, Provo, UT 84602. ISBN 0-8425-1524-0.
Glime, J. M. 1993. The elfin world of mosses and liverworts of Michigan’s upper peninsula and Isle Royale. Isle Royale Natural History Association, Haughton, MI. ISBN 0-935289- 04-6.
Moseley, R.K., and A. Pitner. 1996. Rare bryophytes and lichens in Idaho: Status of our knowledge. Unpublished report submitted to the Idaho State Office, Bureau of Land Management. 57 pp.
Robin Jones (left) explains how some mosses thrive in cities. Theresa Prendusi (right) is amused to hear that
Robin’s study area includes Boise alleys. Photo by Sarah Walker.
Pojar, J. and A. MacKinnon, eds. 1994. Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast. Lone Pine Publishing, Vancouver, BC and Edmonton AB. ISBN 1-55105-040-4.
Schofield, W.B. 1992. Some common mosses of British
Columbia. Royal British Columbia Museum, Victoria. ISBN 0-7718-9165-2.
Vitt, Dale H., J.E. Marsh, R.B. Bovey. 1988. Mosses, lichens and ferns of northwest North America. Lone Pine Publishing, Edmonton. ISBN 0-295-96666-1.
Spring Springs Forth
Kristin Fletcher, President, INPS
It’s hard to believe, but wildflowers are beginning to bloom! Over thousands of years, certain plants have evolved special strategies which allow them to bloom in spite of early spring’s wildly fluctuating weather conditions. They thrive when other plants would perish, thus filling a valuable ecological niche. Look for these precocious jewels on south-facing slopes and rocky outcrops which warm up and dry out early in the season.
Recently, on a cool windy day, a friend and I journeyed to our favorite early-season haunt in southcentral Idaho. Here, a thin, rocky crust of soil sits atop thick layers of lava which a nearby river has gradually carved into cliffs. We soon noticed the unfurling fronds of a bright green Wood-fern nestled along the base of one lava chunk.
In really barren areas, the pale, parchment-colored flowers of Anderson’s buttercup waved above small delicate leaves which struggled to free themselves from the dense soil. And, we were delighted to catch the sharp yellow dots of the diminutive sagebrush buttercup still in bloom.
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Spring 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES
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The succulent leaves of bitterroot look like tiny green sea anemones swirled on the desert floor. Bitterroot has always been a favorite of mine because its large, exquisite flowers rise straight out of bare, stony ground. I have learned that the leaves emerge first and must shrivel to dust before the bitterroot ’s magnificent blossoms emerge.
Every year I force myself to search for wildflowers before I believe any flower in its right mind should be blooming. Typically, the day I pick is miserable, cold, and windy and, every year, I am humbled by the ability of native plants to endure, with grace and beauty, the hardships tossed their way so casually by our good earth.
In Memory of Jeanne R. Janish, Botanical Illustrator
Oct. 20, 1902 - February 4, 1998
It was my honor to learn from Mrs. Janish: I taught myself by studying her drawings, and she taught me by critiquing drawings that I sent to her. Her work is artistically superb, with graceful line work, perfect stippling, and elegant simplicity. As a botanist, I found her drawings to represent the plants more exactly and clearly than any others. She was always extremely supportive, kind, and generous. I gratefully accept all that she has given to me, and hope that 1 can keep her spirit alive by passing on what I have learned from her, including an inspired love for the beauty of plants.
- Linda Ann Vorobik
Jeanne R. Janish, Botanical Illustrator Par Excellence
Noel and Patricia Holmgren, New York Botanical Garden
On 3 June, we had a delightful visit with the spirited 94-year-old Jeanne R. Janish at her home in Las Vegas. We had gone to Las Vegas to present Mrs. Janish with a copy of “Intermountain Flora 3A,” which is dedicated to the illustrators, especially Janish, Bobbi Angell, and Robin A. Jess, whose skillful drawings give vivid life to the text.
In the course of a long and distinguished career, Mrs. Janish has drawn more than 11,000 illustrations for publication. She is widely recognized as the grande dame of botanical illustrators in the western United States.
From 1927 through 1974 she prepared the illustrations for 32 major books, for many short papers, articles, and booklets, chiefly on botanical subjects, and also for works on other branches of natural history.
Bom in Iowa, she was a Latin major at Vassar College and received her Master of Science degree in geology at Stanford University. She was the first woman to receive a master’s degree from Stanford’s geology department. At that time women weren’t allowed to go on university field trips, but Jeanne, being ever resourceful, joined a Sierra Club trip, which allowed her to get into the field where she could gather data for her thesis. She revealed her gift for drawing early. By the late 1920s she had become the official illustrator for the botany, geology, and biology departments at Stanford.
While designing mgs for her cousin’s mg company in China in 1929, she met and married Carl Janish, and in 1954 the two settled in Nevada. Here, she continued producing illustrations remarkable for their accuracy and
Left to right: Carl Janish, Jeanne R. Janish, Doug Henderson at C. L. Hitchcock’s retirement party, Seattle, 1972. Photo by Noel H. Holmgren.
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Spring 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES
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for their “alive look,” and specialists in western floras came to rely on her more and more. She provided the majority of the illustrations for volumes two, three, and four of Abrams’ “Illustrated Flora of the Pacific States.” The wild flower enthusiast is familiar with her work in the three-book series “Flowers of the Southwest,” which includes flowers of the deserts, mountains, and mesas, and the book “Death Valley Wildflowers.”
Her connection with The New York Botanical Garden dates back to the mid-1950s, when she became the principal illustrator for the five-volume “Vascular Plants of the Pacific Northwest,” by C.
Leo Hitchcock and Arthur Cronquist. She also did thumbnail sketches for each species in the companion field manual (“Flora of the Pacific Northwest”) by Hitchcock and Cronquist. Many of her illustrations are being used in “Intermountain Flora.” In 1979 Noel named a new species of Scrophulariaceae (. Penstemon janishiae) in her honor. Mrs. Janish has donated all her correspondence with botanists and many of her original pen-and-ink drawings to the NYBG [New York Botanical Garden] archives.
Her knowledge of botany, her ability to correcdy observe details and to create botanically accurate, aesthetically appealing, lifelike drawings has made her work an integral part of western botanical literature. In recognition of her enduring contributions to botanical science, the Board of Managers of The New York Botanical Garden presented her with the Distinguished Service Award in 1987.
From The Herbarium Sheet, A Newsletter of The Botanical Science Division of The New York Botanical Garden, August 1997. Reprinted with permission.
Janish’s Penstemon {Penstemon janishiae ) , a Living Tribute
Ann DeBolt, Pahove Chapter
It’s your lucky day when you chance upon this little beauty. I have encountered Janish’s penstemon south of the Snake River in Owyhee and Elmore counties on soils derived from ancient lakebed sediments. The east-west distribution in Idaho is generally between Walter’s Ferry and Bliss, but this species also occurs in northeast California, northern Nevada, and southeast Oregon. Janish’s penstemon flowers are especially large for the plant’s small size, which typically doesn’t exceed 6 inches. Their stunning light to deep pink blooms can be seen in early to mid May. Sparsely vegetated, white chalky
soils provide the bulk of the habitat, where its neighbors usually include such species as Phlox hoodii, Atriplex confertifolia, Stanleya pinnata, Poa secunda , Chrysothamnus viscidiflorus, Castilleja sp., and Eriogonum ochrocephalum. Salvia dorrii is occasionally present as well.
While Janish’s penstemon can occur in piny on- juniper communities in the southern portion of its range, its general affinity in Idaho is for salt desert shrub habitat. So how did this species get its name? It was one of the many fine illustrations produced by Jeanne Janish, and in a surprise move. Dr. Noel Holmgren promptly named the species in her honor. (In 1979, Penstemon janishiae was separated from what was referred to as Penstemon miser, a southeast Oregon endemic with smaller flowers and a more elongated stature).
What a perfect tribute to a very fine artist.
Janish’s
penstemon is listed as sensitive by the Idaho Bureau of Land Management and as State Priority 2 by INPS. To date it is known from approximately 18 localities in the state, although more are to be expected. Principle threats include off- highway vehicle use, small mining and gravel operations, and cheatgrass invasion following fire. The response of Janish’s penstemon to livestock grazing is poorly known, though many Penstemon species are highly palatable. However, its sparsely vegetated habitat probably helps protect it from grazing at many sites.
Next time you’re in the Owyhee Front country in the spring, take a look around for this beautiful little penstemon. If you miss its flowering season you might be out of luck, as it is quite cryptic the remainder of the year. At least the origin of its name will be less of a mystery to you now.
Illustration by Jeanne R. Janish from Intermountain Flora: Vascular Plants of the Intermountain West, U.S.A., by A. Cronquis et al., 1984, The New York Botanical Garden. Reprinted with permission.
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Reviews
Northwest Penstemons. Dee S trickier. The Flower Press, 1997. 191 pp. ISBN 1-56044-572-6, $29.95. Review by Loring Jones, White Pine Chapter
Eighty penstemons, 80! And all photographed in living color from wildland “stages” in Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington. What a great addition to Dee Strickler’s Rocky Mountain and Pacific Northwest wildflower book series! Although not a botanist by vocation, Dr. Strickler became one after retirement from Washington State University. His studies included the genus Penstemon, in particular, during the last 1 1 years.
I have read and re-read his six pages of introduction. They are well worth “the price of admission” alone. One can also learn about the four sub-genera ( Dasanthera , Saccanthera, Habroanthus, and Penstemon ) and that each category is based on the configuration of the male floral organs for pollen dispersal.
Since I received my copy of “Northwest Penstemons” in the dead of winter, I haven’t had a chance to test out its dichotomous key. It looks like one even I can use when trying to figure out which species I am staring at in the field.
Ken and Robin Lodewick of the American Penstemon Society have given this book their “applause.” They are authors of numerous penstemon identifiers and an Oregon penstemon publication. Other reviewers are critical of the lack of detail in the photographs of each species’ reproductive parts and, also, of discrepancies in the range maps and the inclusion of certain species.
Photographing each of the species in enlargement detail would require a second publication,
“Northwest Penstemons II.” The line drawings, crudely done or not, work for me. The author states “up front” that two of the 80 species are not native to the area covered, namely, Penstemon palmeri and P. eatonii. These and others were squirted on Idaho highway rights-of-way by the Idaho Transportation Department hydroseeders. (I have to admit it is startling to see P. palmeri blooming at the base of Lewiston Grade.) This was also done with Penstemon venustus, which is doing so well at the top of White Bird grade.
For those who insist on being nit-picky about certain species’ authentication, I suggest they keep careful notes in the “back rows of this theater” until the new floras based on genetic DNA analyses come on line. This will shake up the entire plant taxonomic community and require most all floras and guide books to be rewritten, including this one.
Available from The Flower Press, 192 Larch Lane, Columbia Falls, MT 59912, (800) 582-2665.
Macrolichens of the Pacific Northwest. Bruce McCune and Linda Geiser, with photographs by Sylvia and Stephen Shamoff and drawings by Alexander Mikulin. Oregon State University Press, 1997, 386 pp. ISBN 0-87071-394-9, $25.
Review by Roger Rosentreter, Pahove Chapter
Can you see the forests for the trees? Can you see the lichens for the trees? If not, you will after using this new lichen flora. “Macrolichens of the Pacific Northwest” is the first regional lichen key in the United States that is fully illustrated with color photos. These color photos make the book useful to both expert and novice botanists alike. This is one of the few books on lichens that every general ecologist in the Pacific Northwest will want. Over 200 taxa are illustrated with color photographs as well as additional line drawings. The detailed line drawings clarify diagnostic features between species by providing a closeup or side-by-side comparison of specific features.
Dichotomous keys which include only Pacific Northwest macrolichens make for much easier specimen identification than books covering a larger geographic area. In the past, one had to rely on Mason Hale’s (1979) book “How to Know the Lichens,” which covers all of North America. Some of the species in the Pacific Northwest were mentioned only under descriptions of similar wider- ranging species (e.g. Ramalina subleptocarpha is discussed under Ramalina farinacea). The keys are well written and consistent in their presentation of morphological features.
There are keys to the genera of lichens as well as detailed species keys for each genus. This makes it possible either to start at the beginning or jump ahead to the species level. This organization helps one learn and over time the reader will better understand the generic concepts and morphology. The text is arranged alphabetically by genus followed by species, so one rarely needs to turn to the index. The photographs and line drawings are on the same page as the species descriptions, which reinforces the familiarization process.
What are macrolichens? They are the typically larger foliose and fruticose lichen growth forms that can be distinguished without the use of a high magnification light microscope. They are often the conspicuous species seen growing attached to trees or growing over the ground in the forests of the Pacific Northwest. Microlichen species, as the name implies, are the smaller crustose lichens on rocks or closely adnate to bark, which require close examination by light microscope.
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Spring 1998 ♦> SAGE NOTES
A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (2)
This book provides much basic information on lichen biology. What are lichens? Why are they important? How lichens function, reproduce, grow, and disperse are all discussed to some extent and more in-depth references on these topics are included. An illustrated glossary is provided as well as these appendices: 1) Acronyms and nomenclature; 2) Collecting and identifying lichens; and 3) Lichens and air quality.
Each species has the name in bold at the top of the page followed by its description, an air pollution sensitivity rating, the geographic range, substrate, habitat, and “notes.” “Notes” include comments on similar species and their distinguishing characteristics, as well as ecological and geographical differences. This section also includes identification tips and information on the ecological, indicator, and economic roles of the species. This book is the best source for regionally based air pollution sensitivity ratings for these lichen species.
If you would like to know which lichens are good indicators of old-growth forests or which contribute high nitrogen input to the forest, you should obtain “Macrolichens of the Pacific Northwest.” You will soon learn that lichens are in every habitat you visit, and knowing more about them will increase your appreciation for the world around you. What can be easier and more enjoyable than the color photographs that augment the traditional dichotomous keys? McCune and Geiser have organized an excellent treatment on lichens, but photographers Sylvia and Stephen Shamoff, whose names are listed inside the cover, contributed greatly to the usefulness of this book through their outstanding photography. Lichens are small and difficult to photograph, but the Shamoffs have set a standard that will be hard for others to even approach.
Available from Oregon State University Press, (541) 737- 3166, FAX (541) 737-3170.
Chapter News
Calypso Chapter
Winter meetings included Mike Buffalo’s presentation on photographing wildflowers (he recommended the John Shaw photography books), and Chris Schnepf’s talk “Special Forest Products.” The annual Tubb’s Hill Flower Walk was scheduled for April 26.
•May 17: Quemlin Trails Flower Walk at 1:00 PM. Contact Mark Mousseaux, (208) 765-7417, or Dave Noble, (509) 534-5558.
•July 25-26: Kaniksu Marsh and Hanna Flats Old- growth Cedar Grove INPS State Field Trip. See insert in this issue.
Kinnikinnick Chapter
A January meeting featured Betsy Hammet on “What constitutes a native plant?” She brought pressed specimens of exotic plants found in Idaho by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s. Other meetings focused on growing natives, finding medicinal herbs, and identifying evergreens.
Members braved a March trip to Tubb’s Hill. An Arboretum Committee has been formed and has formally requested that the University of Idaho locate the arboretum at the Sandpoint Research and Extension Center.
•May 5: Field trip to Gold Hill. Meet at Travel America on Highway 95 five miles south of Sandpoint at 8:00 AM. Contact is Rosalyn Clark, (208) 265-0549.
•May 30: Kevin Naffin, USFS Seed Orchard Manager, at 10:00 AM, location to be announced.
•June 6: Field trip and fund-raiser to Antelope Lake led by Barbara St. Dennis. Donate $5 in advance to Kinnikinnick Chapter, Box 578, Sandpoint ID 83864, or $10 “at the door.” Depart from Squeeze Inn (Highway 200 in Clark Fork) at 9:00 AM.
•June 27: “Food from Field and Forest” by Debbie Boots, 10:00 AM, location to be announced.
•July 7: Field trip to Chicago Peak. Meet leader Pam Simonelli and Dennis Nicholls at the River Journal office in Noxon, MT, at 9:00 AM Idaho time.
•August 8: Field trip to Schweitzer Trail. Ride the gondola up and walk down. Meet at Bonner Mall at 10:00 AM to carpool.
Pahove Chapter
The February meeting focused on “Hummingbird and Butterfly Gardens” and in March John Steinbacher gave a talk on “Revegetating with Natives.” The INPS Annual Native Plant Sale held in April was the chapter’s major fund-raiser. The April meeting featured Roger Rosentreter on “Idaho’s Spring Wildflowers.” Pahove Chapter needs candidates for President and Vice-President. Please consider taking your turn!
•May 2: Rebecca Sandhills RNA field trip/work day. Meet at 8:00 AM at Boise BLM District Office on Development Avenue. You will need work clothes and gloves for weeding, lunch, and water.
•May 7, 14, 21, 28: Wildflower Walks! Meet at the Bishop’s House at the Old Penitentiary at 6:30 PM. Bring walking shoes, light jacket, and no pets.
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Spring 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES
A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (2)
Sah-Wah-Be Chapter
The chapter has two new officers: Brian Schuetz as Vice-President, and Barbara Nicholls as Secretary. Ruth Moorhead will remain President, Harry Geisbrecht Treasurer, and Karl Holte Board Representative.
•May 22: Evening walkabout at 6:00 PM on Kristin Fletcher’s new 13-acre place in the hills southwest of Pocatello, followed by potluck dinner and summer trip planning. Contact is Kristin Fletcher, (208) 232- 6736.
White Pine Chapter
During winter, the chapter presented “Herbarium Night,” a tour of the University of Idaho Herbarium; Joy Mastrogiuseppe showed slides of local plants and described how early Native Americans prepared food, medicine, and textiles; Dr. Lori Carris provided a lively slide show on spring mushrooms of the Palouse; and a work trip in April began work on a species list for Magpie Forest.
•May 30; Paradise Ridge Prairie Remnant Field Trip. Hike with Juanita Lichthardt of the Idaho
Conservation Data Center and see the original vegetation of the Palouse. Meet at 9:30 AM in front of the Business Incubator at the comer of Sweet Avenue and Highway 95 to carpool. Contact is Juanita, (208) 882-4803.
•June 27-28: Square Mountain Proposed RNA and Idaho Mountain Primrose ( Douglasia idahoensis) field trip. Overnight trip with Angela Sondenaa and Becky Snorgrass. Camp at Rocky Bluff Campground, 32 miles south of Grangeville (outhouses but no running water). Sign up ahead with Angela, (208) 882-7746, or Becky, (208) 253-4463. Road conditions may mean last minute cancellation.
•July 25-26: Kaniksu Marsh and Hanna Rats Old- growth Cedar Grove INPS State Field Trip. See insert in this issue.
•August 9: Moscow Mountain giant cedar grove field trip. Make a species list for The Nature Conservancy with Janice Hill, TNC Stewardship Ecologist. Contact is Janice, (208) 877-1179.
INPS Board Meeting Minutes Leonard Lake, Secretary, INPS
The Board met February 9 in Boise. Attending: Kristin Retcher, INPS President (by phone); Alexia Cochrane, Vice-President; Janice Hill, Treasurer; Leonard Lake, Secretary; Loring Jones, Member-at- Large; Nancy Cole, Rare Plant Conference Chair; Sarah Walker, Newsletter Editor; Kay Beall, Vice- President Pahove Chapter; Mark Mousseaux,
President Calypso Chapter; Karen Gray, Representative White Pine Chapter. Not able to attend: Past President, Wood River Chapter, Sah-Wah-Be Chapter, Kinnikinnick Chapter, Conservation Committee Chair.
The board adopted the following policies:
Conservation: In keeping with our mission, it is the intent of the INPS to educate its membership and the public about current conservation issues that affect Idaho’s native flora and habitats.
Reimbursement: INPS will, if requested, reimburse the number of miles driven at $.30 per mile up to $100.00 for invited speakers that are not covered by an agency or organization travel budget. This policy applies only to the state organization. Chapters will determine their own policy regarding reimbursement for invited speakers.
Annual Meeting: The Calypso and White Pine Chapters will host the 1998 Annual State Meeting on the Priest River Experimental Forest July 25-26. The topic of the tour will be peatlands of North Idaho.
Elections: The board is recommending to the membership that the by-laws be amended to extend the Term-of-Office for elected officers to two (2) years and that the elections be staggered. The following was approved by the board and will be presented for a vote of the membership as part of this year’s elections:
Add: Section 5. Term of Office. The officers shall be elected to a two year term. The elections of officers shall be staggered so that two of the four officers are scheduled for election each year. Elections for President and Treasurer shall be conducted in the same year, while elections for Vice-President and Secretary will be in the fo flowing year.
Dues Schedule: The board reaffirmed the by-laws: “dues shall be payable January 1 and if unpaid by April 1 the membership lapses.” The individual will be removed from the membership list after April. For individuals who are now behind in their dues, a reminder will be posted in Sage Notes. Those who do not pay will be dropped from the membership, and in 1999 there will be no carry-over of members who do not pay membership dues.
Vice-President: Alexia Cochrane is moving to Montana and resigns as Vice-President. Mark Mousseaux will serve as acting Vice-President.
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Spring 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES
A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (2)
Letter to the Editor
Dear Editor,
An article about community ecology came to my attention, recently, in the March-April 1998 issue of Harvard Magazine. Its title is: “Dr. Foster’s Forest” by Christopher B. Daley, a free-lance writer who lives in Massachusetts and teaches journalism at Boston University.
It is about ongoing research at Harvard College’s 3,000-plus-acre forest in Petersham, Mass., the oldest continuously studied ecosystem in the United States. Its principal objective is to find out if “earth can ever recover from having people on it.” Can this forest survive man-made stresses of global warming and pollution? Studies to date indicate that it can recover from natural disasters such as fire, hurricanes, and insect invasion. In case of the latter it may take as much as 5,000 years, which in evolutionary time is really nothing.
But what about the possibility of irreversible changes brought about by increasing C02 levels and warming trends? Researchers are involved in intricate studies on this “once-a-farmland-forest,” now. They are part of the National Science Foundation sponsored Long Term Ecological Research network
(LTER) whose sites range from Alaska to the Antarctic.
This experimental forest is on privately owned and controlled land of the president and fellows of Harvard College and is administered by a “stand- alone” department of the Faculty of Arts & Sciences. As such, long term research projects will not be affected by budgets and politics.
Idaho has two experimental forests that I know of, one at Priest River is operated by the U.S. Forest Service’s Region 4 Experiment Station and the other, near Moscow, is under the supervision of the University of Idaho’s College of Forestry, Wildlife, and Range Sciences. Each is on public land. As once was this 100-year-old tract in western Massachusetts, these Idaho experimental forests are operated more for “traditional issues of silviculture and how best to grow trees for some specific utilitarian or commercial purpose like managing a family woodlot or maximizing timber yields.”
Dr. David Foster’s research program is described by the NSF panel as being on the “cutting edge” with respect to finding out how forests work as part of the global biosphere.
Respectfully submitted by Loring M. Jones, Moscow, Idaho.
News and Notes
The 1997 World Conservation Union (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Plants has been published and is the first list of vascular plants recorded as globally Rare, Vulnerable, Endangered, or Extinct. The volume (over 800 pages) lists 33,798 species as threatened, meaning that over 12.5% of the world’s vascular flora is threatened at the global scale. The U.S. has the highest number of imperiled plant species: 4,669 taxa, or 29% of its flora. Dr. Bruce Stein, a botanist and senior scientist of The Nature Conservancy, said in a New York Times article of 4/9/98 that the U.S. probably has better surveys than other countries, and that he doesn’t “believe the U.S. is worse off than other countries. If anything, I think the U.S. has taken a more active interest in plant conservation.” Forty-three percent of the plants on the Red List are classified as rare, 24% as vulnerable, and 20% as endangered. The list is the result of 20 years’ research incorporating data from The Nature Conservancy, the Association for Biodiversity Information (Australia), the National Botanical Institute (South Africa), the Smithsonian, and other organizations. The list may be ordered from the New York Botanical Garden at (718) 817-8721, email <scipubs@nybg.org>. ISBN 2-8317-0328-X, $45 plus postage.
Governor’s Idaho Weed Summit, May 19-20, Doubletree Hotel Riverside, 2900 Chinden Blvd., Boise. This is a working session for members of environmental, recreational, agricultural, and other interest groups, representatives of state and federal agencies, and tribal governments, to draft a strategic plan for managing noxious weeds in Idaho. The draft will be finalized over the summer, and a final plan will be presented at the August 19 meeting of the North American Weed Management Association in Idaho Falls. There will be presentations on the spread of noxious weeds in Idaho and integrated weed management. Breakout groups will develop recommendations and action items for the strategic plan. The meeting will start at 1:00 PM May 19 and end at noon May 20. Included in the fee is a dinner and a breakfast, both with speakers. Registration at the door is $50, payable to the Southwest Idaho Weed Control Association. For hotel reservations call (208) 343-1871. For conference details call Cindy Lunte at (208) 554-4607 or Glen Secrist at (208) 332-8536.
Rare Plants and Geology of Leslie Gulch, Oregon, with Bonnie Jakubos, Natural Resource Specialist & Wildlife Illustrator, and Ken Thacker, Wildlife Biologist, BLM. May 11 at 7:30 PM, Idaho Museum
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Spring 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES
A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (2)
of Natural History on the ISU Campus, Pocatello. For information call Stefan Sommer, (208) 236-2335, (email <sommstef@isu.edu>), or Scott Hughes, (208) 236-4387.
Second Annual Northwest Bryological Foray. May 30-31, Republic, WA. Beginners and bryo- veterans alike can explore andesite outcrops and canyons in the Okanogan Highlands of northeast Washington with Colville Forest Botanist Kathy Ahlenslager, Dale Vitt (University of Alberta, Edmonton, and editor of The Bryologist), and Dr. Wilfred Schofield (Professor Emeritus from the University of British Columbia.) Contact Tony Spribille at (406) 882-4451, or email <tspribille/rl_kootenai@fs.fed.us>. As always, this will be full of fun!
Moon worts demystified. The world’s experts on Botrychium systematics, Drs. Warren and Florence Wagner, will present “Recent discoveries in Botrychium biosystematics,” Friday June 19 at 10:00 AM at the Flathead National Forest Supervisor’s Office in Kalispell, Montana, and will be available through the afternoon to meet with interested persons and to review herbarium specimens. All are welcome to attend and bring specimens. If you plan to attend, call Tara Williams at Glacier National Park, (406) 888-7919.
Native Plants: Propagation and Planting Conference December 9-10, Oregon State University. Sessions on seed propagation, vegetative propagation, and native plant projects. Participants will receive a copy of “Propagation of Northwest Native Plants,” a book describing propagation techniques for 140 species. For restoration ecologists, horticulturists, foresters, nursery growers, and serious gardeners and lovers of native plants. Contact OSU College of Forestry, (541) 737-2329, email <duncanp@ccmail.orst.edu>.
Join the first whitebark pine restoration effort on the
Clearwater National Forest! We are looking for volunteers to help plant whitebark pine seedlings in mid-July at a treatment site in the scenic, alpine Beaver Ridge area near Powell. It’s an opportunity not only to assist a native species in decline but also to visit nearby high lakes (Beaver Lake, Spruce Creek Lakes, and Rudd Moore Lakes). We may also be able to arrange a pre- or post- visit to view Cypripedium fasciculatum or Mertensia bella. If interested, contact Karen Harvey at (208) 942-3113 (Powell Work Center.)
Ellen True blood Symposium proceedings are
available, free of charge, from the Public Affairs Office, BLM, 1387 South Vinnell Way, Boise, ID 83709. Request Idaho BLM Technical Bulletin #98- 1, The Ellen Trueblood Symposium, Highlighting Idaho’s Rare Fungi and Lichens, sponsored by the Idaho Native Plant Society, February 13, 1997. Roger Rosentreter and Ann DeBolt, editors.
The Native Plants Events Directory 1998 lists dates and contacts for wildflower events such as walks, garden celebrations, plant sales, etc. across the U.S. Write to Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, 4801 La Crosse Avenue, Austin TX 78739.
“Forest Puzzles,” an Oregon Museum of Science and Industry forestry exhibit, will be at the Idaho Museum of Natural History April 4-September 5.
This is an interactive exhibit about succession, ecology, silviculture, wood technology, and stewardship. The museum is on the Idaho State University Campus and is open Monday-Saturday 10:00 AM-4:00 PM. Summer hours start June 1st: Monday-Saturday 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM, Sunday 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM. For information contact the Idaho Museum of Natural History at (208) 236- 3317.
<Boof(s for Safe
Ruth Moorhead, president of the Sah-Wah-Be Chapter, has multiple copies of some volumes of “Intermountain Flora” for sale. Offering 5% savings from already lower-than-list prices (you pay for shipping), Ruth’s 5th Horizon Bookstore is taking a loss to reduce inventory. Also available are over a dozen wildflower/weed titles, at more substantial savings. Call (208) 233-5011 and leave a detailed message (calls after 10:00 PM or before 7: 15 AM are most likely to find Ruth home). All prices listed include Idaho’s 5% sales tax.
INTERMOUNTAIN FLORA, VOL 3A: ROSIDAE EXCEPT FABALES $69.25 INTERMOUNTAIN FLORA, VOL 5: ASTERALES $7 1 .25
INTERMOUNTAIN FLORA, VOL 6: THE MONOCOTS $35.00
Also, one copy:
THE JEPSON MANUAL: HIGHER PLANTS OF CALIFORNIA $60.00
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Sage Notes is published in February, May, September, and December by the Idaho Native Rant Society, incorporated since 1977, under the laws of the State of Idaho. Editor, Sarah Walker; Technical Editor, Bertie Weddell; Circulation Manager, Juanita Lichthardt; Contributing Editor, Karen Gray. Newsletter ads: personal ads $2, commercial ads $5 for 1/8 page, $8 for 1/4 page, $15 for 1/2 page, and $25 for full page. Ads should be sent with payment. Submissions: members and others are invited to submit material for publication. Articles in any form, even hand-written, are welcome, as is art work. Please provide a phone number in case there are questions. Material will not be returned. Send submissions directly to the editor, Sarah Walker, PO Box 69, Peck, ED 83545, (208) 486-6231 or <dspeck@clearwater.net>. Submission deadlines are January 15, April 15, August 15, and November 15.
Officers: President, Kristin Fletcher; Vice-President, Mark Mousseaux (acting); Secretary, Leonard Lake; Treasurer, Janice Hill; Member-at- Large, Loring Jones; Past President, Susan Bematas; Rare Plant Conference Committee Chair, Nancy Cole; Conservation Committee Chair, Juanita Lichthardt; Newsletter Editor, Sarah Walker. Calypso Chapter, P.O. Box 331, Careywood, ID 83809. President, Mark Mousseaux; Vice- President, vacant; Secretary, Janet Benoit; Treasurer, Rebecca Brown- Thompson; Newsletter, Dave Noble. Kinnikinnick Chapter, PO Box 578, Sandpoint, ED 83864. President, Gretchen Hellar; Vice-President, Dallas Hilton; Secretary, Nicole French; Treasurer, Beverly Hall; Newsletter Editors, Phil & Michael Franklin; Programs, Valle Novak; Field Trips, Joyce Pence; Arboretum, Lois Wythe. Pahove Chapter, PO Box 9451, Boise, ID 83707. President, vacant; Vice-President, Kay Beall; Secretary- Treasurer, Steve Rust Sah-Wah-Be Chapter, 603 Willard, Pocatello, ID 83201. President, Ruth Moorhead; Vice-President, Brian Schuetz; Secretary, Barbara Nicholls; Treasurer, Harry Giesbrecht; Board Representative, Karl Holte. White Pine Chapter, PO Box 8481, Moscow, ID 83843. President, Roger Blanchard; Vice-President, Bertie Weddell; Secretary, Angela Sondenaa; Treasurer, Annette Brusven; Publicity, Janet Campbell; Newsletter, Nancy Miller; Past President, Juanita Lichthardt. Wood River Chapter, PO Box 3093, Hailey, ID 83333. President, Dick Springs; Vice-President, Joanne Vassar; Secretary -Treasurer, Jo Ann Robbins; Member-at-large, Carol Blackburn.
The Idaho Native Rant Society (INPS) is dedicated to promoting interest in native plants, plant communities and collecting and sharing information on all phases of the botany of native plants in Idaho, including educating the public to the values of the native flora and its habitats. In keeping with our mission, it is the intent of the INPS to educate its membership and the public about current conservation issues that affect Idaho’s native flora and habitats. Membership is open to anyone interested in our native flora. Send dues to Janice Hill, Treasurer, 2990 State Highway 3, Deary, ID 83823, and all correspondence to INPS, Box 9451, Boise, ID 83707
Category
Patron
Individual
Household *
Student
Senior Citizen
Annual Dues, payable Jan. 1 $30 $10 $15 $7 $7
Name
Address
City/State
Zip Telephone
Chapter affiliation? (check one)
Calypso (Coeur d’Alene; please include $6 newsletter dues)
Kinnikinnick (Sandpoint)
Pahove (Boise)
Sah-Wah-Be (SE Idaho)
White Rne (Moscow)
Wood River (Ketchum-Sun Valley; please include $7 chapter dues)
None. Those who do not live near a chapter are encouraged to join.
We can put you in touch with other members in your area, and can coordinate with you on any state level activities you may wish to be involved in.
* Household memberships are allocated two votes.
Idaho Native Plant Society P.O. Box 9451 Boise, ID 83707
Non Profit Organization U.S. Postage Paid Moscow, ID 83843 Permit No. 471
- fltMl i/oilt
New York Botanical Garden Library G558 Serials & Exchng. Bronx, NY 10458-5126
Idaho Native Plant Society
LIBRARY
OCT 7 - 19^
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Summer 1998
Volume 20 Number 3
WWW Editors’ note: How are native plants protected in Idaho ? This is the theme for this issue of Sage Notes. We learned a lot gathering this information, and hope it’s helpful for members who ask uwhat can I do for plant conservation?”
IN THIS ISSUE:
Idaho Natural Areas Network: Chuck Wellner’s Legacy, by Angela Evenden 1
Leave Y our Own Natural Areas Legacy, by Angela Evenden and J. Stephen Shelly 3
The Status of Natural Areas in Idaho, by Steve Rust 4
Areas of Critical Environmental Concern on Bureau of Land Management Lands, by Ann DeBolt 6
Habitat Protection at Craig Mountain, by Jay Shepherd 6
A Conservation Partnership at Birch Creek: How to Protect a Remote Wetland, by Cindy Lunte 7
Plant Protection by Volunteers, by Ingrid Erickson 8
Land Trusts Work with Landowners to Protect Native Plant Habitats in Idaho, by Penelope Morgan 9
Idaho Army National Guard Rare Plant Program, by Dana Quinney 9
Plant Protection Gone Awry, by Karen Gray 10
Gap Analysis and Idaho Natural Areas, by Patrick Crist 11
The Mysteries of the North: Another Excellent INPS Annual State Field Trip, by Sarah Walker 11
The Legal Framework for Protecting Plants in Idaho, by Mark Mousseaux 12
Hanna Rats Old Growth Cedar Grove Species List 13
Spring Wildflowers on the Palouse, by Phil Druker 14
To INPS Members, by Kristin Retcher 14
INPS Treasurer’s Report for 1997, by Janice Hill 15
INPS Board Meeting Minutes, by Leonard Lake 15
Chapter News 15
News and Notes 16
1998 INPS Annual State Field Trip participants enjoying the Priest Lake Experiment Station lodge.
Photo by Sarah Walker.
Cover: Wild ginger ( Asarum caudatum ) by Rebecca Brown-Thompson
...promoting interest in
Idaho's native flora.
Summer 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ♦> A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (3)
Idaho Natural Areas Network: Chuck Wellner’s Legacy Angela Evenden, Former Natural Areas Program Manager, Rocky Mountain Research Station, USD A Forest Service
Sometimes in life one is lucky to cross paths with especially spirited and passionate individuals, who in following their hearts, make significant contributions to the world. One such individual is Chuck Wellner, who throughout his career and life has dedicated enormous energy toward protecting natural areas in Idaho. I have had the good fortune of becoming acquainted with Chuck while pursuing mutual interests in natural areas conservation. I would like to provide a brief account of Chuck’s remarkable involvement with Idaho natural areas.
Idaho has the most extensive network of research natural areas (RNAs) on federal lands of any state in the nation. This network has primarily resulted from the vision and leadership of Chuck Wellner, who started this work nearly 60 years ago.
As a young forester in the early 1930s, Chuck began working for the Forest Service conducting research on white pine forests in northern Idaho.
The Forest Service had just initiated a natural areas program with the 1927 establishment of the Santa Catalina RNA on the Coronado National Forest in Arizona. Inspired by the idea of setting aside examples of ecosystems for conservation, research, and education. Chuck set about doing this work in northern
Idaho. He was instrumental in securing designation of the first RNAs in the Northern Region of the Forest Service, starting with the 1935 establishment of Tepee Creek RNA near Priest Lake.
Throughout Chuck’s career he was employed by the Intermountain Research Station, in the research
branch of the Forest Service. He began as a field scientist and retired as an assistant station director. Chuck was always interested in natural areas, and while conducting his field research he identified areas that would make good research natural areas. Early in his career there was an abundance of pristine landscapes, and accordingly many opportunities to set aside excellent examples of common and unique ecosystems. However, managers of the national forests at that time were not interested in saving and protecting natural areas; priorities were instead placed on extracting timber resources. It was difficult to get people excited about saving natural areas when it was perceived that large amounts of undisturbed country remained. But as we
Chuck Wellner resides in Moscow, Idaho, and remains a staunch supporter of Idaho natural areas. He is a member of the White Pine Chapter of INPS. Photo by Dave Tippets.
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Summer 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (3)
all know, it was only a matter of time. Chuck saw many of the areas he and others identified as potential natural areas succumb to timber harvest, and some of the RNAs he was successful in getting designated are now islands in a landscape of old and new clearcuts.
By the 1960s interest in federal natural area programs began to pick up, and Chuck was appointed chairman of the Forest Service Natural Areas Committee for the Intermountain Research Station, a position he held until his retirement in the early 1970s. Although a few RNAs and other special areas were designated in the late 1960s and early 1970s, by 1973 there were only nine established RNAs and a few botanical areas on national forests in Idaho. The real breakthrough for natural areas came later in the 1970s.
Upon retirement, armed with his extensive knowledge and love of Idaho landscapes. Chuck dedicated himself to the natural areas cause in Idaho. By 1974, Chuck, along with Fred Johnson from the University of Idaho, organized a meeting that led to the establishment of the Idaho Natural Areas Coordinating Committee (INACC). This was a loose- knit group of volunteer scientists and specialists who set about identifying and establishing a natural areas network to preserve examples of natural diversity in Idaho. Chuck served as the INACC’s chairman for many years and provided leadership to the technical committees: forests and woodlands, grasslands and shrublands, alpine, aquatic, geological, rare and endangered plants, and rare and endangered animals. Committee members inventoried natural diversity across the state; field-checked the best areas; prepared and submitted natural areas proposals to the Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and
Park Service; and met with land managers in the field at every opportunity.
The other turning point for natural areas came in the latter half of the 1970s, when Congress legislated land and resource management planning in the Forest Service and BLM. The legislation specifically addressed the need to identify and protect natural areas. Finally there was a mechanism in place for the agencies to take natural areas more seriously. Under Chuck’s leadership, the INACC worked quickly and effectively to identify natural areas for inclusion in National Forest and BLM management planning efforts. Committee members logged long hours and scoured the mountains and valleys of Idaho. As a result, over 200 areas on National Forests and BLM land were identified and nominated for inclusion in an Idaho natural areas network, representing the spectrum of biological diversity within the state.
Inclusion of RNA proposals in Forest Plans was only the beginning of a long and slow bureaucratic process leading to formal establishment.
Formalization of a Forest Plan resulted in an RNA being officially proposed but not necessarily established. Authority to establish RNAs in the Forest Service resided with the chief of the Forest Service until 1994 (that authority now resides with the regional forester). A detailed establishment record documenting the biotic and abiotic features, management needs, and conflicts of each area, along with an accompanying environmental assessment, is required for an RNA to become established. Once the Forest Plans were finalized in the 1980s, the INACC became less active, and Chuck, often working alone, pursued the arduous task of working with the individual national forests to complete the required steps for formal establishment. He also worked with the BLM and other agencies to pursue natural area designations.
When I came to the Forest Service regional office in 1987 to manage the botany and natural areas program, there were about 20 established RNAs on national forests in Idaho; 10 of these were in the Northern Region. Chuck Wellner was one of the first people I met. We began a long association of working together on RNA establishment. Over the years I had the pleasure of accompanying Chuck in the field in northern Idaho. Traveling with him was like being with a time machine. He would tell me of the changes with each passing decade — the 1930s, 1940s,
1950s, and into the 1980s: when a particular fire occurred, when a certain timber harvest happened, and by whom. His knowledge of the Idaho landscapes and their history is unique and exceptionally detailed.
Chuck volunteered his time to the Forest Service — full time, for many years — to prepare RNA establishment records and do the ground- work with forest supervisors and other staff to
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Summer 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (3)
secure support for designation.
The roadblocks have been many in the path of RNA establishment. What seemed like a simple job has never been a priority within the national forests. Some areas, such as Aquarius RNA on the Clearwater NF and Rocky Comfort Flat RNA on the Payette NF, became embroiled in controversy. But with perseverance, progress has been made: in 1998 there are 106 established RNAs on national forests and 41
established BLM Areas of Critical Environmental Concem/Research Natural Areas within the state of Idaho. Over 30 of the Forest Service RNAs were established during the past two years. The current and future generations of Idaho owe a great thanks to this special person. Chuck Wellner, whose vision and tenacity have resulted in an exemplary natural areas legacy in the state of Idaho. We thank you Chuck!
Leave Your Own Natural Areas Legacy: How You Can Become Involved
with Forest Service Natural Areas Angela Evenden, Former Natural Areas Program Manager, Rocky Mountain Research Station; and J. Stephen Shelly, Regional Botanist/RNA Coordinator, Northern Region, USD A Forest Service
There are many ways for INPS members and chapters to support Forest Service Research Natural Areas (RNAs) and botanical Special Interest Areas (SIAs). The need is great, and the future protection of these significant areas will require much stronger initiative and support from the public. Organizations such as INPS can play a significant role in reversing the trend of declining support and resources within the Forest Service for natural areas designation, management, and monitoring.
Natural areas work in the Forest Service is minimally supported by institutional leadership and financing, yet the work to be done is enormous. Elsewhere in this issue the arduous task of establishing RNAs has been described. Establishment of RNAs represents only the beginning—the larger task is continued stewardship. RNAs are not protected by simply drawing a line on a map. These areas need to be protected from threats that alter their natural values — such as encroachment of exotic plants and animals, lack of fire management, or damage from recreation.
Natural areas provide the opportunity to study and learn — though baseline studies and long-term monitoring of ecological changes — how the less altered ecosystems function. Funding is scarce for this important work. To date, research has been conducted in only a handful of RNAs.
The Forest Service is a public agency and responds to public input. The issues that get addressed in these times of limited financial resources are the ones that result from public concern and demand. Members of the public and the conservation community are not speaking out for natural areas. As a result, the financial support and commitment to natural areas is declining in the Forest Service.
Perhaps the most important role that INPS members can play is to increase recognition of natural areas with Forest Service line officers (line officers are the district rangers, forest supervisors, and regional forester). These are the people who need to know that you care about natural areas. This work will require the same kind of perseverance and creativity that Chuck Wellner applied to his RNA establishment work over the years. Over time this kind of focused energy can change the tide.
Raising the profile of natural areas within the national forests can be accomplished in several ways, for example, through volunteer or cost-share arrangements with INPS. Chapters or individuals could adopt specific natural areas for focused
monitoring or study. Needs include documenting plant and animal species that occur in the RNA, development of more complete plant species lists, mapping of plant communities, monitoring of resource conditions in RNAs (e.g., assessing threats), helping control exotic plants, and many other activities. Natural areas need to be visited periodically to make sure everything is as it should be. The Forest Service has developed a Stewardship Monitoring Form to assist in these types of visits. INPS is invited to assist with stewardship monitoring of RNAs. For the smaller RNAs this can easily be completed in a day or two. In addition, a few RNAs remain to be established. INPS can provide needed support by endorsing establishment during the public environmental review process. Areas that are coming up for establishment in the near future include: Upper Priest Lake and Red Horse proposed (p) RNAs on the Idaho Panhandle NF, Rhodes Peak pRNA on the Clearwater NF, and Patrick Butte pRNA on the Payette NF.
There are 106 established and nine proposed research natural areas, as well as several botanical special interest areas, on 10 national forests in Idaho.
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The Northern Region (headquartered in Missoula) administers the three northernmost forests: Clearwater, Idaho Panhandle, and Nez Perce. The Intermountain Region (based in Ogden, UT) administers the six southern Forests: Targhee, Salmon-Challis, Sawtooth, Payette, Boise, and Caribou. There are regional natural areas coordinators, forest coordinators for each national forest in Idaho, and RNA coordinators at the Boise and Moscow Forestry Sciences Labs of the Rocky Mountain Research Station. Names and addresses for
these coordinators are listed below. These are the people to contact for information on natural areas and to discuss development of specific natural areas projects. Also ask to have your name placed on mailing lists to be notified of activities that involve natural areas (RNAs and SLAs) and to participate in the public environmental assessment process. It is important that there be a voice in support of natural areas.
Contacts for Forest Service natural areas in Idaho:
Northern Region USDA Forest Service, P.O. Box 7669, Missoula, MT 59807 J. Stephen Shelly, Regional Botanist/RNA Coordinator, (406) 329-3041, <sshelly/rl@fs.fed.us>
Intermountain Region USDA Forest Service, 324 25th Street, Ogden, UT 84401 Dr. Alma Winward, Regional RNA Coordinator, (801) 625-5596, <awinvvard/r4@fs.fed.us>
Idaho Panhandle NFs, 3815 Schreiber Way, Coeur d’Alene, ID 83815-8363 Mark Mousseaux, Forest RNA Coordinator, (208) 765-7417, <mmousseaux/rl_ipnf@fs.fed.us>
Clearwater NF, 12730 Highway 12, Orofino, ID 83544 Dan Davis, Forest RNA Coordinator, (208) 476-4541, <ddavis/rl_clearwater@fs.fed.us>
Nez Perce NF, Route 2, Box 475, Grangeville, ID 83530 Leonard Lake, Forest RNA Coordinator, (208) 983-1950, <llake/rl_nezperce@fs.fed.us>
Payette NF, 800 W. Lakeside Avenue, P.O. Box 1026, McCall, ID 83638 Susan Boudreau, Forest RNA Coordinator, (208) 634-0745, <sboudreau/r4_payette@fs.fed.us>
Boise NF, 1750 Front Street, Boise, ID 83702 Christine Frisbee, Forest RNA Coordinator, (208) 373-4100, <cfrisbee/r4_boise@fs.fed.us>
Sawtooth NF, 2647 Kimberly Road East, Twin Falls, ID 83301-7976 Donald Oman, Forest RNA Coordinator, (208) 737-3200, <doman/r4_sawtooth@fs.fed.us>
Salmon-Challis NF, RR2 Box 600, Highway 93 South, Salmon, ID 83467 Gary Jackson, Forest RNA Coordinator, (208) 756-5110, <gjackson/r4_salmon@fs.fed.us>
Targhee NF, P.O. Box 208, 420 North Bridge Street, St. Anthony, ID 83445 Walt Grows, Forest RNA Coordinator, (208) 624-1674, <wgrows/r4_targhee@fs.fed.us>
Caribou NF, Suite 172, Federal Building, South Fourth Avenue, Pocatello, ID 83201 Carol Lyle, Forest RNA Coordinator, (208) 236-7500 , <clyle/r4_caribou@fs.fed.us>
Forestry Sciences Lab, Rocky Mm. Research Station, 316 East Myrtle Street, Boise, ID 83702 Nancy Shaw, FSL RNA Coordinator, (208) 364-4360, <nshaw/rmrs_boise@fs.fed.us>
Forestry Sciences Lab, Rocky Mm. Research Station, 1221 South Main Street, Moscow, ID 83843 Melinda Moeur, FSL RNA Coordinator, (208) 883-2318, <mmoeur/rmrs_moscow@fs.fed.us>
The Status of Natural Areas in Idaho
Natural areas in Idaho involve a wide range of different kinds of conservation arrangements and objectives. Considering all the different kinds — research natural areas, areas of critical environmental concern, wild rivers, wilderness areas, wildlife management areas, different areas affected by various kinds of conservation leases, special interest areas, private preserves, and some exclosures — there are 363 natural areas in Idaho.
Steve Rust, Idaho Conservation Data Center
Viewed from the fence line, some of these areas may not look a lot different than the cow pasture down the road. As you search for open ground to just romp around, bird, or botanize in, however, you will find an important difference. Many natural areas are open to public access.
In Idaho the largest natural areas provide, simply, the aesthetic value of open space or vast untrammeled landscapes of solitude, as well as non-motorized
Summer 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (3)
•ecreational opportunity; large, mostly functional, xosy stems; and critical wildlife habitats. From the perspective of the conservation of pristine plant labitats and the assemblies of plants, called plant communities, research natural areas are the top-flight latural area.
Research natural areas are designated in perpetuity 'or research, education, and the maintenance of piological diversity. An important objective of these latural areas is to provide examples of pristine stands pf vegetation that can be used over time as references :o assess the effects of more intensive management ictivities, such as livestock grazing, timber harvesting, pr recreational use.
The effort to establish natural areas in North \merica has involved federal land management igencies and professional societies — Ecological Society of America, Society for Range Management, uid Society of American Foresters — since the early 1920s. In 1917 the Ecological Society of \merica formed the Committee for the ^reservation of Natural Conditions for Ecological Study. This committee was •e-organized in the late 1940s into a committee which was eventually •ecognized as The Nature Eonservancy. One of the Conservancy’s many successes has been ievelopment of state latural heritage inventory programs, like the Idaho Conservation Data Center (CDC).
Heritage programs maintain a permanent and lynamic atlas and data bank on the distribution, ibundance, and conservation status of all the states’ dements of natural biological and ecological liversity (i.e., plant and animal populations and plant pommunities); sites where these elements occur; and sources of additional information and locumentation. The CDC maintains information on ill the natural areas in Idaho. For example, we naintain information on research natural areas and ill the plant communities that occur within each of fie research natural areas.
Through a cooperative agreement with the USDA Forest Service Northem/Intermountain Region Natural Areas Program, I completed an assessment of latural area needs in the forested ecoregions of Idaho. All kinds of natural areas were included, as long as the area provided high quality protection of relatively pristine vegetation. To be included in the inalysis, the assessment required that the size of stands of vegetation in a natural area was known and fiat they were identified according to a recognized
community classification. The assessment involved a comparison of the relative abundance of plant communities within the ecoregion to that within the natural areas of the ecological region. The assessment produced a list of all the communities in each of the forested ecological regions of Idaho, with their priority of need for additional representation in the research natural area network. This information may be used to assess the potential value of a given site to contribute to the natural area network. Alternatively, it could be used to identify a research natural area need (that is, a plant community that is not adequately represented) and to organize a search to find sites that fill that need.
The assessment of conservation status is largely based on the content and quality of information records we maintain at the CDC. Assessment of the biological significance or conservation value of a natural area is based on information regarding the
plant and animal populations and plant communities within the natural area. Information on the size of a plant community occurrence is fundamental. As an example, in the natural area needs assessment I described above, if the size of a stand of vegetation was not known — though it may actually have been the biggest and best in the state — it was not possible to assess the value of the natural area as a reference area. Ideally, conservation assessments of plant communities will be based on assessments of ecological condition and conducted for groups of occurrences identified on the basis of serai status and structural condition.
Idaho Native Plant Society members can make an important contribution to conservation by gathering information on natural areas. Many natural areas within the state have not been visited for over 10 years. The CDC, through cooperation with managing agencies, can help identify where information is most needed, can provide assistance with field methods and formats for recording and compiling information, and will enter and maintain qualified information in hard copy files, on map files, and in electronic database files.
For more information, contact the Idaho Conservation Data Center, (208) 334-3402.
NationaE Ttywtfj
RESEARCH NATURAL AREA
The area behind this sign has been designated for research purposes to study natural processes and provide ecological information. Your help is appreciated to maintain the ecological integrity of the area.
Area is closed to vehicles, wood /-_-
cutting, or disturbance of vegetation or - jfflM natural features.
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Areas of Critical Environmental Concern on Bureau of Land Management Lands in Idaho Ann DeBolt, Botanist, Boise District, Bureau of Land Management
Areas of Critical Environmental Concern (ACECs) are areas of public land where the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has determined that “special management attention is required to protect and prevent irreparable damage to important historical, cultural, or scenic values, fish and wildlife resources or other natural systems or processes, or to protect human life and safety from natural hazards.” This definition originates from the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA) of 1976 and it is unique to the BLM. No other federal agency designates ACECs.
The BLM designates ACECs only through its established resource management planning process. This means either through approval of a Resource Management Plan (RMP) or through amendments to such plans. In 1988, guidance was developed that called for ACECs to be “umbrella” designations that would include most previous special area designations, such as Research Natural Areas (RNAs) and Outstanding Natural Areas (ONAs). The RNA and ONA portion of the name is also usually retained as well (i.e. Silver Creek RNA/ACEC, Diamond Craters ONA/ACEC). To be designated as an RNA/ACEC, an area must meet the criteria used by all federal agencies.
ACECs can be recommended for consideration both internally and externally. To be considered as a “potential ACEC,” an area must meet the criteria of “relevance” and “importance” as established in Bureau policy. An area meets the “relevance” criterion if it contains one or more of the following:
1) significant historic, cultural, or scenic value; 2) a fish and wildlife resource; 3) a natural process or
system (including but not limited to endangered, sensitive, or threatened plant species or rare, endemic, or relict plants or plant communities); or 4) natural hazards. The “importance” criterion assures that the area has substantial significance and value (i.e.
“more than locally significant qualities”).
On lands administered by the Boise District of the BLM, there are currently 18 areas with special designations, primarily for their botanical resources. Seventeen potential ACECs were recommended in the 1996 preferred alternative to the draft Owyhee RMP. Most of these were nominated because of their unique botanical values, such as sensitive plants or relict plant communities. This RMP encompasses 1.7 million acres, 1.3 million of which are public. The draft RMP is presently undergoing revision, and a new preferred alternative is being developed. The final RMP is scheduled for publication in June 1999.
Unfortunately, designation is only the first step. On-the-ground management and implementation of special management needs often fall short, as there is generally a lack of specific funding for the protection phase. Because there is no single budget account or line item for managing and protecting ACECs, all implementation funds must come from “the benefiting activity,” which in the case of botanical resources means the wildlife or the threatened and endangered species program. Maintaining protection requires constant vigilance. It usually cannot be done by over-extended agency botanists alone. If you are interested in helping protect an ACEC or RNA, please don’t hesitate to call the friendly agency botanist nearest you!
Habitat Protection at Craig Mountain
In 1992 the Bonneville Power Administration acquired 59,991 acres on Craig Mountain. They transferred that land to the Idaho Department of Fish and Game in 1995. The purpose of the transaction was to mitigate for the loss of wildlife habitat, particularly big game winter range, due the construction of Dworshak Dam in 1971. This land combined with land previously owned by Idaho Department of Fish and Game became the 76,679- acre Craig Mountain Wildlife Management Area.
Initial wildlife and plant inventories were conducted in 1993 and 1994. The wildlife inventory was directed by Frances Cassirer of Idaho Department
Jay Shepherd, White Pine Chapter
of Fish and Game (IDFG). The plant inventory was conducted by Michael Mancuso and Bob Moseley of the Idaho Conservation Data Center. Protection is primarily directed at elk, white-tailed deer, and mule deer habitat, but native plants also benefit from habitat conservation. The Craig Mountain Wildlife Management Area plan stipulates a desired future condition which includes “an extensive area characterized by native vegetation maintained in good to excellent stand conditions,” “unbroken riparian corridors,” and that “soil erosion will be minimized through minimization of soil disturbance, control or elimination of noxious weeds, and
Summer 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (3)
Craig Mountain: intricate topographic patterns and countless draws and ridges create a range of habitat niches, including benches, scablands, grasslands, brush patches, riparian zones, rock outcrops, and forests. Many rare plants and unique plant communities survive here. Photo by Karen Gray.
restoration of biologically diverse plant communities.” Plant communities are being protected and restored, which benefits native plants at the community and species levels.
One of the primary tools is the control of noxious weeds. This includes using herbicide, hand pulling, and closing secondary roads to motorized traffic.
Noxious weeds are mapped using a Global Positioning System (GPS) for future use in the development of a Geographical Information System (GIS) database.
This will allow managers to know the locations of infestations and to assess their progress in noxious weed control.
Although there is a problem with trespass cattle, grazing is no longer allowed on the wildlife management area. This will reduce the spread of noxious weeds, improve riparian area quality, and benefit native plants directly by the removal of a non- native herbivore.
Sub-alpine meadows are also being protected by the imposition of stiff fines to off-road vehicle operators. Driving in the meadows while they are still
wet in the spring and early summer is known as ‘mud-bogging’ in the local vernacular.
The Wapshilla Ridge road is fairly rough but the ridges of native bunch grasses and forbs; views of the Seven Devils, Gospel Hump, and Eagle Cap areas; and wildlife viewing make the Craig Mountain Wildlife Management Area (approximately one hour south of Lewiston), a worthwhile outing.
A Conservation Partnership at Birch Creek: How to Protect a Remote Wetland in the Mountains of Idaho Cindy Lunte, Idaho Chapter, The Nature Conservancy
For those of you who haven’t had the chance to explore Birch Creek Springs, it is a hidden gem tucked between the Lemhi Mountains to the west and the Beaverhead Mountains to the east. The only way to appreciate its beauty and significance is by exploring it up close. Driving by on Highway 28, you might not even notice the flash of crystal clear water from the many channels that coalesce here.
But Birch Creek Springs has been appreciated by botanists and ecologists for many years. An unusual flower, a primrose with a white corolla, was discovered here by none other than C. Leo Hitchcock around 1970. Doug Henderson and Anita Cholewa researched the plant and determined that it was a new
species, the alkali primrose, Primula alkalina. In the 1980s, the Conservation Data Center listed the Birch Creek area as a high priority on a scorecard of potential conservation sites in Idaho. Most of the site was owned by one family and used to graze either sheep or cattle.
The scorecard list is used by The Nature Conservancy (TNC) to help us decide where we should be concentrating our efforts, especially when considering rare plants. After we found out about Birch Creek Springs, we contacted the landowners, the Kauer family, and told them about the wonderful uniqueness of their property. We let them know that we were interested in protecting the property and
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asked them to contact us if they wanted to work with us. Several years passed. Bob Moseley got permission to study the primrose populations on the property and set up an extensive monitoring project. Then one day we got a phone call from the Kauers. They had been talking to the BLM and they were thinking about consolidating their lands along the Lemhi River. They knew the BLM thought their Birch Creek property was important, but they weren’t looking forward to doing a complicated exchange with the federal government. Would the Conservancy like to get involved and purchase their property? Our answer was yes!
As it turned out, purchasing the property was the easy part. Determining how to protect it for the long term was the hard part. As you might know, TNC is a private organization whose mission is to protect the diversity of plants and animals found on earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive. Every state has its own TNC program, and each state raises its own funds and pays for its own projects.
TNC is well known for simply buying ecologically important land, but sometimes this can be difficult to accomplish. Birch Creek was one of those tough places to work — very important ecologically, but with no constituency to support it. How could we pay for the 1,160 acres? The answer came from the very positive and efficient staff who work for the BLM on the Lemhi District. They had identified more than 50 separate BLM parcels which they would be willing to exchange or sell to help purchase Birch Creek. Most of these parcels were small and isolated; many had
been used for years by neighboring private landowners for farming or other activities. After evaluating the parcels to insure that they did not have important ecological or historical values, the BLM could trade them to us for a portion of the Birch Creek property of equal value, and we could in turn sell these parcels to the neighboring landowners to recoup our purchase price. In this way a large, very ecologically important piece of land could be traded for many small, less important and difficult-to- manage pieces.
Now, after three years, we’ve finally completed the complicated exchange process. TNC has retained ownership of a key portion of the property, and we are working very closely with the BLM to cooperatively manage the site. We’ve fixed and added fences, picked up trash, put up new boundary signs, and set up extensive photo-monitoring.
The property is already showing signs of improvement. Willows are popping up along the streams, and the aquatic plants are responding vigorously. On my last visit, I flushed out a great homed owl and a black-crowned night heron. Birch Creek Springs is well on its way to becoming a wonderful ecological haven for our native plants and animals. But there’s still more to be done. We’d love to have help to design and maintain educational information at the kiosk and to keep an eye on the property. Anyone interested in helping “adopt” Birch Creek Springs? If you are, please call me at (208) 554-4607. Thanks!
Plant Protection by Volunteers
Ingrid Erickson, Landmark Volunteer
Landmark Volunteers is a nonprofit summer service organization that places selected high school students at various sites across the country, where they contribute work needed to further the mission of host organizations. For two weeks in June, twelve landmark volunteers worked at the Garden Creek Ranch south of Lewiston, a 14,000 acre preserve owned and managed by the Bureau of Land Management and The Nature Conservancy. Under the direction of Nature Conservancy Stewardship Ecologist Janice Hill, the team removed alien plant species and collected and cleaned native grass seed for future re-introduction projects.
The volunteers hand-pulled yellow star-thistle from a population of Idaho hawksbeard in an attempt to protect and foster the growth of the hawksbeard and the native bluebunch wheatgrass community it grew in. They carefully hand-pulled yellow star- thistle and common crupina from a rare buckwheat-
Landmark volunteers clean bluebunch wheatgrass seed after spending a hot morning collecting seed heads. Photo by Karen Gray.
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Oregon bladderpod plant community nearby, and packed the weeds out to be burned.
Despite an unexpected delay in seed maturation, 36 pounds of rough-cleaned bluebunch wheatgrass seed were collected by the volunteers. The biologists hope to end up with at least 8-10 pounds of clean.
viable seed. It will be sent to a grower in Washington state; he will grow the seed in an irrigated field and, with luck, increase the seed to several hundred pounds by summer, 1999. The resulting seed will be used for restoration near the collection site at the Garden Creek Ranch.
Land Trusts Work with Landowners to Protect Native Plant Habitats in Idaho Penelope Morgan, Associate Professor, Department of Forest Resources, University of Idaho
In the Palouse, Treasure Valley, Teton Valley, Sun Valley, and elsewhere in Idaho, land trusts are working with individual landowners to protect unique habitats for plants and animals, to conserve open space in agricultural and forested lands, and to protect scenic values. For instance, the Palouse Land Trust (PLT) has been actively involved in a project to identify remnant pieces of Palouse Grassland and Canyon Grassland vegetation and then to encourage individual landowners to protect them. (Many of the remaining examples of native bunchgrass communities — such as the Idaho fescue/common snowberry,
Festuca idahoensis/Symphoricarpos albus, community — and populations of associated endemic plants such as Jessica’s aster, Aster jessicae , and Palouse goldenweed, Haplopappus liatriformis — occur on private lands.) The PLT has also worked with local and state governments to identify areas with high priority for conservation and restoration.
As tax-exempt, non-profit organizations, land trusts can accept donations of conservation easements. Conservation easements are widely used by landowners to plan the future for their land and their families. In this way, conservation easements can help landowners and their families to protect what is special about their land, pass land from one generation to the next with reduced inheritance taxes, gain significant income and estate tax advantages, and control future development and uses of their land. Thus, conservation easements are one of the ways individual landowners and other organizations can protect and conserve special habitats for plants and animals, open space, and favorite views.
A conservation easement is a voluntary, legal agreement between a landowner and a land trust that permanently restricts uses of land. Because they are very flexible, conservation easements can allow continued agricultural or forest production or limited development. Like road easements, conservation easements are permanently attached to deeds, so that land use is restricted now and in the future. The landowners continue to own and use their land. Thus, landowners can sell their land or pass it on to their heirs. Regardless, land trusts ensure that the conservation values are protected as specified in the conservation easement.
There are more than 1,100 land trusts in the United States that jointly protect more than four million acres in the United States. The National Land Trust Alliance provides expertise to local land trusts, thus complementing and supporting local efforts to protect plants in Idaho. Call your local land trust office or look at the National Land Trust Alliance web site (http://www.lta.org) for information on conservation easements, the phone number for your local land trust, or sources of grant money for protecting plant habitats in Idaho.
Palouse goldenweed Haplopappus liatriformis
Idaho National Guard Rare Plant Program Dana Quinney, Idaho Army National Guard
Environmental Awareness Office
The Idaho Army National Guard Rare Plant Program began in 1991, when Guard biologists discovered two rare plants in the Orchard Training area: slick-spot peppergrass ( Lepidium papilliferum ) and Davis’ peppergrass (Lepidium davisii). The rare woven-spore lichen ( Texosporium sancti-jacobi ) was discovered in the area in 1994. The population centers of these rare species on the training area have been protected from
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the impacts of military training since 1991, and a policy for protecting rare plants on Idaho Army National Guard training lands was developed by Dr. Susan Meyer, Marjorie McHenry, Dana Quinney, Scott Quinney, and Jay Weaver.
It isn’t possible for the soldiers to watch out for rare plants and do their training at the same time (especially because during the major training events of the year, the plants are dried and dormant), so rare plant population centers have been placed off limits to all military training. These “no-go” areas are marked with large “off limits” signs on the soldiers’ planning maps and on the sites. The Guard’s firefighters also receive these maps, with the rare plant areas marked as high priorities to be defended from range fires.
Before each training event, soldiers must have an environmental briefing of “do’s and don’ts.” Some soldiers receive several environmental briefings each year. Videos and slides of the rare plants and their habitat
are shown in the briefings, and a member of the natural resources staff is there to field questions.
We do our own videos, posters, slide shows, and other materials for educating the soldiers about the rare plants. We try to approach this from the viewpoint of “These are YOUR rare plants. They are a beautiful and unique part of the training area. The duty of soldiers is to protect, and it is your job to protect these plants and their habitat for future generations. We know you can do it.”
We have been doing research on Lepidium papilliferum since 1991, and we tell the soldiers what we are finding and why it’s significant. Our goal is to engender pride and a sense of ownership. It took about five years for the program to “take hold” with the soldiers, but it seems to be working well.
Plant Protection Gone Awry Karen Gray, White Pine Chapter
A weevil introduced as biological control for musk thistle and other thistles in the genus Carduus has been found depositing eggs in the heads of the native Palouse thistle ( Cirsium brevifolium). Palouse thistle is endemic to the Palouse Grasslands in northeast Oregon, southeast Washington, and adjacent Idaho.
Frank Merickel, manager of the Entomological Museum at the University of Idaho, identified the weevil as Rhinocyllus conicus. It has been reported infesting six native thistles since its release in Canada in 1968 (Louda et al. 1997). We found it on Palouse thistle at the Garden Creek Ranch while conducting plant surveys in 1998.
Although the weevil has been documented infesting wavy-leaved thistle ( Cirsium undulatum) in Colorado and Wyoming, we haven’t yet found it on wavy-leaved thistle flowerheads at Garden Creek Ranch. Palouse thistle was considered for federal listing in the 1981 Red Book, but was rejected. Our surveys at Garden Creek have found it to be scattered and uncommon, although there may be other prairie sites where it is more common. Nearly every plant we checked appeared to be infested by R. conicus larvae. The effect on seed production is likely to be
devastating. Eradication of the introduced weevil is probably unlikely. Other Palouse endemics are on shaky ground at this time, many of them plowed up and replaced by winter wheat, some on steeper ground decimated by cows or weeds. In the case of Palouse thistle, the good intentions of introducing a biological control weevil may lead to the unintended demise of a native species.
Restrictions on importing biological control agents are much more stringent now than in the sixties. It is unlikely that Rhinocyllus conicus would be allowed entry under today’s standards.
Further Reading
Louda, S. M., D. Kendall, J. Connor, D. Simberloff. 1997. Ecological effects of an insect introduced for the biological control of weeds. Science 277:1088-1090.
Rare and Endangered Plants Technical Committee of the Idaho Natural Areas Council. 1981. Vascular plant species of concern in Idaho. Bull. No. 34, Univ. of Idaho Forest, Wildlife and Range Experiment Station. Moscow.
Strong, D. R. 1997. Fear no weevil? Science 277:1058-1059.
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Gap Analysis and Idaho Natural Areas
USGS/BRD Gap Analysis Program
The IJSGS Gap Analysis Program (GAP) began in the late 1980s as a research experiment. It is now a national federal program active or organizing in every state and includes an active cross-border project in the lower Rio Grande watershed. The concept is also spreading around the globe. The national GAP office is based in Moscow, ID, where the concept originated with J. Michael Scott at the University of Idaho Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit. Mike Jennings is the current director.
GAP’s mission includes five goals:
1. Map the distribution of the natural communities of each state including both terrestrial land cover and aquatic habitats. While aquatic mapping is still in the pilot phase in a few states, land cover mapping is complete in the west and well underway elsewhere. Land cover is mapped using Thematic Mapper satellite imagery and other data such as topography to map the National Vegetation Classification System Alliances (see http://www.nbs.gov/fgdc.veg/). We also have a research project in Wyoming attempting to model individual plant species distributions.
2. Map the predicted distribution of native animal species. Our historic focus has been on terrestrial vertebrates, with the very long term goal of mapping all species to get a complete picture of biodiversity. The maps are produced through modeling in a geographic information system (GIS) by associating known species associations with physical mapped characteristics of the land such as land cover, topography, and soils. Pilot projects are also mapping some insects and aquatic species.
3. Map the management of the land according to categories of management authority/ownership and
Patrick Crist, National Program Coordinator,
level of intent to maintain biodiversity. While we do not map individual private land parcels, our goal has been to identify all lands that have a legally and/or institutionally backed commitment to conservation. Each public land management unit and voluntary private conservation tract is assigned a status level from 1 (highest level of protection) to 4 (no known protection).
4. Analyze the distribution of plant communities and animal species for “gaps” in their long term conservation. This is accomplished by overlaying the natural element maps with the management map described above. The result is a set of tables for each plant community and animal species that report the area and percent of its distribution under each land steward and level of biodiversity management.
5. Distribute the data and provide extension to aid user groups in incorporating the information into their routine decision making processes. GAP data and reports will be provided via free CD-ROMs, and we are currently developing desktop decision support systems to help user groups like the Fish and Wildlife Service and county land use planners use the data.
Idaho was the first pilot state completed, and an update is scheduled for completion early next year. The original data was produced for research purposes, so it is not distributed to the public; however the update will be. For more information about ID-GAP or any aspect of GAP, see our home page at <http://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gap>. Our handbook of methods, instructions for obtaining data, and contacts is available there.
The Mysteries of the North: Another Excellent INPS Annua! State Field Trip Sarah Walker, White Pine Chapter
We saw many new and fascinating things at Kaniksu Marsh Research Natural Area (RNA) and Hanna Flats Old Growth Cedar Grove, thanks to Forest Service botanists Mark Mousseaux, Diane Penny, and Betsy Hammett. A high point was experiencing the “floating mat”: a 3 -foot-thick mossy layer of peat that floats in the shallow waters of Kaniksu Marsh near Priest Lake. The “mat” moves unnervingly as you walk around on it. You had to be still for Betsy to take photos with her macro lens. We couldn’t all stand on the edge at the same time! No one fell in, although Joyce Pence (Kinnikinnick
Chapter) found lying down on the damp mat a good way to cool off (remember the July heat wave?).
The Kaniksu Marsh RNA was established in 1981, is about 200 acres in size, and lies at 2,500 feet elevation. It is managed by the Priest Lake Ranger District of the Idaho Panhandle National Forest. The present boundary does not provide much of a buffer between the wetlands and the adjacent upland forest of cedar, hemlock, and spruce. Specialists have recommended that a more effective boundary would be the topographic “break” or surrounding
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Summer 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (3)
ridgetop, because logging the forest would alter the wetlands.
As we explored Kaniksu Marsh, we found ourselves using more of our senses than in a forest or desert: we sank hot tired feet into cool spongy bog, wobbled across a floating mat, and kept our eyes peeled for deep potholes concealed in the thick sphagnum and sedges. We saw many insect-eating sundews (both Drosera rotundifolia and D. anglica), a white sedge-like plant called beakrush ( Rhynchospora alba), a grass-like plant with distinctive green pods, (pod grass, Scheuchzeria palustris ), a lovely tiny vining cranberry ( Vaccinium oxycoccos), and an aquatic plant called water-shield with floating waterlily-like leaves whose stems are encased in thick clear jelly ( Brasenia schreberi).
Mark explained that this was a very old plant community type. Cores drilled into the 3-foot-thick peat mat have revealed layers that are thousands of years old. We wondered what sort of life forms swam around in the dark waters below the mat...
On Sunday we switched gears and disappeared into the cool dark Hanna Flats Cedar Grove. Mark led us off the graveled path into the forest to show us more rare plants: northern beech fern ( Phegopteris connectilis ), two tiny moonworts ( Botrychium minganense and B. lanceolatum ) which were hard to avoid with our big feet, and two small blackberries: dwarf red blackberry ( Rubus pubescens ) and five-leaved bramble ( Rubus pedatus).
Hanna Rats is a small relict cedar grove that somehow did not bum during the past 4-500 years. Grizzly bears visit the area in the spring from the north. Most of the rare plants here are at the southern edge of their range. We saw a roped-off Botrychium plot where herbivory is being studied. Our group recorded all species we saw and contributed the resulting list to the Priest Lake Ranger District.
We all loved staying at the remote Priest Lake Experiment Station with its shady aspens, porches, and old-fashioned buildings. Many thanks to Dennis Ferguson of White Pine Chapter for organizing this
Annual INPS State Field Trip — aboard the floating mat, Kaniksu Marsh RNA. Photo by Sarah Walker.
trip for us, and to the excellent Forest Service botanists who answered ALL of our questions and tried hard to show us every comer of these exceptional areas. (We’ll find that crested shield fern next time, Mark!).
We shared tips on favorite guidebooks and references. Some titles noted by this group were:
Willows of Montana by Don Heinze, BLM Technical Bulletin #2, April 1994 (available from BLM Montana Office, PO Box 36800, Billings, MT 59107).
Wetland Plants of Oregon and Washington by Jennifer Guard (available from Lonepine Publishing, (800) 661-9017).
The Legal Framework for Protecting Plants in Idaho Mark Mousseaux, Calypso Chapter
Idaho has no state laws that attempt to maintain viable populations of plant species other than those species listed as threatened or endangered under the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA), and seemingly the only reason the state protects federally listed species is because such protection is required by the ESA. The Endangered Species Act, however, treats plants and animals differently. A vertebrate species can be listed as threatened or endangered within a portion of its range (i.e., grizzlies in Idaho and Montana vs. Alaska), but plants have to be in trouble across their entire range before they can be listed. That does not make sense biologically or strategically, because it means plants don’t receive federal protection until they are virtually on the brink of extinction!
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Summer 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (3)
The only state regulations protecting rare plants on state or private lands are in the Idaho Forest Practices Act, which requires that trees be left for stream protection zones within 75 feet on each side of (or a 150-foot- wide strip along) the high water mark for class I streams or 30 feet on each side (60 feet total) for class II streams. (Class I streams are relatively large streams; they are used by fish for spawning, rearing or migration and for domestic water supply. Class II are minor, headwater streams with few or no fish.) Timber can be harvested to within 5 feet of a stream if it is “determined” that there is no surface flow into class I streams, and that the stream doesn’t provide soil stabilization or water filtering effects. Obligate riparian plants (plants that occur only along streams or rivers) are afforded some protection under this state law, but their presence is not often validated. Federal regulations do afford protection of many obligate wetland species; however, these are often inadequate. For instance, sphagnum-dominated (low pH) poor fens are very sensitive to any changes in nutrients; they need extra large buffers, depending on soil type, landform, adjacent slope, etc., but federal guidelines for wetland protection do not consider these factors.
Hanna Flats Old Growth Cedar Grove
Priest Lake Ranger District
Species list, Idaho Native Plant Society field trip July 26, 1998
Actaea rubra Baneberry
Adenocaulon bicolor Trail-plant
Alectoria sp. Goat’s Beard lichen
Alnus incana Mountain alder
Aralia nudicaulis Wild sarsaparilla
Asarum caudatum Wild ginger
Athyrium filix-femina Lady-fern
Botrychium lanceolatum Lance-leaved grape-fern
Botrychium minganense Mingan moonwort
Botrychium virginianum Virginia grape-fern
Bromus vulgaris Columbia brome
Bryoria sp. Brown beard lichen
Carex deweyana Dewey’s sedge
Cinna latifolia Drooping woodreed
Circaea alpina Enchanter’s nightshade
Cladonia sp. Cladonia
Clintonia uniflora Queen’s cup beadlily
Coptis occidentalis Western goldthread
Comus canadensis Bunchberry dogwood
Disporum hookeri Hooker fairy-bell
Dryopteris expansa Northern wood fern
Galium triflorum Sweetscented bedstraw
Geum macrophyllum Large-leaved geum
Goodyera oblongifolia Rattlesnake-plantain
Gymnocarpium dryopteris Oak-fem
Habenaria hyperborea Northern green bog-orchid
Lactuca muralis Wall lettuce
Unnaea borealis Western twinflower
Lobaria pulmonaria Lungwort
Lycopodium selago Fir clubmoss
Mentha arvensis Field mint
Oplopanax horridum Devil’s club
Osmorhiza purpurea Purple sweet-cicely
Phegopteris connectilis Northern beech fern
Picea engelmannii Engelmann spruce
Pinus monticola Western white pine
Plagiomnium sp. Badge moss
Platismatia glauca Rag lichen
Polytrichum juniperinum Hair cap moss
Prunella vulgaris Self-heal
Ranunculus macounii Macoun’s buttercup
Ranunculus uncinatus Little buttercup
Rhamnus alnifolia Alder buckthorn
Rosa gymnocarpa Baldhip rose
Rubus parviflorus Thimbleberry
Rubus pedatus Five-leaved or strawberry bramble
Rubus pubescens Dwarf red blackberry
Smilacina stellata Starry Solomon’s seal
Streptopus amplexifolius Clasping-leaved twisted-stalk
Thuja plicata Western red cedar
Tiarella trifoliata var. unifoliata Foamflower
Tsuga heterophylla Western hemlock
Urtica dioica Stinging nettle
Vaccinium ovalifolium Oval-leaf huckleberry
Viola glabella Pioneer violet
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Summer 1998 ♦> SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (3)
Spring Wildflowers on the Palouse Phil Druker, White Pine Chapter
On May 28 Juanita Lichthardt led a group of 25 wildflower enthusiasts to Paradise Ridge, a granitic outcrop overlooking the loess hills of the Palouse and the mountains of north central Idaho. Harboring one of the few remaining vestiges of the original Palouse prairie, the ridge makes a great spot for viewing wildflowers, both common and rare.
Juanita picked a perfect day for the trip as we had been having a rainy spring. So despite threatening weather, we enjoyed a rainless morning and early afternoon of identifying over 30 plants. Some highlights included yellow paintbrush ( Castilleja lutescens) and red paintbrush, blue gentian (Frasera albicaulis ), blue iris ( Iris missouriensis), taper-leaved penstemon ( Penstemon attenuatus), Oregon sunshine ( Eriophyllum lanatum ), little-sunflower ( Helianthella uniflora ), various lupines, especially spurred lupine ( Lupinus laxiflorus), and prairie smoke ( Geum triflorum).
Bertie Weddell helped identify belly-scratcher plants (plants so small you need to get down on your belly to identify them) like Microsteris gracilis , and Sarah Walker helped identify some grasses and sedges such as Idaho fescue ( Festuca idahoensis ), bluebunch wheatgrass ( Agropyron spicatum ), and elk sedge ( Carex geyeri).
Mima mounds, an unusual geologic feature, emerge on the west side of the ridge. Cheat grass covered these gravely mounds, which were 4-6 feet in diameter and about 2 feet tall.
As the rare native plants on Paradise Ridge bloom in August, many of us promised to return then to view Palouse goldenweed ( Haplopappus liatriformis) and the more common large-flowered goldenweed ( Haplopappus carthamoides).
To INPS Members Kristin Fletcher, outgoing INPS President
With a mixed sense of satisfaction and regret, I write this final correspondence to you as president of INPS. My first term of office three years ago brought to a close a very trying period in INPS history: for the previous two years, INPS had operated with neither a president nor a vice- president. The organization as a whole survived, but barely. Of course. Sage Notes suffered, too, and one year only a single issue appeared.
Over the past three years, however, with the combined efforts of a full complement of elected state officers as well as representatives from our six chapters, the organization has stabilized and flourished. The Board of Directors now meets regularly to discuss important issues and the Annual Meeting occurs each year in accordance with our bylaws, hosted alternately by the northern and southern chapters.
Sage Notes, too, has been nurtured back into health by editor Sarah Walker and her associates and appears without fail in our mailboxes four times a year, brimming with interesting articles and lovely illustrations. All our chapters are alive and well, and this year we welcomed the energetic Kinnikinnick Chapter into our fold. The annual Idaho Rare Plant Conference, which INPS sponsors, continues to present our most professional face to the public eye. We can all be proud of these accomplishments.
I feel regret as I step back from a leading role in an organization I care about deeply, that the office of president remains vacant. As was announced in Sage Notes , the Nominations Committee tried unsuccessfully to find someone to run for INPS state president. The overwhelming response received from the 10-12 people contacted was “I’d really like to be considered for this position again, but the timing’s just not right for me now.” So, INPS has had no president since July, when new terms began.
This is an important, but not alarming, vacancy. As directed by our bylaws, Mark Mousseaux, INPS Vice-President, will stand in while the board continues its search. “Being president” may sound daunting to some... It was to me the first time I was asked to run for office (and I declined). But, truthfully, if you can chair a meeting, follow through reasonably well with commitments, and strive to empower others to act and speak — you have all the makings of a wonderful president. Consider the possibility and feel free to talk to me or any other board member about what’s involved.
To everyone — thank you so very much for your support during my three terms as president of this fine organization. It has been a real privilege (and fun, too!).
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Summer 1998 ♦> SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (3)
INPS Treasurer’s Report for 1997 Submitted by Janice Hill, outgoing INPS Treasurer
Income
Membership dues $2,714.00
Donations.. 3.00
Sales (T-shirts, mugs, books)........... 559.84
Workshops & Conferences 1944.78
Total Income $5,221.62
Expenses
Newsletter $1,855.89
Dues reimbursement to chapters 579.50
Miscellaneous (phone, postage, etc.) 479.87
Workshops & Conferences 1578.62
Total Expenses $4,493.88
INPS Board Meeting Minutes Leonard Lake, INPS Secretary
The Board of Directors met through a conference call on June 28. Attending: Kristin Fletcher,
President; Mark Mousseaux, Vice-President INPS /President Calypso Chapter; Leonard Lake, Secretary; Janice Hill, Treasurer; Gretchen Hellar, President Kinnikinnick Chapter; Kay Beall, Vice-President Pahove Chapter; Jo Ann Robbins, Secretary- Treasurer Wood River Chapter; Juanita Lichthardt, Conservation Chair; Sarah Walker, Newsletter Editor.
The board adopted the following policies:
• Mailing Lists: INPS will not give out or sell the mailing list of members belonging to the state society. It is left to chapter discretion whether they will distribute membership lists of chapter members.
• Conservation: The conservation chair will consult with both the president and vice-president before making a written statement, joining other groups in making statements, or advocating INPS policy or position concerning conservation issues. If the president, vice-president and conservation chair can’t reach consensus or the issue is viewed as highly controversial, the written statement will be reviewed by the Board of Directors. To maintain a record of INPS positions on conservation issues, signed letters or written statements will be forwarded to the secretary.
Other business discussed:
• At the Rare Plant conference the membership voted that INPS through the board complete the candidate application form with supporting documentation for Lepidium papilliferum and send the package to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The conservation chair (Juanita Lichthardt) will contact Roger Rosentreter and Michael Mancuso to discuss the candidate application and the availability of supporting data. INPS will work towards developing a listing package for Lepidium papilliferum.
• The nominations committee and Kristin Fletcher have tried unsuccessfully to find someone to run for INPS President. A dozen people were contacted, but no one felt they had the time to be president. As of the Annual Meeting in July, INPS will be without a president. The vice-president will preside in the absence of the president and shall perform the duties of the office. If an interested individual is found after the annual meeting the by-laws allow the Board of Directors to fill the vacancy by a majority vote. The individual selected to fill the vacancy shall hold office only until his or her successor is duly elected.
• The next board meeting was scheduled for the annual meeting at the Priest River Experimental Forest.
Chapter News
Calypso Chapter
The May Tubb’s Hill flower walk was a tremendous success: 40 people attended (mostly non-members).
In June, the chapter helped the Forest Service compile a species list for the Settlers Cedar Grove. A Coeur d’Alene bookstore, Browser’s Books, posts field trip lists and copies of the chapter’s newsletter, Calypso Companion. Work on the learning trunks continues; in May, LeAnn Eno and Mark Mousseaux showed members how to mount botanical specimens using special glue and paper, and how to make and attach labels. The group mounted a collection from Marie Creek for the learning trunk. The chapter has two new officers: Phil Hruskocy, Secretary; and Janet Benoit, Treasurer.
The first monthly meeting after the summer recess will be September 17 at 7:00 PM at Coeur d’Alene at Tidymans grocery store (upstairs).
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Summer 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (3)
Kinnikinnick Chapter
September 9: Field trip to Priest Lake. Meet at Bonner Mall at 10:00 AM to car pool. Contact is Joyce Pence, (208) 266-1107.
October 10: Field trip to Delyle Ridge. Contact is Joyce Pence, (208) 266-1107.
Sah-Wah-Be Chapter
Sah-Wah-Be Chapter enjoyed a rain-soaked June 6 trip to The Nature Conservancy’s Birch Creek Springs, home to sensitive species adapted to having wet feet (alkali primrose. Primula alkalina\ Kelsey’s phlox. Phlox kelseyi ; hoary willow, Salix Candida ; false mountain willow, Salix pseudomonticola; park milk-vetch. Astragalus leptaleus\ meadow milkvetch. Astragalus diver sifolius’, marsh felwort, Lomatogonium rotatum\ and swamp willow-herb, Epilobium palustre.)
With no one guiding us, we did find the primrose and phlox. Both were easy to locate because the colors stood out even on a gray morning. Sunlight brightened and warmed us as we continued up into Skull Canyon for the afternoon, and by evening, we were READY for that pizza we had waiting in Mackey.
Seven Sah-Wah-Be chapter members enjoyed a morning’s warm ramble at Harriman State Park on July 18. This took the place of the trip to Jenny Lake in Grand Teton National Park that we’d been looking forward to, but canceled because of bear activity in that area. It would be hard to say we found a particular favorite among the plants, but we did pay attention to numbers. The plant list we picked up at the visitor headquarters listed some of the most obvious species, but requested reports of others. We checked off all but 20 of those listed, and supplied 42 additions!
The youngest in the group went off to mountain-bike, and the rest drove up Sawtelle Peak to try to find some cool air (no luck), but found horseflies instead! We did briefly enjoy the caespitose alpines and compact crevice-nestlers braving the sun and wind, as well as a radio-controlled model glider showing off in the ridge thermals.
Dwindled even further, the remainder of the group camped in the cutover forest north of Mesa Falls, revelling in a quiet, hot sunset.
On August 16 Sah-Wah-Be had one DANDY of an opportunity, a visit to Mt. Putnam, long “off-limits” to any but Shoshone-Bannock tribal members, where we tried to learn if our member Jim Glennon missed anything on his forays here for his Master’s thesis work a few years ago.
White Pine Chapter
September 26: Tour University of Idaho Forest Research Nursery with Sue Morrison. After the tour, join the chapter’s annual meeting/lunch in the arboretum (or greenhouse if rainy). Bring a potluck item to share. Meet at the Nursery, just east of Moscow on the Troy Highway, at 10:30 AM. Contacts are Roger Blanchard, (208) 883-1804, or Bertie Weddell, (509) 334-0737.
News and Notes
An uncertain future for rare orchids in Floodwood
Creek — a population of the rare orchid Cypripedium fasciculatum (clustered lady’s-slipper), which the Forest Service (FS) has designated a sensitive species, grows in a 23-acre relic stand of old growth western red cedar on land that the FS proposes to trade to the Idaho State Land Board. Under the proposed land trade, the FS would swap 2,270 acres of federal timberland in the Panhandle National Forest for 1,880 acres of state-owned grizzly bear habitat near Sandpoint. The FS would benefit by acquiring land for grizzly bear recovery. The State Land Board, on the other hand, which manages state lands to generate revenue for the state school endowment, would like to trade the inaccessible grizzly habitat for properties
that could more easily be managed to generate timber harvest revenue. As this issue goes to press, the Idaho State Land Board is considering whether or not to sign a proposed “Memorandum of Understanding” with the FS that would insure protection of the orchid: the state could not cut the stand (which comprises about 1% of the land it would receive in the trade); and the FS or the Idaho Conservation Data Center would monitor the population periodically. At a meeting on August 11, Governor Phil Batt stated that he didn’t see any problem with the proposed arrangement. Nevertheless, Superintendent of Schools Anne Fox asked “If you have a plant that’s sensitive, why don’t you grow it in a greenhouse?”
{Spokesman Review 8/12/98), and argued that
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Summer 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ♦> A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (3)
“someone could come in there some night and shoot every orchid they found with weed killer, and the problem would go away” and that “we could conceivably not use the 23 acres until the plant disappears, and then we could log it.”
Note: Clustered lady’s-slipper is thought to be a fairly long-lived species. Barring any catastrophic event an orchid population can be expected to persist for hundreds of years. For more information on this plant contact Steve Shelly, USFS Regional Botanist, Missoula, (406) 329-3041 and ask for a copy of Jack Greenlee’s conservation assessment for the clustered lady’s-slipper. Citizens can contact the Idaho State Land Board, 954 W. Jefferson St., PO Box 83720, Boise, ID, 83720-0050, (208) 334-0200.
Botanical posters. The Good Nature Publishing Company is offering a two-for-one discount on the following posters and prints: Northwest Native Conifers (32 trees in color pencil), Northwest Broad- leaved Trees (color pencil rendering of 32 trees). Northwest Woodland Wildflowers (beautiful water color of 34 native wildflowers), Native Oaks of California, Subtropical Trees of California (a lovely color pencil rendering). Garden Herbs, and our new map, Pacific Northwest Watersheds (covers the original distribution of the coastal temperate rainforest. This beautifully rendered map shows the primary and secondary rivers, major cities, sans roads, with political boundaries receded to show the boundaries of nature). Order from Good Nature Publishing Company, 1904 Third Avenue, #415, Seattle, WA 98101. Phone (800) 631-3086 or email <gnpc@earthlink.net>. You can preview these prints online at <http://www.goodnaturepublishing.com/>.
Threatened plant survives herbicide. According to an article in the Lewiston Tribune (July 30), most of the MacFarlane’s four-o’ clocks ( Mirabilis macfarlanei) that were accidentally sprayed in the Salmon River Canyon last year have lived. The BLM, who monitors this population, attributes the survival to the plant’s very large taproots. Herbicides were applied by Idaho County to nearby patches of the noxious weeds yellow star-thistle and Dalmatian toadflax. Usually, weeds in the area are hand-pulled or individually sprayed, because of the presence of the four-o’clocks, (the first plant in Idaho to be listed under the Endangered Species Act). The incident was viewed as an accident and no punitive measures were taken against the county.
Note: MacFarlane’s four-o’clock was listed as federally endangered in the 1970s, and then downlisted to threatened in 1996 when more populations were found. BLM botanist Mark Lowry has kept us up to date on this plant at the Rare Plant Conference, and has described the invasion of the Salmon River canyon grasslands by yellow star- thistle. The BLM has built exclosures and
transplanted seedlings. Last year, Valerie Geertson, Idaho Power Company botanist, reported an unusual caterpillar preying on a large population near the Oregon side of Pittsburgh Landing in Hells Canyon.
Conservation and Management of Native Plants and Fungi — Proceedings of an Oregon Conference. Edited by: Thomas N. Kaye, Aaron Liston, Rhoda M. Love, Daniel L. Luoma, Robert J. Meinke, and Mark V. Wilson, with a foreword by Reed F. Noss. Forty papers by professional land managers, conservationists, and academic scientists from a 1995 symposium at Oregon State University on conservation, restoration, ecology, and systematics of native plants, bryophytes, lichens, and fungi. Some topics: restoration, rareness, weed control, rare plants and butterflies, forest understory plants, the Oregon Flora Project, the role of Native Plant Societies. 296 pages; 113 illustrations. Price: $20 plus $5 shipping and handling ($2.50 shipping for each additional copy). Soft cover only. ISBN 0-9656852-0-9. To order, send check or money order to: NPSO Conference Proceedings, 804 Jefferson Avenue, La Grande, OR 97850. Make check payable to Native Plant Society of Oregon. All proceeds from the sale of this book go toward the conservation and education programs of the Native Plant Society of Oregon.
Help needed at Albertson College Museum of Natural History September 12, October 3, November 7. Volunteers are needed to help with specimen curation, library work, display preparation, construction projects, painting, cleaning, etc. Lunch is provided, along with an informative seminar about recent research. Contact Bill Clark, (208) 375-8605, Sharon Brown or Eric Yensen, (208) 459-5331.
California Native Plant Society (CNPS) wins lawsuit. In May, California courts granted a motion by CNPS and the Southwest Center for Biological Diversity against the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) over failure to publish timely final rules for federal listing actions under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and ordered FWS to comply with the mandatory listing requirements of the ESA by September 30, 1998. By law, FWS has one year from the date of a proposed listing action to make a final listing determination, but many listing packages have languished for over three years. This will result in final listing decisions (and greater legal protection) for 43 rare plants in California.
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Sage Notes is published in February, May, September, and December by the Idaho Native Plant Society, incorporated since 1977, under the laws of the State of Idaho. Editor, Sarah Walker; Technical Editor, Bertie Weddell; Circulation Manager, Juanita Lichthardt; Contributing Editor, Karen Gray. Newsletter ads: personal ads $2, commercial ads $5 for 1/8 page, $8 for 1/4 page, $15 for 1/2 page, and $25 for full page. Ads should be sent with payment. Submissions: members and others are invited to submit material for publication. Articles in any form, even hand-written, are welcome, as is art work. Please provide a phone number in case there are questions. Material will not be returned. Send submissions directly to the editor, Sarah Walker, PO Box 69, Peck, ID 83545, (208) 486-6231 or <dspeck@clearwater.net>. Submission deadlines are January 1, April 1, August 1, and November 1.
Officers: President, VACANT; Vice-President, Mark Mousseaux (acting); Secretary, Leonard Lake; Treasurer, Steve Rust; Member-at-Large, Loring Jones; Past President, Kristin Fletcher; Rare Plant Conference Committee Chair, Nancy Cole; Conservation Committee Chair, Juanita Lichthardt; Newsletter Editor, Sarah Walker. Calypso Chapter, P.O. Box 33 1 , Careywood, ID 83809. President, Mark Mousseaux; Vice-President, vacant; Secretary, Phil Hruskocy; Treasurer, Janet Benoit; Newsletter, Dave Noble. Kinnikimiick Chapter, PO Box 578, Sandpoint, ID 83864. President, Gretchen Hellar; Vice-President, Dallas Hilton; Secretary, Nicole French; Treasurer, Beverly Hall; Newsletter Editors, Phil & Michael Franklin; Programs, Valle Novak; Field Trips, Joyce Pence; Arboretum, Lois Wythe. Pahove Chapter, PO Box 9451, Boise, ID 83707. President, VACANT; Vice-President, Kay Beall; Secretary- Treasurer, Steve Rust. Sah-Wah-Be Chapter, 603 Willard, Pocatello, ID 83201. President, Ruth Moorhead; Vice-President, Brian Schuetz; Secretary, Barbara Nicholls; Treasurer, Harry Giesbrecht; Board Representative, Karl Holte. White Pine Chapter, PO Box 8481, Moscow, ID 83843. President, Roger Blanchard; Vice-President, Bertie Weddell; Secretary, Angela Sondenaa; Treasurer, Annette Brusven; Publicity, Janet Campbell; Newsletter, Nancy Miller; Past President, Juanita Lichthardt. Wood River Chapter, PO Box 3093, Hailey, ID 83333. President, Dick Springs; Vice-President, Joanne Vassar; Secretary-Treasurer, Jo Ann Robbins; Member-at-large, Carol Blackburn.
The Idaho Native Plant Society (INPS) is dedicated to promoting interest in native plants, plant communities and collecting and sharing information on all phases of the botany of native plants in Idaho, including educating the public to the values of the native flora and its habitats. In keeping with our mission, it is the intent of the INPS to educate its membership and the public about current conservation issues that affect Idaho’s native flora and habitats. Membership is open to anyone interested in our native flora. Send dues to Steve Rust, Treasurer, 1201 N. 24th, Boise, ID 83702, and all correspondence to INPS, Box 9451, Boise, ID 83707
Category . Patron . Individual . Household *
. Student . Senior Citizen
Annual Dues, payable Jan. 1
$30
$10
$15
$7
$7
Name
Address
City/State
Zip Telephone
Chapter affiliation? (check one)
Calypso (Coeur d’Alene; please include $6 newsletter dues)
Kinnikinnick (Sandpoint)
Pahove (Boise)
Sah-Wah-Be (SE Idaho)
White Pine (Moscow)
Wood River (Ketchum-Sun Valley; please include $7 chapter dues)
None. Those who do not live near a chapter are encouraged to join.
We can put you in touch with other members in your area, and can coordinate with you on any state level activities you may wish to be involved in.
* Household memberships are allocated two votes.
Idaho Native Plant Society P.O. Box 9451 Boise, ID 83707
Non Profit Organization U.S. Postage Paid Moscow, ID 83843 Permit No. 471
New York Botanical Garden Library G558 Serials & Exchng. Bronx, NY 10458-5126
Special issue
W How native plants and habitats are protected in Idaho
Sage
Notes
Fall 1998
Volume 20 Number 4
LIBRARY
JAM ~ 4 1 9-9
Idaho Native Plant Society
Editors’ note: This issue is about rare plants and “rareness,” with articles detailing
a handful of Idaho’s rare species: their curious distributions, new studies using gene research, and what makes them “rare.” While we were putting this issue together we received news that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has issued a 90-day “finding” on Spalding’s catchfly.
W Readers are encouraged to comment on Spalding’s catchfly (more on page 11) as well as on the new Draft Southeast Oregon Resource Management Plan (page 19).
W Our next issue will have a variety of subjects of interest to INPS members. Please let us know of any subjects you’d like to write about, or existing articles that you’d like to share.
W Our society’s biggest annual gathering, the Rare Plant Conference, is coming up soon: Feb. 9-11 in Boise-see you there!
W For definitions of terms in bold type, see page 21.
In this issue:
Rare Plant Conference Announcement 1
Plant Rarity and Endangerment— Definitions, Approaches, and Implications for Conservation
- Steve Shelly 1
Idaho’s Globally Rare Plants - Michael Mancuso 3
Rare Endemics
Idaho Phlox: A Local Endemic - Bob Moseley 5
Constance’s Bittercress: A Local Endemic - Calib Baldwin 8
Mulford's Milkvetch: A Western Snake River Plain Endemic - Ann DeBolt 9
Spalding’s Catchfly: A Regional Endemic - Peter Lesica 10
Bartonberry and Prickly Phlox: Legacy of Hells Canyon Homesteaders - Sarah Walker 13
Rare Disjuncts
^ Goldback Fern in Idaho: A Coastal Disjunct - Karen Gray et al 12
Rare Plants of Scattered Distribution
-Clustered Lady’s-Slipper: Rare Throughout the Western U.S. - Nan Vance 14
v — Moonworts: A Taxonomic Puzzle - Linda Swartz 16
/ Water Howellia: Rare Throughout the Northwest - Peter Lesica 17
"-Wetlands of the Yellowstone Plateau Spring Creeks: A Unique Habitat for Some of Idaho’s
Rare Plants - Rose Lehman 19
Draft Southeast Oregon Resource Management Plan-Comment Period Open - Ann DeBolt 19
Chapter News 20
News and Notes 20
Slides Needed 2 1
What Does That Mean? A Glossary of Terms 21
Membership/Renewal Form (loose insert)
Cover: Mirabilis macfarlanei by Agnes Miller, Pahove Chapter
Fall 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (4)
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1999 Rare Plant Conference February 9-11 in Boise
Watch the mail for an agenda and registration form.
This year’s conference will include two days’ discussion on state and globally rare species and a workshop on weeds and weed vectors.
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Plant Rarity and Endangerment-Definitions, Approaches, and Implications for Conservation
Steve Shelly, Regional Botanist/RNA Coordinator, Northern Region, USD A Forest Service
With the development of various plant conservation programs on the part of federal and state agencies, it can often seem bewildering to know exactly what the status of a given rare plant is, and how decisions are made as to whether a species should be included on a list of species of conservation concern. The objectives of this article will be to provide an overview of the coarse and fine filter concepts as they are applied to conservation of biological diversity; to discuss the ideas of rarity and endangerment; to describe the types of rare plant species that are found in Idaho on the basis of their geographic distribution patterns; and to quickly summarize the various lists of rare plant species that are used to address conservation concerns at different scales.
Coarse and Fine Filters
Over approximately the last 20 years, two approaches have emerged as the principal methods for conserving the diversity of life on the earth: the “ coarse filter” and “ fine filter” strategies. The coarse filter, as originally defined by The Nature Conservancy (Noss 1987; Noss and Cooperrider 1994), is a community-level approach that seeks to conserve representative high-quality examples of all natural plant communities and habitats in a given state, ecoregion, or other area of interest. The notion is that this eliminates the need to inventory and manage each of the component species individually. An example of a coarse filter conservation approach is seen in the U.S. Forest Service Research Natural Area Program, which seeks to identify and set aside examples of both rare and common vegetation types.
It has been estimated that the coarse filter strategy can protect 85-90% of the species that exist in a given area, although this “ capture rate” has never been empirically tested (Noss and Cooperrider 1994). As such, it has been recognized that coarse ecosystem- level approaches cannot be relied upon to maintain all of biodiversity; some species will always fall through the network of a coarse filter. Hence, the fine filter methodology, which focuses on individual rare species, has arisen as a complement to the coarse filter (Noss and Cooperrider 1994). The fine filter approach is usually focused on the inventory and protection of narrow endemics (especially those that occur in extremely rare or highly specialized habitats; see below), wide-ranging animals, and other species that are not predictably associated with specific vegetation or habitat types. These kinds of species are least likely to be adequately represented in a coarse filter network of nature preserves and other areas that are set aside for conservation reasons. As such, the fine filter can be considered a species-specific “ safety net. ” Examples of fine filter approaches include the federal listing of species under the Endangered Species Act, the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management sensitive species programs, and equivalent state-level efforts, such as the rare species inventory and tracking program that is provided by the Idaho Conservation Data Center (CDC). It is critically important to realize that neither the coarse nor fine filters is adequate when used independently; these two conservation approaches are expressly designed to be used together.
In focusing on species rarity and endangerment more closely it is important to emphasize that, while certainly related, these concepts are fundamentally different. Rarity relates to the intrinsic pattern of
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distribution and abundance of a species, while endangerment refers to factors (typically anthropogenic) that may make a species more susceptible to decline or extinction (Morse 1996). Given (1994) separates species into these two categories by distinguishing “ local (narrow-range) endemics” from “ human-induced relict species (anthropo-endemics). ” Local endemics usually have evolved naturally as small populations on local habitat “ islands” that often are sharply differentiated from surrounding habitats, and they often have extremely restricted distributions as a result. Anthropo-endemics, in contrast, are defined as those that had a much wider distribution in the past, their geographic ranges having only recently contracted as their habitat was destroyed or adversely altered. The Palouse prairie endemics in north Idaho that are now confined to habitat remnants provide good examples of anthropo-endemics, their ranges having been much reduced by agricultural conversion of the associated grasslands.
Rarity, as defined by Gaston (1994), is more specificdly regarded as the state of having low abundance and/or a small range size. More elaborate definitions of intrinsic rarity are based on three primary determinants: 1) geographic range; 2) habitat specificity; and 3) Toed population size (Rabinowitz 1981). Species that have a very narrow geographic range, occupy only one or a few specialized habitats, or have small population sizes are the rarest, and are also most vulnerable to extinction or extirpation (see below). Additional factors that contribute to the vulnerability of rare species include low population density, low rate of population increase, poor dispersal ability, little or no genetic variability (especially within populations), specialized habitat requirements, adaptation to stable environments, and harvesting (Primack 1993).
Rarity at Different Spatial Scales
Regardless of the definition used, the results of examining species rarity will be influenced by the spatial scale that is applied. A species may be rare at one scale (e.g., within a state) but not at another (e.g., over the species’ entire range) (Gaston 1994).
Indeed, some plant species are extremely rare in Idaho, but common and widespread elsewhere. For example, populations that lie on the periphery of a species’ range, or that are disjunct from the main area of its distribution, may be important targets for conservation. Factors influencing the potential conservation importance of such peripheral or disjunct populations include the degree of genetic drift and the intensity of selection (based on environmental differences in the marginal habitats) that has occurred (Lesica and Allendorf 1995). It is for these reasons that several conservation programs (including the national network of state Natural
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Heritage Programs and Conservation Data Centers, and the U.S. Forest Service Sensitive Species Program) identify and manage for the conservation of species that, while they may be common and secure on a rangewide basis, are rare in a given state or Forest Service Region. It is the risk of extirpation from the more local geographic areas of concern (as opposed to extinction rangewide) that is the concern in these cases.
In the Columbia River Basin ecosystem assessment, five major types of rare plant species were defined on the basis of their geographic distribution patterns and, in some cases, the relationship of their known populations to political boundaries, especially state lines. The five categories include:
1 . narrow (“ local” ) endemics-species that are wholly confined to small geographic areas, and which are often represented by only one or a few populations. These species are often also ecologically specialized, being restricted to one particular soil type or other unique habitat. Castilleja christii is a classic example; the world’s only known population of this plant is confined to one mountaintop in southern Idaho.
2. regional endemics-such species are found over a somewhat broader geographic area than narrow endemics, but may still be confined to one ecoregion (such as Silene spaldingii in the Palouse prairie) or to portions of adjoining states (such as Penstemon lemhiensis in southwest Montana and adjacent Idaho). Regional endemics may be largely confined to one habitat (as is the case for Silene spaldingii), or they may be found in a wide array of habitats even though they are found in a rather restricted area; the latter is true of Penstemon lemhiensis, which occurs from the ponderosa pine zone up to the subalpine, at elevations ranging from about 4,000 feet up to 8,500 feet.
3. disjunct species-species whose populations in a given geographic area are widely separated from the main range elsewhere. Allotropa virgata is one such species; its main range is found along the Cascade and Sierra Nevada mountain ranges, from southern British Columbia to California. However, in northern Idaho and west-central Montana, the plant is found in an area that is widely separated from this main range. In fact, there are numerous plants that share this same distribution pattern, including the many plants in the “ Clearwater refugium” -the area of low-elevation, warm, moist river canyons in northern Idaho.
Disjunct populations have a higher probability of genetic divergence and eventual evolution into a new species than those that are contiguous with the overall range of a species. This is why disjunct populations have a high conservation value.
4. peripheral species-peripheral plant species in Idaho are those whose populations in the state lie on the margin of the species’ range, and which are more or less contiguous with that broader range. Vaccinium oxycoccos, which is found in peatlands in the
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panhandle of Idaho, is more common and widespread to the north; the Idaho populations lie on the southern margin of the species’ range in this case. Like disjunct populations, peripheral populations have evolutionary potential, especially in cases where they occur in habitats that are not typical for the species.
5. scattered (widespread but sparse) species-these are species that have wide geographic ranges, but which are nowhere common within that range; their populations are scattered over wide areas, and are typically small in size. This sort of distribution is often the most difficult to understand from an ecological or evolutionary standpoint. Examples include Cypripedium fasciculatum (which is widely scattered throughout the western United States, including north Idaho, but is not common anywhere within that range) and Howellia aquatilis (which occurs in western Montana, Idaho, Washington, and California, but is currently known from only about 180 populations across its large range, in less than 100 total acres of occupied habitat).
Those plant species that are at risk of extinction rangewide are typically the highest priorities for conservation (such as those that are ranked G1 or G2 by the Natural Heritage Program network, and those species that are listed as federally threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973). In order to address the conservation of widespread species in portions of their range where they are rare (e.g., where their populations are disjunct or peripheral), the Natural Heritage Program/Conservation Data Center network also ranks species by their state rarity and endangerment status. In Idaho, the CDC produces these lists. The Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management recognize sensitive species on the basis of the CDC list; these sensitive species include rangewide and state rare species that are known to occur on federal lands.
Literature Cited
Gaston, K. J. 1994. Rarity. Population and Community Biology Series 13. Chapman & Hall, London,. 205 pp.
Given, D. R. 1994. Principles and Practice of Plant
Conservation. Timber Press, Inc., Portland, Oregon. 292 pp. Lesica, P. and F. W. Allendorf. 1995. When are peripheral populations valuable for conservation? Cons. Biol. 9:753- 760.
Morse, L. E. 1996. Plant rarity and endangerment in North America. Pp. 7-22 in Falk, D.A., C.I. Millar, and M. dwell, eds. Restoring Diversity: Strategies for Reintroduction of Endangered Plants. Island Press, Washington, D.C. 505 pp. Noss, R. F. 1987. From plant communities to landscapes in
conservation inventories: A look at The Nature Conservancy. Biol. Cons. 41:11-37.
Noss, R. F., and A. Y. Cooperrider. 1994. Saving Nature’s
Legacy: Protecting and Restoring Biodiversity. Island Press, Washington, D.C. 416 pp.
Primack, R. B. 1993. Essentials of Conservation Biology.
Sinauer Associates, Inc., Sunderland, Mass. 564 pp. Rabinowitz, D. 1981. Seven forms of rarity. Pp. 205-217 in Synge, H., ed. The Biological Aspects of Rare Plant Conservation. John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Idaho’s Globally Rare Plants
Michael Mancuso, Idaho Conservation Data Center
The Idaho Native Plant Society’s (INPS) rare plant list for Idaho is an important conservation tool for natural resource managers, biologists, and others concerned about biodiversity issues in Idaho. The list is reviewed and updated annually at the INPS- sponsored rare plant conference. Currently, the list is comprised of 267 vascular (wildflowers, conifers, ferns, and their allies) and 3 1 non-vascular (mosses, liverworts, and lichens) species. In addition, there is a Review category for species which need more information before a conservation assessment can be made. The rare plant list is divided into two main groups-globally rare and state rare species. These groups are then further broken down into several categories mostly on the basis of degree of rarity and threats. There are 100 globally rare and 167 state rare vascular plant species on the Idaho list. This article will discuss a few patterns regarding those on the globally rare list.
There are many ways to evaluate rarity. One way is to look at distribution patterns. Species with a restricted distribution are known as endemics. Ninety percent of the species on Idaho’ s globally rare list fall into this category. For purposes of comparison, I have defined three classes of endemism on the basis of a relative scale. They are: (a) local endemics with a range wide distribution of less than a 25 -mile radius, (b) local endemics with a rangewide distribution with a radius of 25-100 miles, and (c) regional endemic species-those having a range with a radius greater than 100 miles but still restricted to a portion of a larger geographic region (such as the northern part of the Great Basin). Thirty-seven percent of Idaho’ s globally rare flora qualify for the locally endemic, <25-mile-radius category. Examples include Davis’ wavewing ( Cymopterus davisii ), Tobias’ saxifrage ( Saxifraga bryophora tobiasiae ), and Owyhee clover ( Trifolium owyheense). Forty percent can be classified as local endemics with a radius of 25-100 miles. An example from northern Idaho is Idaho strawberry (Waldsteinia idahoensis ), while one from the southern part of the state is Mulford’s milkvetch ( Astragalus mulfordiae). And finally, 13% are regional endemics. A couple of examples include obscure phacelia ( Phacelia inconspicua) and Howell’s gumweed ( Grindelia howellii ).
Three other distribution patterns describe the remaining plants on Idaho’ s globally rare list. A
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disjunct species is one whose Idaho range is separated from the species’ main distribution center by a large gap. Disjuncts comprise less than a handful (4%) of species on the globally rare list. Meadow pussytoes {Antennaria arcuata) and Hapeman’ s sullivantia {Sullivantia hapemanii) are two examples. In contrast, there are many disjunct species on the state rare list. These tend to have few and small populations in Idaho, but are not globally rare because the bulk of their range is elsewhere.
Plants with distributions in which Idaho populations represent the fringe of a larger, more or less continuous range are known as peripheral species. Palmer’ s evening primrose ( Camissonia palmeri ) is the only species that falls into this category, a mere 1% of the total. Again, there are many more state rare species that fit the definition for a peripheral distribution pattern. Finally, there are species that have a widespread distribution but are sparsely distributed within their geographic range. Perhaps surprisingly, they make up 5% of the globally rare list, including three species of moonwort ( Botrychium spp.) and two federally listed plants, water howellia ( Howellia aquatilis ) and Ute ladies tresses ( Spiranthes diluvialis).
Where in Idaho do these globally rare plants reside? Basically everywhere, although not everywhere equally. Using broad ecological criteria, it is possible to divide Idaho into six geographic regions-North, North-central, West-central, East- central, Southwest, and Southeast (Figure 1). On the basis of these divisions, East-central Idaho leads the way with 26% of Idaho’ s globally rare flora occurring only in this region. One reason for this is the area’ s diverse geology. There are a relatively large number of endemic species associated with
Challis Volcanic substrates. North Idaho has the lowest concentration, with only 2% of the globally rare species. This is in sharp contrast to the high number of species on the state rare plant list that occur in this area. The West-central region has 14% of Idaho’ s globally rare flora, mostly concentrated in the Hells Canyon area. The other three regions each contribute 17% of the globally rare plants, while the remaining 7% occur in two or more regions of the state. The Palouse and Clearwater Mountain areas account for most of the North-central region’ s rare plants. In Southwest Idaho, there are a number of rare endemics restricted to peculiar volcanic ash formations or to sandy substrates. In the Southeast Idaho region, the Albion Mountains, the Goose Creek area, and the St. Anthony Dunes all harbor locally endemic rare species. Although a majority of plants on the globally rare list may be found in at least one other adjacent western state, 36 species (36%) are endemic to Idaho. They are truly part of what makes Idaho unique.
What about looking at Idaho’ s globally rare plants by habitat? Figure 2 shows that of die seven habitat classes I have chosen, sagebrush-steppe and cliff/rock habitats support the largest number of rare plant species, and alpine areas the smallest. If broken down by habit, perennial forbs win by a landslide. Graminoids, ferns, and shrubs are relatively uncommon contributors to Idaho’ s globally rare list (Figure 3).
Alpine Cliffs/Rock Subalpine ridge Forest Grassland Wetland Shrub-steppe
Figure 2. Idaho’s globally rare plants by habitat class.
Rare species make up a relatively small portion of Idaho’ s flora. Some are stunning in their beauty, others much more humble in appearance. Most people will never see more than a fraction of them. Even folks who actively look for them sometimes come up empty. It is often hard to figure out why they occur “ here,” but not right over “ there.” The conservation of rare plants is a high priority for the INPS. They are more than the numbers or percentages used in this article; they are a living part of Idaho’s natural heritage.
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Perennial forb Ferns and allies
Graminoid Shrub
Figure 3. Idaho’s globally rare plants by habit.
Idaho Phlox: A Local Endemic
Bob Moseley, Idaho Conservation Data Center
Since its discovery and description by Edgar Wherry in the early 1940s, Idaho phlox ( Phlox idahonis ) has captured the attention of botanists due to its beauty, its rarity, and its unique biogeographic position of being without close relatives in western North America. For many years, this tall, showy phlox was only known from a meadow near the Clearwater-Potlatch Timber Protective Association (CPTPA) office near Headquarters in Clearwater County, about 60 miles east of Moscow. Today, it is known from four clusters of populations in the Headquarters area, with 98% of it occurring on land owned by Potlatch Corporation and the remainder on State of Idaho endowment lands. Its rarity and vulnerability to extinction have been recognized for over 20 years, and today it remains one of the rarest members of Idaho’ s flora.
A Remarkable Beauty
Idaho phlox was first collected by Carl Epling at Headquarters sometime prior to 1940, and the collection remained unnamed in the herbarium of the University of California at Los Angeles for some years. Edgar Wherry, from the University of Pennsylvania, searched for the plant at Headquarters in 1940 and eventually located a population in the meadows around the office of the CPTPA.
Collections of Idaho phlox were made by Jim Blaisdell and Ray Davis in the 1940s, also from the CPTPA Meadow. Searches by Bob Steele, Fred Johnson, and others in the late 1960s and early 1970s did not locate any new populations. In 1977 and 1978, during his graduate work on the ecology of this and other Clearwater basin endemics, Rex Crawford expanded the known range of Idaho phlox nearly to its present configuration. He also searched extensively in suitable-appearing habitat elsewhere in north-central Idaho, but to no avail.
Over the years, several people have made the suggestion that Idaho phlox may be introduced, an escaped cultivar of one of its near relatives in eastern North America, Phlox Carolina or P. maculata. Many homesteads occurred in phlox habitat early in the century, and the reasoning was that it could have escaped from flower gardens. Wherry was a taxonomic expert in the genus Phlox , and knew the eastern species well. He was unequivocal in both his treatment of phlox in Idaho and his comprehensive monograph of the entire genus that Phlox idahonis was distinct. After extensive field observation and study, it is my opinion that Idaho phlox is native, although the genetic relationship with close eastern relatives should be studied.
Idaho phlox is radically unlike any other western phlox. It is a clonal plant of moist montane meadows, with individual stems up to three feet tall growing from a slender, shallow rhizome. Both the stem and foliage are covered by short, soft hairs. In addition, the hairs of the inflorescence are glandular. The leaves, 3.5 inches long and 1.5 inches wide, are opposite and widely spaced on the stem. The breathtaking flowers are in a tightly branched inflorescence at the top of the stem. Up to 50 large, lavender flowers occur in this aggregate, although only 10-20 flowers are open at any one time.
Inhabitant of Montane Valley Bottoms
Idaho phlox is most common in meadows surrounded by western red cedar forests. These open meadows are dense graminoid communities rich in forbs. Two distinct communities are discernible on the basis of vegetation physiognomy: a “ tall meadow” found on more mesic, relatively well- drained sites with a high water table; and a “ short meadow” found on less mesic, better drained sites with a lower water table. Both the tall and short meadows are being invaded by trees, primarily grand fir and subalpine fir. Stumps of logged trees in most
" Unlike wild animals, which are considered public property under jurisdiction of the state, plants are considered private property. This fundamental difference has its roots in English common law and has been incorporated into all US. law since the country was founded, including the Endangered Species Act.”
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meadows indicate that the open meadows were formerly at least partially forested.
This species also occasionally occupies a shrub community that is interspersed with the meadows.
The dominant shrub thin-leaf alder ( Alnus incana ) is usually on wetter sites along streams, where the water table is higher and the soil is rockier than in tall meadows. Stands dominated by the low shrub alder buckthorn ( Rhamnus alnifolia ) occur on drier sites.
Idaho phlox was only rarely observed in the forest, although trees were probably more common in phlox habitat in the past. Forest sites are better drained, although they still occur on alluvial deposits of the valley bottoms. No phlox were seen on adjacent forested slopes.
Population Monitoring-An Extraordinary Opportunity
During 1977 and 1978, Idaho phlox was the research subject of Rex Crawford, a graduate student at the University of Idaho. He studied the species’ range, habitat, reacdon to management practices, and ecology. He also established seven permanent plots throughout its range. In 1992, Bill Wall, then Potlatch’ s wildlife biologist, approached me about potential biodiversity conservation projects that Potlatch and the Conservation Data Center could collaborate on.
Revisiting Rex’ s plots immediately leapt to the forefront. We were presented with a unique opportunity to use his data as a baseline from which to measure 15 years of change in the habitat and populations of Idaho phlox. This type of opportunity rarely presents itself when studying any plant species, let alone a rare species, and it allowed us to develop a management plan supported with strong biological data.
Rex is now the ecologist for the Washington Natural Heritage Program and a good friend. He joined me for a week in June 1993, and we went through the sometimes embarrassing (for him) process of meticulously redoing his 15-year-old masters thesis (something I hope to never have to do!). Technically, the project was set up like this. In June 1978, Rex established seven permanent macroplots in four meadows containing Idaho phlox. He collected cover and frequency data for all vascular plant species, as well as density data for Idaho phlox, in 40 microplots within each macroplot. With considerable difficulty and the help of a metal detector, we found all the macroplots in June 1993,
and reread frequency data for all species and density data for Idaho phlox.
In a nutshell, here are our results. Direct gradient analysis of plant cover data indicated that livestock grazing intensity explained a majority of the floristic variation in the plots. Secondarily, meadow type and soil water content explained the remaining variation.
A summary of stem density data for all plots indicates that Phlox idahonis remained stable over the 15-year monitoring period. There were, however, significant differences between meadows. Phlox density increased in one plot in Eureka Meadows, but the cause of this increase was unclear. Phlox density decreased in Plot 7, however, probably as a result of post-fire succession at this site in the CPTPA Meadow. Prescribed fire was used on this plot in the fall of 1977. Phlox disappeared completely from Plot 4 in North Casey Meadow. Stem density and data on vegetation composition and structure suggest that heavy livestock grazing caused the disappearance. Our data indicate that the absence of grazing and moderate levels of grazing are not detrimental to population viability. We also found that shrub and tree invasion of the prime meadow habitat do not appear to have been a threat, at least during the 15 -year monitoring period.
Conservation and Management
The monitoring clearly showed that intense levels of cattle grazing were not good for the short- and long-term prospects of Idaho phlox, but that moderate levels were probably fine. Unfortunately we can’t precisely quantify what the subjective ratings of “ intense” and “ moderate” levels are. No detailed livestock grazing records are kept for the area, so we were unable to determine past or present stocking levels, grazing seasons, or use patterns.
Shrub and tree invasion of meadow habitat was considered a serious threat in the 1970s, and an experimental bum was done in the CPTPA meadow to study the effects of fire on phlox habitat. According to our data, however, this was not a problem over the 15-year monitoring period; shrub and tree cover in the seven plots did not change through this period. Continued monitoring will determine if this is a threat in the longer term.
The permanent plots that Rex established in 1978 yielded very useful management information. We recommended that they be reread at five- to seven- year intervals (one of which is coming up). This is a
Idaho phlox ( Phlox idahonis )
by Rebecca Brown-Thompson
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long enough frequency that it is not too burdensome financially, but short enough to yield useful and timely information.
Idaho phlox is a Global Priority 1 species on the INPS state rare plant list. On the federal level, it used to be treated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) as a Category 1 candidate for listing under the Endangered Species Act. After policies changed a couple of years ago, it was dropped from formal consideration for listing. At the time of our work in 1993, we believed that listing as Threatened was warranted. We knew that this was unlikely to happen, however, for the following reason. Unlike wild animals, which are considered public property under jurisdiction of the state, plants are considered private property. This fundamental difference has its roots in English common law and has been incorporated into all U.S. law since the country was founded, including the Endangered Species Act. It is unlikely then that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will make Idaho phlox a high priority for listing, when it has virtually no jurisdiction over the species. They tend to place greater emphasis on listing plant species for which they do have jurisdiction, that is, species with a significant portion of their distribution occurring on public land or on land over which they have some regulatory authority.
Nevertheless, Idaho phlox is still a high priority conservation concern for both INPS and the Snake River Basin Office of the FWS. Soon after we completed our research, the FWS approached Potlatch Corporation about entering into a Conservation Agreement (CA). The CA is a vehicle to affect conservation on high priority, non-listed species. In this case, the CA voluntarily commits Potlatch to
conservation actions that would protect habitat and stabilize Idaho phlox populations. After a couple of years of negotiation, an agreement was signed by Potlatch management in 1996, for the first time setting the stage for meaningful, long-term conservation of this awe-inspiring element of Idaho’ s natural heritage.
Selected References
Crawford, R. C. 1980. Ecological investigations and
management implications of six northern Idaho endemic plants on the proposed endangered and threatened lists. M.S. Thesis, Univ. Idaho, Moscow. 200 p.
Idaho Native Plant Society. 1998. Results of the fourteenth annual Idaho Rare Plant Conference. INPS, Boise. 7 pp. Leege, T. A., D. J. Herman, and B. Zamora. 1981. Effects of cattle grazing on mountain meadows in Idaho. J. Range Manage. 34:324-328.
Moseley, R. K. and R. C. Crawford. 1993. Population monitoring and management plan for Idaho phlox ( Phlox idahonis). Unpublished report prepared for Potlatch Corporation, on file at the Conservation Data Center, Idaho Department of Fish and Game, Boise. 29 pp. + appendices.
Moseley, R. K. and R. C. Crawford. 1995. Fifteen-year population and habitat changes in a narrow Idaho endemic. Phlox idahonis Wherry. Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club 122(2): 109- 114.
Wherry, E. T. 1941. The Phloxes of Idaho. No. 87. Notulae Naturae of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. 15 pp.
Wherry, E. T. 1955. The genus Phlox. Morris Arboretum Monograph III. Associates of the Morris Arboretum, Philadelphia. 174 pp.
A New Study on Idaho Phlox
Dr. Joanna Schultz at Lewis-Clark State College is presently investigating the systematics of Phlox idahonis using both morphologic and molecular approaches. The taxonomic status of Idaho phlox has remained elusive, despite extensive ecological studies conducted on this presumed rare Idaho endemic. This study serves to construct an hypothesis of evolutionary relationships among members of the genus Phlox distributed in both the eastern and western United States. Specifically, these data will determine if Phlox idahonis is a distinct species and not an alien introduced from the eastern United States in the early 1900s, identify the closest relatives of Phlox idahonis, and determine the diagnostic characters, if any, delimiting the species from other members of the genus.
Dr. Schultz says: The biogeographic implications of this study are extremely exciting ! All species comprising Phlox subsection Ovatae, with the exception of Phlox idahonis, are distributed east of the Rocky Mountains. If Phlox idahonis is a distinct taxon and allied both morphologically and genetically with Phlox subsection Ovatae, we can re-create an intriguing scenario. Phlox subsection Ovatae must have been widely distributed from the eastern to western United States before the Rocky Mountain orogeny. The uplift of the Rocky Mountains leaves a small number of phloxes able to persist west of the mountains. Subsequent divergence and speciation occur and we have a classic example of vicariance biogeography. Additionally, this may provide a model to explain other genera with similar distributions (Crataegus and Dicentra, for example).
Dr. Schultz has spent a great deal of time working with Idaho phlox both in the field and in the lab, and feels “confident it’s not an alien.. .my intuition says this is an endemic species.” She plans to find the answer soon.
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Constance’s Bittercress: A Local Endemic
Calib Baldwin, Department of Forest Resources, University of Idaho
Constance’ s bittercress ( Cardamine constancei ) is a rare member of the mustard family (Brassicaceae) that is found in small populations only along the Selway, Middle and North Forks of the Clearwater, St. Joe, and Coeur d’ Alene Rivers of North- central Idaho. This plant is of particular interest not only for its rarity, but also because of its close association with large concentrations of over 50 coastal disjunct species, including deerfem ( Blechnum spicant ),
Henderson’ s sedge ( Carex hendersonii ), varied-leaf collomia ( Collomia heterophylla), flowering dogwood ( Cornus nuttallii ), dentate shooting star (. Dodecatheon dentatum ), Coast Range festuca ( Festuca subuliflora), devil’ s club (' Oplopanax horridum), western red cedar ( Thuja plicata ), western starflower ( Trientalis latifolia), and redwoods violet ( Viola sempervirens). Cardamine is also associated with other rare plants including Case’s corydalis ( Corydalis caseana var. hastata ), evergreen synthyris ( Synthyris platycarpa ), and Idaho barren strawberry ( Waldsteinia idahoensis). Collectively this assemblage of coastal disjuncts and endemics is commonly referred to as the Clearwater refugium, and recent genetic research on Cardamine constancei has focused on trying to understand the dynamics and origins of this refugium.
There are three alternative theories on the formation of this unique coastal disjunct ecosystem. The first, put forth by Daubenmire, is that this ecosystem is a relict of a once more widespread coastal flora which became isolated in northern Idaho as the rising Cascade Range changed the regional climate during the Pliocene (5 million years before the present). A second theory, based upon pollen records, suggests that the coastal flora invaded northern Idaho after the last glacial retreat (11,000 years before the present). A third theory is that the current distribution results from multiple.
independent dispersal events or a combination of these theories.
We are currently conducting research utilizing DNA sequencing technology to distinguish between the three competing theories. Because genetic patterns within species are a reflection of the historical events and evolutionary processes that shaped the species and ultimately the Clearwater refugium, a different genetic pattern is predicted by each theory. If the Clearwater refugium is a relict of an ancient flora, high levels of genetic differentiation between the Clearwater and the coastal populations would be expected for each species examined. Conversely, if a recent invasion of coastal vegetation from the north occurred, low levels of genetic differentiation would be expected for each species.
Finally, if the Clearwater refugium resulted from independent dispersal events, different patterns would be expected for different species.
Cardamine constancei was the first species to receive detailed analysis and we discovered extremely high levels of population differentiation, something not commonly documented in other rare plant species. Three major lineages have been identified, one in the upper St. Joe above Marble Creek, a second in the upper North Fork Clearwater above Moscow Bar, and a third more wide-ranging lineage which occurs in the Main, Middle, and South Forks of the Clearwater, as well as in the Selway, lower North Fork Clearwater, lower St. Joe, and Coeur d’ Alene drainages. On the basis of this information, it appears that the Clearwater ecosystem was comprised of three or possibly four separate, smaller refugia along the St. Joe, North Fork Clearwater, and South Fork Clearwater Rivers. Populations of Cardamine constancei appear to have been isolated along the St. Joe and the North Fork Clearwater for a long period of time, and reinvasion of suitable habitat from the Coeur d’Alene to the Main Fork of the Clearwater has occurred from a refugium in the vicinity of the South Fork of the Clearwater. This indicates that complex habitat changes and plant dispersal have occurred during the long history of the Clearwater region. The high level of genetic differentiation found with Cardamine supports Daubenmire ’s
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hypothesis of the Clearwater refugium being a relict of a once more widespread coastal flora. While this research provides invaluable insights into the dynamics of the Clearwater refugium, analysis of additional species, particularly coastal disjuncts, will be required to bring the origins of this remarkable ecosystem into focus.
Note: for more information on the use of genetic techniques to solve problems in rare species conservation see Linda Swartz’s article on p. 16.
Mulford’s Milkvetch: A Western
Snake River Plain Endemic
Ann DeBolt, Boise District, Bureau of Land Management
Like many of our endemic plant species,
Mulford’ s milkvetch (Astragalus mulfordiae ) has been a species of concern in Idaho for over twenty years (Henderson et al. 1977). While its known range has expanded into extreme southeast Oregon since that time, this distinctive plant remains quite vulnerable. Its specialized habitat, low elevation (2,200-3,400 feet) sand or oolitic limestone on the western end of the Snake River Plain, lies in the heart of the most densely populated region in Idaho. Agriculture, livestock grazing, cheatgrass invasion, urbanization, mining, and off-highway motorized
use have all taken their toll. (This list sounds all too familiar, doesn’t it?)
Astragalus mulfordiae was named for Isabel Mulford, who made the first collection in the Boise foothills in 1892 (Bameby 1964). Marcus Jones described the plant six years later. This somewhat wispy, white-flowered (occasionally lavender) species is quite distinctive. It is perhaps most similar to A. oniciformis (Picabo milkvetch), another Idaho endemic, but the two species are not known to occur sympatrically, or overlap in their range. Picabo milkvetch is known from only three counties (Blaine, Lincoln, and Minidoka) in south central Idaho (Moseley and Popovich 1995). It differs from A. mulfordiae in its non-connate stipules, slightly smaller pod, and oblong-elliptic rather than linear leaflets (Bameby 1964). Interestingly, it too occurs almost exclusively on sandy soils.
The Idaho range of Mulford’ s milkvetch includes three geographic areas. These are the Boise foothills, the Weiser area, and the small and fragmented populations south of the Snake River between Murphy and Bruneau. Nearly all of the Boise foothills sites are privately owned, though several populations are within city or county reserves. Mulford’ s milkvetch populations in Oregon are largely centered around the small town of Vale. Eighty to 85% of the occurrences in both states are on lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management.
Thanks to INPS recommendations made at the Rare Plant Conference last February, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) is embarking on a status review for this former federal Category 1 species. Site data and distribution maps are currently being assimilated. With this information, the FWS will begin status review preparation this winter. On the basis of the outcome of the review, Mulford’s milkvetch could become a federal candidate once again. Stay tuned for an update at the next conference.
Literature Cited
Bameby, R. 1964. Atlas of North American Astragalus. New York Botanical Garden, Bronx, NY. 1 188 pp.
Henderson, D. M., F. D. Johnson, P. Packard, and R. Steele. 1977. Endangered and threatened plants of Idaho. Univ. Idaho Forest, Wildlife and Range Exp. Station Contrib. No. 73. 72 pp.
Moseley, R. K. and S. J. Popovich. 1995. The conservation status of Picabo milkvetch, Astragalus oniciformis Bameby. Tech. Bull. No. 95-9, Idaho Bureau of Land Mgmt., Boise. 21 pp. + appendices.
Offi cer s Needed
INPS is in need of both a president and a vice president. If you are interested in one of these positions, or know of someone who might be, please get in touch with your chapter president.
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Fall 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (4)
Spalding’s Catchfly: A Regional Endemic
Peter Lesica, Montana Natural Heritage Program
Spalding’s catchfly ( Silene spaldingii ) is a distinctive member of the largest genus in the Pink Family (Caryophyllaceae). It is a non-rhizomatous perennial occurring in grasslands and steppe of southeast Washington, extreme northeast Oregon, and adjacent Idaho with disjunct populations in northwest Montana and adjacent British Columbia. Plants have one to several stems arising from a small rootcrown surmounting a long taproot that undoubtedly serves as a storage organ. Three to 20 flowers are borne in a branched, terminal inflorescence. Leaves, stems, and inflorescences have a distinct yellow-green color and are very sticky.
Demographic studies in Montana have shown that Spalding’ s catchfly is a long-lived perennial. Plants flower in mid- to late summer, but most plants spend nearly half of their summers dormant beneath the ground. This “ prolonged dormancy” makes conducting surveys very difficult because some years are good, while in others, above-ground plants may be very sparse.
Spalding’s catchfly reproduces only from seed; rhizomes or other means of vegetative propagation are lacking. Seeds are small with a relatively soft coat and little endosperm.
Germination occurs after as little as four weeks of cold treatment, so plants may germinate in the late fall as well as the spring following dispersal. Significant recruitment of new plants occurs in only one of three years on average. Rosettes are formed the first year. Interestingly, these first-year rosettes are glabrous. Vegetative stems are usually produced in the second year, and flowering does not generally occur until during or after the third season.
Studies at six sites in four states indicate that a species of bumblebee is the sole pollinator of Spalding’ s catchfly. Rowers of Spalding’ s catchfly are adapted for cross-pollination, with anthers opening first, followed later by the stigmas becoming receptive. Nonetheless, plants can produce some seed by selfing when pollinators are not present. However, seeds resulting from self-fertilizations demonstrate lower ability to germinate, and the resulting seedlings show reduced growth and survival, amounting to a 99% reduction in fitness compared to progeny from cross-pollination.
There is evidence that germination and growth of the tiny seeds and seedlings of Spalding’s catchfly may be limited by dense crops of litter that develop in the productive grasslands of northwest Montana when protected from wildfire and grazing.
Fire enhances recruitment by allowing seedlings to establish free from the dense shade of accumulated grass litter. Wildhorse Island in Rathead Lake, Montana has not experienced livestock grazing or fire in more than 30 years. The accumulation of litter in these rough fescue ( Festuca scabrella ) grasslands is extreme, and this litter buildup may be the cause of the documented decline in the population of catchfly as well as other forbs that occur there. The effects of fire on Spalding’s catchfly in the drier habitats of the Palouse region are not known.
Spalding’ s catchfly is thought to have once been common in the Palouse region of Washington and Idaho, an unfortunate circumstance because this area is underlain by deep, rich soils, most of which came under the plow by the turn of the century.
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Spalding’s catchfly (Silene spaldingii).
From a painting by Debbie McNeil.
Fall 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (4)
Now, it persists in around 100 populations in Idaho, Washington, and Oregon and one large population in Montana. Spalding’s catchfly is known from seven sites in Idaho, but only two populations have more than 40 plants. The largest population occurs on public lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management and The Nature Conservancy along the Snake River just south of Lewiston.
None of the known populations of Spalding’ s catchfly except those on Nature Conservancy and Washington State University preserves are protected from grazing by domestic livestock. Light grazing may be beneficial to Spalding’ s catchfly by removing or preventing the buildup of litter; however, livestock often introduce weeds, and this may be the single greatest threat to remaining populations.
Exotics pose a serious threat even on the ungrazed Nature Conservancy preserves.
Sulphur cinquefoil (Potentilla recta) is a major problem on the Dancing Prairie Preserve in northwest Montana.
Yellow star-thistle (Centaur ea solstitialis) invasion has degraded Idaho’ s Garden Creek Preserve, home to one of Idaho’ s strongest Spalding’ s catchfly populations. Studies suggest that weeds may compete with Spalding’ s catchfly for pollinators as well as soil resources.
The small, isolated nature of the majority of Spalding’ s catchfly populations leaves them very vulnerable to the dangers of inbreeding depression and concomitant decline. Some of the isolated populations are surrounded by agricultural fields that will not support pollinators necessary to effect cross- pollination. These populations are likely to decline as adults die and recruitment is limited by the preponderance of subnormal progeny. Small populations are also very prone to extinction from environmental catastrophes or chance demographic events.
Lepidopteran caterpillars prey on flowers and ovaries of Spalding’ s catchfly in northwest Montana and Oregon. Seed weevils can destroy many of the seeds of Spalding’s catchfly in Oregon. However, there is no evidence that this natural herbivory has an adverse effect on the vigor and longevity of populations.
Spalding’s catchfly is listed as threatened on Washington, Oregon, and Montana state lists and as critically imperiled in Idaho. These listings are based on recent status reports for all four states. Status reports for Washington and Idaho are the most recent, and both recommend that Spalding’s catchfly be listed as threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act.
In February 1995, the Flathead Chapter of the Montana Native Plant Society, the Northeast Chapter of the Washington Native Plant Society, the Biodiversity Legal Foundation, and Peter Lesica filed a petition to have Spalding’s catchfly listed as
threatened under the Endangered Species Act. A draft finding was prepared by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) Boise Office in the fall of 1995 and sent to the regional office in Portland. No action has been taken since then. In late 1996 an FWS spokesperson stated that a preliminary finding would probably be issued in the summer of 1997.
A recent memo from the FWS promised a finding by the summer of 1998. Meanwhile, in early April, the four petitioners filed a 60-day notice of intent to sue die FWS, and suit was filed in September.
Additional Reading
Kagan, J. 1989. Draft species management plan for Silene spaldingii. Unpublished report to Oregon Department of Agriculture, Oregon Natural Heritage Data Base, Portland.
Lesica, P. 1993. Loss of fitness resulting from pollinator exclusion in Silene spaldingii (Caryophyllaceae). Madrono 40:193-201.
Lesica, P. 1996. Effects of fire on the demography of the endangered, geophytic herb, Silene spaldingii. Report to The Nature Conservancy, Helena.
Lesica, P. 1997. Demography of the endangered plant, Silene spaldingii (Caryophyllaceae) in northwest Montana. Madrono 44:347-358.
Lesica, P. and B. Heidel. 1996. Pollination biology of the threatened plant, Silene spaldingii (abstract). Intermount.
J. Sci. 2:51-52.
Lichthardt, J. 1997. Revised report on the conservation status of Silene spaldingii in Idaho. Unpublished report to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Idaho Department of Fish and Game, Boise.
Update: 90-day finding released for Spalding's catchfly
On November 16 the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) announced a 90-day finding on the petition to list Silene spaldingii under the Endangered Species Act. The FWS found that the petition presented substantial information to warrant listing this plant species, and has initiated a status review. They are requesting information and comments on the location of any additional populations of this species; additional information concerning the range, distribution, and population size of the species; current or planned activities that may affect populations of the species; and other threats to populations of Spalding’s catchfly.
Information and comments will be accepted until January 15, 1999-write to:
Supervisor, Snake River Basin Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 1387 S. Vinnell Way, Suite 368, Boise, ID 83709-1657 (208)378-5259.
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Goldback Fern in Idaho: A Coastal Disjunct
Karen Gray, Sarah Walker, and Mike Hays, White Pine Chapter; Bob Moseley, Pahove Chapter
Goldback fern ( Pentagramma triangularis ssp. triangularis- formerly Pityrogramma triangularis) is a distinctive fern with a pale to bright yellow waxy powder on the underside of its leaves. The mature leaves are leathery and green on the upper surface and have a triangular or pentagonal shape (depending on whether you are counting the bottom two pinnules as sides of the polygon). New leaves begin to appear in late summer and remain green during the winter.
Goldback fern’s primary range is along the west coast of North America from British Columbia to Mexico. Four inland, disjunct populations have recently been documented in Idaho (Figure 1). Prior to these recent discoveries, it had been collected from two other inland locations: Skillen and Warren made a collection in 1928 in Big Canyon Creek on the Snake River in Idaho, and Harold St. John and F. L. Pickett collected it in 1921 at Granite Point in southeast Washington. In 1966, A. A. Cridland & L. V. Mingrone revisited Granite Point and made a collection from the same location. Their label said “ may be the last collection from this locality because of the destruction of Granite Point.” Granite Point is
Goldback fern
(Pentagramma triangularis ssp. triangularis).
Left: underside of leaf showing light and dark pattern of brown spores and gold powder.
20 km southwest of Pullman. Daubenmire discussed goldback fern as one of several plants that grow in rock crevices in the steppe region, and said its habitat at Granite Point had been “ essentially destroyed in creating a dam” (Daubenmire 1970:77).
Susan Bematas and Bob Moseley collected the fem in Idaho in 1988 near Dry Creek along the Snake River in Hells Canyon (Moseley and Bematas 1991:193). Subsequently, two more populations were reported in canyons tributary to the Clearwater River: Little Canyon near Peck, and Bull Run Creek east of Moscow. Recently, a population was also found in Cave Gulch, a tributaiy of the Snake River. The Snake and the Clearwater Rivers join near Lewiston.
All of the recently located populations were found on mossy rock outcrops. Goldback fem is apparently not choosy about its rock substrate. The Little Canyon and Bull Run Creek ferns are both on Columbia River basalt. The two Snake River Canyon populations are on rocks of exotic terranes. The Dry Creek plants are on rocks of the Wild Sheep Creek Formation, and the Cave Gulch plants are on Coon Hollow Formation rocks. Both formations are part of an island arc that moved in from the Pacific Ocean 120 million years ago and docked against what was then the edge of the North American continent. The Wild Sheep Creek rocks are from the island mounts in the formation, however, and the Coon Hollow rocks were formed from sediments deposited in basins associated with the islands.
Holes or tunnels in the loose structure of the rocks may mediate the microclimate near the ferns. Sarah Walker found that the ground temperature in winter among the Little Canyon ferns was warmer by as much as 10°F than temperatures a few feet away from the population periphery. Water in the cracked outcrops may be the agent of mediation.
The ferns were found on aspects ranging from northwest to north and east, and at elevations of from 1,500 feet at Dry Creek to nearly 2,700 feet at Bull Run Creek.
Ownership of the sites is varied. Dry Creek is in the Hells Canyon National Recreation area, administered by the Wallowa- Whitman National Forest. The Little Canyon sites are all on private land. Mike Hays discovered the large population (at least 500 clumps) near Bull Run Creek on the Palouse Ranger District, which is administered by the Clearwater National Forest. Cave Gulch is owned by the Bureau of Land Management, but managed cooperatively with The Nature Conservancy.
Goldback fem was given a State Priority 2 status at the 1998 Rare Plant Conference. That priority refers to “ a taxon likely to be classified as Priority 1 within the foreseeable future in Idaho, if factors contributing to its population decline or habitat degradation or loss continue.” The Bull Run Creek plants don’t seem to have an imminent threat. The Cave Gulch and Little Canyon populations may be threatened by
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exotics, including yellow star-thistle and cheatgrass. The Dry Creek site was in good condition when it was last seen.
Interestingly, at least two of the mosses found with the goldback fern are also disjunct from larger populations on the west coast. Amphidium californicum was collected from both the Bull Run Creek and the Cave Gulch sites. It is a moss of Mediterranean climates and endemic to western North America. It is rare in the Columbia Plateau; so far these are the only two collections that have been located from Idaho. The other disjunct moss,
Anacolia menziesii var. baueri, has a distribution centered in California, where it is abundant throughout the state. It becomes less common northward in Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia. Disjunct locations are reported in northern Idaho, from Spokane southward to the Snake and Clearwater Rivers. Idaho has a large suite of plants and lichens that are disjunct from the Pacific Coast; however, the majority are plants of temperate rain forests. These three plants all grow in Mediterranean (summer dry-winter wet) climates, although the Bull Run site is more or less in a transition zone, with many rainforest disjuncts also nearby.
The Bull Run area is a mosaic of bunchgrass grasslands, western red cedar forests, and Douglas fir/ninebark patches. The goldback ferns are in a basalt landslide with several shrubs including syringa, ninebark, ocean spray. Rocky Mountain maple, serviceberry, and thimbleberry. The other three sites are in Pacific northwest bunchgrass habitat, although the Little Canyon site also has scattered Douglas fir and ponderosa pine. The Dry Creek and Cave Gulch ferns both occur on small rock outcrops surrounded by grasslands.
Figure 1. Locations where goldback fern has been collected.
How did these plants come to be separated from the main distributions of their species? It is possible they had a more continuous distribution in the past, but the populations connecting Idaho and the west coast no longer exist. Alternatively, their spores may have dispersed from the west coast up the Columbia River Canyon to Idaho. Another possibility is that there may presently exist undocumented occurrences in the outcrops along the Columbia. Steep, mossy rocks are hard to explore, and future collectors may discover a more continuous distribution of goldback fern and the two associated mosses. Wilhelm Suksdorf collected Amphidium californicum around Bingen, Washington, which is about one third of the way up the Columbia toward Idaho.
Additional Reading
Daubenmire, R. 1970. Steppe Vegetation of Washington. Wash. Agric. Exp. Sta. Tech. Bull. No. 62. Pullman. 131 pages.
Moseley, R. K., and S. Bernatas. 1991. Confirmation of Pentagramma triangularis in Idaho. Am. Fem Joum. 81:66-67.
St. John, H. 1929. Notes on northwestern ferns. Am. Fern Joum. 19: 11-16.
Yatskievych, G. and M.D. Windham. 1993. Pentagramma triangularis subsp. triangularis, p. 151 in Flora of North America North of Mexico, Volume 2. Flora of North America Editorial Committee. New York. 475 pp.
Bartonberry and Hazel’s Prickly Phlox: Legacy of Hells Canyon
Homesteaders
Sarah Walker, White Pine Chapter
Contributions to botanical knowledge come from far and wide, as is illustrated by this story of the Barton family, who lived in Hells Canyon during the early homestead era. The appreciation Lenora Barton and her daughter Hazel shared for plants resulted in the discovery of two new species-bartonberry ( Rubus bartonianus ) and Hazel’s prickly phlox ( Leptodactylon pungens ssp. hazeliae). Hazel Barton Fleet wrote to me about the bartonberry, a beautiful shrub named in 1934 for her mother Lenora. Rubus bartonianus is now recognized as a globally rare species and is known only from Hells Canyon. Mrs. Fleet recalls:
In regards to the Barton berry. It is (or was) mostly around Battle Creek on the Oregon side of [the] Snake River. A botanist from a University in Salem, Oregon, Dr. Peck, wrote a book on Oregon plants, back in the 40’ s or 50’ s. I took samples for
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him. The shrub itself is graceful, the canes are similar to ninebark, the flowers are similar to wild roses with a delicate fragrance. It looks at a distance as if it was covered with butterflies. It grew mainly in rockslides. We left the canyon in ‘52 and at that time there was a plant in Steep Creek on the Idaho side of the river. It is rare! Dr. Peck said there was one similiar to it in the Grand Canyon in Arizona.
Dr. Peck was a professor of Biology at Willamette University in Salem from 1908 to 1941 and author of “ A Manual of the Higher Plants of Oregon.” When his friend Grover C. Bellinger brought him pieces of a lovely shrub from the Barton homestead. Dr. Peck journeyed to the remote homestead the next year to see for himself. He collected specimens and described the new species in the journal Rhodora in 1934, naming it bartonianus : “ It is a pleasure to dedicate this fine species to its real discoverer.” (Rhodora 36: 268). He inspired young Hazel about the plants of her canyon home. She began collecting, and in doing so discovered a new species of Leptodactylon (prickly phlox). Dr. Peck described it in 1936 and named it Leptodactylon hazelae: “ It is named for its intrepid collector, Miss Hazel Barton” (Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington 49:111). This plant is now recognized as globally rare. It was renamed Leptodactylon pungens ssp. hazeliae by Robert J. Meinke in 1988.
Hazel Barton Fleet now lives in eastern Oregon.
She describes herself as “ almost 84 years young.”
Clustered Lady’s-slipper: Rare Throughout the Western U.S.
Nan Vance, USD A Forest Service, PNW Research Station, Corvallis, OR
The clustered lady’ s-slipper ( Cypripedium fasciculatum Kellogg ex Watson) is a small perennial orchid found in forested habitats throughout the western United States. A rare species, C. fasciculatum is a candidate for listing by the state of Oregon, and is considered a species of concern by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). The Species of Concern category is applied to species that were formerly considered Category 2 candidates by the FWS.
Species with this rank are thought to warrant listing, but additional information is needed to support a proposal as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act. In addition, C. fasciculatum was classified in 1994 as a Survey and Manage species in the Final Supplemental Impact Statement/Record of Decision (FSEIS/ROD) on Management of Habitat for Late Successional and Old-Growth Forest Related Species within the Range of the Northern Spotted Owl. The FSEIS reported that under all alternatives for the Northwest Forest Plan, C. fasciculatum is considered at risk of extirpation.
I began research on this species in 1997. My primary research objectives are as follows:
To examine the effects of fire used in management prescriptions for stand management, fuels reduction, and habitat improvement;
To characterize habitats across the range of the species in conjunction with characterization of its genetic architecture;
To characterize populations and communities genetically across the range of the species.
With the collaboration and assistance of Forest Service botanists and other botanists and researchers, we have sampled 33 sites across the range of the species and have performed genetic analysis on 20 plants from each site. We also provided habitat questionnaires, which were filled out this summer and returned to us with information about the site, stand, vegetation, and habitat of the population sampled. This data is being analyzed this winter. The genetics analysis was performed in the lab, but final interpretation of the data has been delayed. We hope to have that completed this winter also. The fire research is underway, and we have pre-fire data taken on the plots and at the site. Other papers, such as the Master’s thesis of Dottie Knecht (1996) and Jack Greenlee’ s Conservation Assessment, provide excellent information about this species. We hope to contribute in the next few years to the pool of information already collected and to complement other studies underway.
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Populations of C. fasciculatum are found throughout the Klamath and Cascade Ranges in Washington, Oregon, and California, and in scattered locations in Wyoming, Idaho, Montana, Colorado, and Utah. Habitat varies throughout the range from moist Douglas fir forests in Oregon and dry pine woodlands of Washington, to serpentine landslides in California. Despite its wide range, C. fasciculatum has a patchy distribution, and populations are generally small. In drier locations, the microsite becomes very important. Near the South Fork of the Clearwater River, on a fairly open ridge populated by scattered tall ponderosa pine and Douglas fir in the overstory, the orchid can be found nestled under the small firs and under protective shrubs such as ninebark, serviceberry, and ocean spray. Conversely, in a deeply shaded stand of cedar on a moist site near the Selway River, the orchid is found in patchy openings, as is true of many other understory flowering plants.
Populations occurring east of the Cascades are often less than 50 aerial stems; however, in the past two years of abundant moisture in many areas of the West, populations have increased. Also, previously unrecorded populations and plants have been found in new areas. This increase may also be a function of more trained eyes out there looking!
Some aspects of the ecology and reproductive biology of C. fasciculatum are poorly understood. Germination is dependent on mycorrhizal associates for several months or years before aboveground growth begins; however, the nature of these fungal
associates is still unknown. This species does require an external vector for pollination, but we do not know if it is the same pollinator for all populations across its range. Recent isozyme work also suggests that the species is an obligate outcrosser (requires cross-pollination) with considerable gene flow
between populations. Its pollinators, low production of viable seeds, and seed dispersal could limit distribution of this species.
A study of the relationships of plants in small communities using repetitive sequences of DNA that can be amplified to detect genetic variation has identified the relatedness of plants mapped on the ground. The DNA data indicates that many plants between 1-3 cm apart are genetically identical and are therefore clones or ramets. However, we have also found plants as little as 3.5 cm apart that have considerable genetic distance from their neighbors. This suggests that sexual reproduction helps shape the genetic structure of small plant communities, and that outcrossing via pollination and seed dispersal is an integral component.
Isozyme analysis on populations sampled across the range of the orchid need further analysis before conclusions can be drawn; however, two tentative conclusions are suggested by the data. First, the genetic variation is consistent with that of other outcrossing species with greater genetic variation within populations than among populations. Second, the evidence suggests some inbreeding. How closely one population is genetically related to another does
Clustered lady’s-slipper ( Cypripedium fasciculatum) by Jeanne R. Janish
from Intermountain Flora: Vascular Plants of the Intermountain West, U S A , by A. Cronquist et at, 1984, The New York Botanical Garden Reprinted with permission from the Univ. of Wash Press.
Clustered Lady's-slippers are long-lived
Pete Stickney was intrigued by the rhizomes of Cypripedium fasciculatum specimens he was curating in the herbarium at MRC (USFS Region 1 Herbarium). The rhizome, or perennial underground stem, is composed of a series of closely packed nodes (one produced each year) that each show a scar of an aerial leafy stem and one principal root. The growth of this rhizome is sympodial, wherein the terminal bud gives rise to the aerial shoot (and its inflorescence) rather than to the extension of the rhizome. He counted nodes per inch on specimens from Idaho and Montana. Although he doesn’t know how typical those growth rates are, his counts suggest that individual Cypripedium plants may persist for some years (at least 13), and that rhizome growth can vary at least between 7 and 14 years per inch.
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not correspond necessarily with how close those populations are geographically. However, Utah, Wyoming, and Colorado populations show greater distance from the populations in Idaho, Montana, Washington, Oregon and California than they do from each other. This indicates a genetic break between the populations in Utah, Wyoming, and Colorado and the populations found in the other states.
The historical ecosystem processes that are thought to have provided habitat for this species have been altered. Fire suppression and fragmentation of habitat may contribute to population declines.
Wildfire is an integral component of western forests and a critical determinant of species composition and community and canopy structure throughout almost all of the forests within the orchid’ s range. Little information is available on the nature of historic fires and their direct effect on C. fasciculatum populations. Knecht (1996) found that fire burning with enough intensity to eliminate surface duff also eliminates the clustered lady’s-slipper rhizome. In addition, a significant decrease in fruit set was observed post-fire in a small population in Washington, presumably due to decreases in pollinator availability (Knecht 1996).
Several fire studies are underway to examine the relationship of fire to persistence of clustered lady’s- slipper individuals and to their ability to adapt to altered habitats. Plots have been established to monitor the plants exposed to broadcast burning and to spot-bums used to reduce understory fuels and create openings.
By autumn, the lady’s-slipper leaves senesce and the stem dries. Underneath the duff and litter the well formed bud, which resembles a small clove of garlic, awaits the conditions that will promote sprouting. In some cases the below-ground bud is close to the duff layer. If the meristematic tissue at that juncture with the root crown is damaged by fire, it is unlikely the plant can recover. For this reason, spring and summer bums would be far riskier to the plant than bums in fall, when the meristem is protected and least active.
My observations over the past several years have caused me to conclude that this is a species with the resilient characteristics of many perennials that live under a dynamic and changing overstory. However, its adaptive characteristics evolved over time in response to selection by natural processes and disturbances. The effects of human-introduced disturbances that may be limiting population size and distribution need to be examined, particularly with regard to intensive forest management activities and their effect on the life cycle (most importantly, the pollination vector) as well as the below-ground environment. I hope that in the next two years, we will have the genetics information coupled with research on the pollination biology to help develop a clearer picture of some of the important forces that shape the communities of this species.
Additional Reading
Greenlee, J. 1998. Cypripedium fasciculatum Conservation Assessment. USDA Forest Service, Region 1. Lolo National Forest, Missoula.
Knecht, D. 1996. The reproductive and population ecology of Cypripedium fasciculatum (ORCHID ACEAE) throughout the Cascade Range. M.S. Thesis. Central Washington University, Ellensburg.
Moonworts: A Taxonomic Puzzle
Linda Swartz, Department of Forest Resources, University of Idaho
The genus Botrychium has been the focus of increasing botanical interest in the last couple of decades. The one you are most likely to see is the common grape fern, Botrychium virginianum, the largest and most widespread member of the genus in North America. Grape ferns can be up to a couple of feet tall, and like all botrychiums they have only a single leaf, divided into two branches: a green, leafy, non-reproductive trophophore, and a sporophore bearing many round sporangia that turn yellow or brown as they mature. The clusters of sporangia reminded botanists of clusters of grapes (Greek botrys). This arrangement is rather different from the fronds of familiar ferns like the lady-fern. The sporangia are also fundamentally different, being thick walled, opening by a slit, and containing thousands of spores, while as you can easily see with a hand lens, those of lady-fern have thin walls with an annular ring that dramatically shoots out the 64 spores as they dry. In fact, some botanists have questioned whether botrychiums are ferns at all, and suggested that they are actually related more closely to cycads (seed plants) with whom they share several anatomical features.
So the attraction of Botrychium is mystery. The mystery that has been keeping botanists hopping in the Pacific Northwest is the members of the subgenus Botrychium , small plants called moonworts. Herb Wagner, of the University of Michigan, and others have described 15 new species in this subgenus since 1980, and more are being proposed. You will find only five moonworts in the “ Flora of the Pacific Northwest,” and even the Pteridophyte volume (Vol. 3) of the “ Flora of North America,” published in 1993, is already out of date. Moonworts are typically small (less than 6 inches tall), are often hidden under other vegetation, and the morphological differences between species can be subtle. They were not well represented in herbaria until botanists began crawling on their hands and knees to make larger collections in more areas. The difficulties of separating some species morphologically led the distinguished 16
Fall 1998 ♦> SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (4)
botanist Arthur Cronquist to assign the new species status as “ forms,” “ phases,” or “ allies” of Botrychium lunaria.
At the same time as we have been taking a closer look at our local floras and finding plants that haven’t been collected before, molecular techniques have been developed that open a window on differences in genes and gene products between species. This new knowledge has added to the criteria traditionally used to distinguish species. Donald Farrar at Iowa State has analyzed enzymes that are
part of fundamental metabolic pathways in moonworts. Different forms of these enzymes, called isozymes, characterize different species. He is working on a region-wide study of moonworts from the Pacific Northwest. Preliminary work shows that Botrychium minganense, which is so morphologically variable that it has been suggested it might represent up to a dozen different species, shows the same suite of enzymes across North America. Farrar found that isozymically, Botrychium montanum, a species on the sensitive plant list in the Forest Service’ s Region 1, is extremely close to the similar sensitive species Botrychium mormo found in the Midwest. However, almost all the other recently described moonworts from the region were at least as distinct as different species of angiosperms. A couple of entities in Farrar’ s Alaska collections appear to be something new. Both splitters and lumpers will find new ammunition in this work.
I have been working on a much more narrowly focused research project at the University of Idaho,
using a genetic marker. Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD), to characterize genetic differences between two sensitive Botrychium species that are often confused, Botrychium minganense and Botrychium crenulatum. Forest managers need to know which is which, because B. minganense has been found with more intensive surveys to be common enough to be proposed for delisting, while B. crenulatum is much more rare and is accorded a higher degree of protection. The advantage of RAPD markers for comparing species is that they sample variability throughout an organism’s genetic material, or genome. Although you don’ t know what part of the genome you are looking at (that’s the random part), you can generate as many different reproducible marker bands as necessary to find patterns that distinguish closely related organisms.
It’ s a form of genetic fingerprinting. Isozymes, by contrast, are not as variable (two species could have the same enzyme forms), but much more is known about the genes that produce them. My preliminary results show that like the isozyme patterns, RAPD markers easily distinguish B. minganense and B. crenulatum , and in addition RAPD profiles vary between populations and individuals.
Many moonwort species are on the sensitive list because few populations are known. Some will be delisted as surveys turn up new populations, but some are very rare, and it is not always obvious why their populations should be small and scattered when suitable-looking habitat is mostly not occupied. Species on the INPS rare plant list are, approximately in order of rarity: B. lineare, B. pedunculosum, B. paradoxum, B. ascendens, B. crenulatum, B. montanum, B. lanceolatum var. lanceolatum, B. pinnatum, B. simplex, B. minganense, and B. lunaria.
Water Howellia: Rare Throughout the Northwest
Peter Lesica, Montana Natural Heritage Program
Habitat loss or degradation is widely acknowledged as the most important factor causing the extinction of species today; however, some species are naturally more likely to become extinct than others. Species become prone to extinction when their habitat is subject to rapid change. Plants that occur in many different habitats will likely persist in at least a few sites, but those with restricted ecological niches may be lost. Species may also be able to adapt to habitat changes by evolving ways to cope with the changes; however, the ability to adapt depends on having ample genetic variation among the members of the population. Species are also more likely to go
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Fall 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (4)
extinct by chance alone if the number of individuals periodically declines precipitously, even if the average population size is high. Water howellia is one such plant.
Water howellia ( Howellia aquatilis', Family Campanulaceae) comprises a monotypic genus in the Pacific Northwest. It is an annual aquatic plant, dependent on yearly recruitment from the seed bank. Seeds germinate in the fall, growth begins in the spring, and plants grow up through the water column. Flower production starts below the surface of the water in early summer and continues after the stems have reached the water’ s surface.
Flowers produced under water never open, while those above the water are small and white with the distinctive shape of garden lobelias. Water howellia is known from widely scattered locations in northern California, western and eastern Washington, northern Idaho, and northwestern Montana. It is thought to be extinct in western Oregon.
Water howellia is a habitat specialist, with low genetic variation and frequently fluctuating population sizes, and thus is particularly prone to extinction. Water howellia has very restrictive ecological requirements. It requires shallow, organic substrates and pond water with relatively low concentrations of dissolved solids.
More importantly, it can persist only in ponds that reliably have water early in the growing season but dry by late summer. These ephemeral ponds are necessary because howellia is an annual that requires an aquatic environment to grow and produce seed, but seeds need an aerobic environment to germinate. It appears that howellia forms only a short-lived seed bank. Experiments indicate that howellia seeds remain viable for less than one year in dried ponds and probably only two to three years in continuously flooded ponds. Thus, periods of wet or dry weather have the potential to drive population sizes to very low levels.
Studies using molecular genetics indicate that howellia possesses very low levels of genetic variation both within and among populations throughout its range. This unusual finding suggests that the establishment of widely scattered populations was relatively recent on a geologic time scale. The levels of genetic variation may also be due to the predominance of self-pollination in this species.
As the climate changes, for natural or man-caused reasons, some ponds that now support howellia
populations may become too wet or too dry. It is likely that howellia will not have the genetic variation to adapt to rapid changes. In the face of long-term environmental change, howellia may be able to persist only in areas where migration between ponds of different depths is possible.
Climate change is just one of the threats faced by water howellia. All populations are threatened by habitat alteration due to invasion by reed canarygrass ( Phalaris arundinacea). This robust grass generally forms monocultures, reducing or eliminating other wetland species. In Idaho and Montana, ponds supporting populations of Howellia aquatilis occur in a matrix of coniferous forest. These forests are being disturbed and altered by timber harvesting and concomitant road building. These activities could alter pond sediment composition as well as the hydrology of the entire area. Furthermore, these disturbances are likely to introduce invasive exotics into areas where they do not now occur. One of the eastern Washington sites, the northern Idaho site, and parts of the Montana metapopulation are privately owned or surrounded by private land. Residential development has occurred in all three areas, and the increased impacts of human activity, such as motorized vehicle use, waste disposal, pumping of ground water, and road-building, are likely to degrade howellia habitat. The two largest sites in Washington as well as some ponds in Montana are subject to grazing by livestock. Overgrazing has the potential to change pond substrates by compaction and may alter water chemistry by addition of nutrients. Livestock grazing will also promote the transport and establishment of weedy species into the population areas.
In 1991 the Biodiversity Legal Foundation, the Swan View Coalition, and Peter Lesica filed a petition to list water howellia under the federal Endangered Species Act. It was listed as a threatened species under the act in July, 1994. A recovery plan for howellia is currently being written.
Additional Reading
Lesica, P. 1992. Autecology of the endangered plant,
Howellia aquatilis : Implications for management and reserve design. Ecol. Appl. 2:411-421.
Lesica, P. 1997. Spread of Phalaris arundinacea (reed canarygrass) adversely impacts the endangered plant Howellia aquatilis. Great Basin Nat. 57:366-368.
Lesica, P., R. F. Leary, F. W. Allendorf, and D. W. Bilderback. 1988. Lack of genic diversity within and
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Fall 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (4)
among populations of an endangered plant, Howellia aquatilis. Cons. Biol. 2:275-282.
Mantas, M. (ed.). 1998. Forum on research and management of Howellia aquatilis. Flathead National Forest, Kalispell, Montana.
Shelly, J. S. and R. Moseley. 1988. Report on the conservation status of Howellia aquatilis, a candidate threatened species. Unpublished report to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Denver, Colorado. Montana Natural Heritage Program, Helena.
Wetlands of the Yellowstone Plateau Spring Creeks: A Unique Habitat for Some of Idaho’s Rare Plants
Rose Lehman, Targhee National Forest
Many headwaters of the Henry’ s Fork of the Snake River, located on the Yellowstone Plateau in the northern part of southeast Idaho, are groundwater spring creeks related to the rhyolite flows of the Yellowstone Plateau. These are considered by some to be one of the most unique sets of stream conditions anywhere in the western United States. Snowmelt on the plateau sinks down into the ground rather than running off as surface flow and reappears in a series of large springs and spring complexes at the base of the plateau. A study was started by a Henry’ s Fork Foundation research associate to study this system. The objective of this study is to develop a quantitative understanding of the processes that affect the flow and properties of water discharged in the springs, specifically Big Springs, Buffalo River, Chick Creek, Moose Creek Springs, Lucky Dog Springs, and Warm River Springs.
The upland vegetation of the plateau is predominately lodgepole pine. In the last 20+ years, this area has experienced large-scale alterations in forest age due to clearcutting on National Forest lands and the 1988 Yellowstone fires. No one really knows if or how the large change in the age of the forest has affected the groundwater springs that appear at the base of the plateau. It is an interesting question, because in some areas of the springs, flooding of dry areas was noticed in the late 1970s, about the time that beetle-kill of lodgepole pines and subsequent large-scale logging occurred.
Associated with some of these springs are wetlands that are excellent examples of plant community types and home to some of Idaho’s rare plants. In 1996, Mabel Jankovsky-Jones of the Conservation Data Center completed a “ Conservation Strategy for Henry’s Fork Basin Wetlands.” Many of the wetlands that she included are a part of the Yellowstone Plateau Springs Creek system. Some of these areas are now considered Special Management Areas by the Targhee National Forest because of their excellent
contribution to native plant diversity conservation. There is much to be learned from these areas.
One of the Special Management Areas that is a part of the unique Yellowstone Plateau Spring Creeks system is the spring complex below the Big Springs- Henry’ s Fork confluence. The goal of a Special Management Area is to manage and protect the area specifically for its unique botanical resource. This may include providing educational opportunities for the public and research opportunities for resource managers and academics and not allowing such things as grazing, development of recreation areas, or timber harvest that may degrade the site.
The most enjoyable way to see this area is to take a canoe trip through the wetlands along the Henry’s Fork. The water is gentle and crystal -clear, and the wildlife viewing is spectacular (e.g. moose, sandhill cranes, osprey, and bald eagles). This wetland complex is dominated by the beaked sedge ( Carex utriculata ) community type and willows, especially Geyer’s ( Salix geyeriana) and Booth’s ( Salix boothii) willows along the stream channel and Wolf’ s willow ( Salix wolfii) away from the channel. There are also many other wetland plant communities in this area, and a great diversity of native plants can be found. This is one of the best places to see Buxbaum’s sedge ( Carex buxbaumii), a rare plant that is very common here. Hooded ladies-tresses ( Spiranthes romanzoffiana ), not a rare plant but a look-alike of the threatened Ute ladies-tresses ( Spiranthes diluvialis), is also very common here and in other wetlands of the Henry’s Fork headwaters. This wetland complex is the only known home in southern Idaho of the rare bulb-bearing water- hemlock ( Cicuta bulbifera). This population is disjunct by over 350 miles from other occurrences in Idaho.
The wetland complex below the Big Springs- Henry’ s Fork Complex is only one example of the wetlands unique to this area, but it is one of the best to visit because of its great access via canoe.
Draft Southeast Oregon Resource Management Plan-Comment Period
Open Ann DeBolt, Boise District, Bureau of Land Management
The Draft Southeast Oregon Resource Management Plan (RMP)/Environmental Impact Statement was signed on October 30, 1998; there is a 120-day comment period. The due date for comments is March 1, 1999.
There are numerous new Areas of Critical Environmental Concern (ACECs) and Research Natural Areas (RNAs) proposed, as well as additions
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Fall 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (4)
to existing ones, within the three Resource Areas covered by the plan. Several are proposed to be dropped as well. The RMP encompasses approximately 6.3 million acres, so it is a huge land mass with lots of rare plants. The RMP area includes Succor Creek and its ash endemics, the Owyhee River, the Steens Mountains, and Leslie Gulch ACEC, to name but a few of the spectacular places.
Two of the Resource Areas (Malheur and Jordan) are administered by the Vale District, while the other Resource Area (Andrews) is administered by the Bums District office of the BLM. The entire document is on the web at <http://www.or.blm.gov/vale>.
For further information contact: Gary Cooper, Vale District Office, 100 Oregon Street, Vale, OR 97918, (541) 473-3144, or Glenn Patterson, Bums District Office, HC74- 12533, Hwy. 20 West, Hines,
OR 97738, (541) 573-4400.
INPS members are encouraged to write letters of support for RNA/ACEC designations and a continued strong rare plant program
Chapter News
Calypso Chapter
Several members hiked to the Roman Nose Lakes (6,000 feet elevation) in August. Many of the plants they saw blooming here last year were over, probably because of the hot dry summer. They revisited last year’ s Sitka clubmoss ( Diphasiastrum sitchense) site and reported no changes for this sensitive species, which is known in Idaho from Boundary, Bonner, and Idaho counties. Members practiced keying out plants on their own, in the absence of the chapter’ s botanists. In September an evening meeting topic was “ Bristle Cone Pines: Stories of the Old” with Brian Miller.
Other news: Mark Mousseaux is resigning from both chapter president and society vice president positions. The chapter is meeting to decide how to proceed. Editor Dave Noble expects to turn the newsletter over to Peggy Faust by the end of the year.
Kinnikinnick Chapter
The chapter held an evening meeting in September to learn about growing huckleberries from Dr. Danny Barney, a mushroom hike with the Bull River Nature Education Program in October, and an October get-together on “ Wildcraft: Native Materials for Fall Crafts.”
Pahove Chapter
The chapter met in November for a presentation on propagating native plants, with Mark Nilsson.
White Pine Chapter
In September the chapter toured the University of Idaho Forest Research Nursery with member Sue Morrison. After a potluck lunch in the nursery’s arboretum, the chapter elected new officers: President, Merrill Conitz; Treasurer, Jonalea Tonn; Secretary, Mary Conitz. Bertie Weddell remains Vice President.
News and Notes
New plants are being discovered at a very high rate
according to a recent article (“A Flowering of Finds for American Botanists,” U.S. News and World Report, November 16, 1998). University of Wyoming botanists Ronald Hartman and B.E. Nelson say that between 1975 and 1994, scientists have described 1,197 new plants from North America-about 60 new plants a year. Since new discoveries are not compiled in one place, but in scattered journals, “even most botanists believe that the plant flora of North America north of Mexico has been well catalogued” (Barbara Ertter, Curator of western North American flora at the University of Califomia-Berkeley). The article says that “most new plants are discovered in remote, isolated habitats that differ in some way from the larger surrounding landscape-a sand-stone outcrop jutting from a limestone ridge, for example. Geologically diverse, rugged, and settled more recently than the rest of the nation, the Western and Southeastern United States contain many such unexplored microhabitats, so it is not surprising that the majority of discoveries occur in these regions.” Other new plants have been found along highways, in cities, and on military reservations. The article states that new plants are apt to be rare endemics, and therefore more at risk. Ertter, who estimates that there are still nearly 2,000 undescribed flowering plants in North America north of Mexico, fears that some new species will go extinct before they can be thoroughly studied, saying “It’s inexcusable to allow a species to go extinct out of ignorance.” The article features a photograph of Arnold Tiehm, who has found 19 new species in Nevada.
Montana Native Plant Conference. March 25-26, Salish Kootenai College Campus in Pablo, MT. Agenda items: Native American cultural plant issues and traditional knowledge; rare plant, plant community, and natural areas conservation; promotion and use of native plant materials for ecological restoration. There will be workshops, demonstrations, and displays. Presentations are
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Membership/Renewal Form
Idaho Native Plant Society
The Idaho Native Plant Society (INPS) is dedicated to promoting interest in native plants and plant communities to collecting and sharing information on all phases of the botany of native plants in Idaho, including educating the public to the values of the native flora and its habitats. Membership is open to anyone interested in our native flora.
Send dues to Steve Rust, Treasurer, 1201 N. 24th, Boise, ID 83702, and all correspondence to INPS, Box 9451, Boise, ID 83707
Category . Patron . Individual . Household *
, Student . Senior Citizen
Annual Dues, payable Jan. 1 $30 $10 $15 $7 $7
Name
Address
City/State
Zip
Telephone
Email address
Is this a renewal or a new membership
Chapter affiliation? (check one)
Calypso (Coeur d’Alene; please include $6 newsletter dues)
Kinnikinnick (Sandpoint)
Pahove (Boise)
Sah-Wah-Be (SE Idaho)
White Pine (Moscow)
Wood River (Ketchum-Sun Valley; please include $7 chapter dues)
None. Those who do not live near a chapter are encouraged to join. We can put you in
touch with other members in your area, and can coordinate with you on any state level activities you may wish to be involved in.
* Household memberships are allocated two votes
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Fall 1998 ❖ SAGE NOTES ❖ A Publication of the Idaho Native Plant Society Vol. 20 (4)
invited-send an abstract (200 words) by January 15 to Steve Shelly, USFS, PO Box 7669, Missoula, MT (or email <shelly_steve/rl@fs.fed.us>).
Vernal Pool Ecosystems Conference Proceedings. Thirty papers from a 1996 conference sponsored by the California Native Plant Society, the Western Section of the Wildlife Society, and the California Chapter of the Society for Ecological Restoration.
285 pages, $20. Order from CNPS, 1722 J Street,
Suite 17, Sacramento, CA 95814.
BC Ministry of Forests Publications available on the Web. Most or all of its many publications are free of charge. This includes material which you have to pay for to get printed and bound. Literally hundreds of botanical, lichenological, bryological, and silvicultural titles, as well as titles on ecosystem management, plant communities, economics, visuals, you name it. Something for everyone! Go to <www.publications.gov.bc.ca> and click “ Forests” to get an alphabetical listing that you can query.
Slides Needed
It’s the time of year when looking at slides of our rare plants, with all their uniqueness and beauty, can both help us through a cloudy winter and inspire us to help protect these species. It is also the time of year to organize the annual Rare Plant Conference. The Idaho Conservation Data Center is looking for duplicate slides of tracked rare plants for presentation at the Rare Plant Conference and for many other purposes.
The following is a list of Globally Rare species for which we are lacking slides or merely have poor quality photos. There are also many other plants, mosses, and lichens on the State Rare list without slides, and we always welcome more good quality slides of any species. If you have recently sent us slides of any of these species, thank you. They may still be awaiting filing at Conservation Data Center. Thanks for your help!
Please send your slide copies to: Chris Murphy, Conservation Data Center, Idaho Fish and Game, 600 South Walnut, Box 25, Boise, ID 83707.
Globally Rare Vascular Plants Astragalus cusickii var. packardiae, Botrychium ascendens, B. crenulatum, B. montanum, B. lineare, B. paradoxum, Camissonia palmeri, Cryptantha caespitosa, Eriogonum capistratum var. welshii, Juncus tweedyi, Mimulus ampliatus, M. hymenophyllus, M. patulus, Poa abbreviata var. marshii.
What Does that Mean? A Glossary of Terms
angiosperm-flowering plant.
anthropogenic-relating to the influence of human beings on nature.
canopy structure-heights and coverages of different life forms (herb, shrub, tree) of the plant community, connate-joined together.
disjunct-separated by significant distance and unoccupied habitat from a range in which the taxon is widely distributed and common.
endemic-restricted to a relatively small and definable area, extirpation-disappearance of a species from a locality or region without becoming extinct; local extinction, fragmentation-the changing from continuous habitat to unconnected patches.
genetic drift- random gene frequency changes that are due to chance alone.
glabrous-smooth, without hairs, isozyme-any of two or more chemically distinct but functionally similar enzymes.
meristem-plant tissue where growth occurs, such as root
tips and buds.
mesic-moist.
morphologi c-relating to form and structure, mycorrhizal associates-underground fungi that provide plants with soil nutrients.
oolitic-derived from rock consisting of small round grains
usually of calcium carbonate cemented together. Oolitic
deposits are generally found in the vicinity of ancient
shoreline environments.
orogeny-the process of forming mountains.
ramet-individual plant of a clone.
refugium-an area of relatively unaltered climate that is
inhabited by plants and animals during a period of continental
climatic change (as a glaciation) and remains as a center of
relict forms from which a new dispersion and speciation may
take place after climatic readjustment
rhyolite-a type of very pale volcanic rock, with the same
composition as granite.
senesce-grow old.
terrane-rock mass of common origin and history. An exotic terrane is distinctly different from surrounding terranes and has moved from its original position, vector-transport mechanism, agent, vicariance-causes of geographic isolation. Examples: continental drift, mountain building, and sea level changes.
Globally Rare Brvophvtes Bryum calobryoides, Cladonia andereggii, Sphaerocarphos hians, Orthotrichum holzingeri.
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Sage Notes is published in February, May, September, and December by the Idaho Native Plant Society, incorporated since 1977, under the laws of the State of Idaho. Editor, Sarah Walker; Technical Editor, Bertie Weddell; Circulation Manager, Juanita Lichthardt; Contributing Editor, Karen Gray. Newsletter ads: personal ads $2; commercial ads $5 for 1/8 page, $8 for 1/4 page, $15 for 1/2 page, and $25 for full page. Ads should be sent with payment. Submissions: members and others are invited to submit material for publication. Articles in any form, even hand-written, are welcome, as is art work. Please provide a phone number in case there are questions. Material will not be returned. Send submissions directly to the editor, Sarah Walker, PO Box 69, Peck, ID 83545, (208) 486-6231 or <dspeck@clearwater.net>. Submission deadlines are January 1, April 1, August 1, and November 1.
Officers: President, VACANT; Vice Resident, VACANT; Secretary, Leonard Lake; Treasurer, Steve Rust; Member-at-large, Loring Jones; Past President, Kristin Fletcher; Rare Plant Conference Committee Chair, Nancy Cole; Conservation Committee Chair, Juanita Lichthardt; Newsletter Editor, Sarah Walker. Calypso Chapter, P.O. Box 331, Careywood, ED 83809. President, VACANT; Vice President, VACANT; Secretary, Phil Hruskocy; Treasurer, Janet Benoit; Newsletter, Dave Noble. Kinnikinnick Chapter, PO Box 578, Sandpojnt^ ID 83864. President, Gretchen Hellar; Vice President, Dallas -Secretary,
Sylvia Chatbum; Treasurer, Beverly Haft?- Newsletter Editors, Phil & Michael Franklin; Programs, Valle Novak; Held Trips; Joyce Pence; Arboretum, Lois Wythe. Pahove Chapter, PO Box 945L Boise, ID 83707. President, VACANT; Vice President, Kay Beall; Secretary - Treasurer, Steve Rust Sah-Wah-Be Chapter, 603 Willard, Pocatello, ID 83201. President, Ruth Moorhead; Vice President, Brian Schuetz; Secretary, Barbara Nicholls; Treasurer, {ferry , .Xtf£shreciit; Board Representative, Karl Holte. White Pine Chapterjflj Box 8481, kfosetw, ID 83843. President, Merrill Conitz^VJ^qJPrfeideBt, Bertie W’eddell; Secretary, Mary Conitz; Treasurer, Jonailea Tonn; Publicity, Janet Campbell; Newsletter, Nancy Miller; Past President, Roger Blanchard. Wood River Chapter, PO Box 3093, Hailey, ID 83333. President, Dick Springs; Vice President, Joanne Vassar; Secretary-Treasurer, Jo Ann Robbins; Member-at-large, Carol Blackburn.
The Idaho Native Plant Society (INPS) is dedicated to promoting interest in native plants and plant communities and to collecting and sharing information on all phases of the botany of native plants in Idaho, including educating the public to the values of the native flora and its habitats. In keeping with our mission, it is the intent of the INPS to educate its membership and the public about current conservation issues that affect Idaho’s native flora and habitats. Membership is open to anyone interested in our native flora. Send dues to Steve Rust, Treasurer, 1201 N. 24th, Boise, ID 83702, and all correspondence to INPS, Box 9451, Boise, ID 83707
Category
Patron
Individual
Household *
Student
Senior Citizen
Name
Address
City/State .
Zip
Annual Dues, payable Jan. 1 $30 $10 $15 $7 $7
. Telephone .
Chapter affiliation? (check one)
2 Calypso (Coeur d’Alene; please include $6 newsletter dues)
Kinnikinnick (Sandpoint)
Pahove (Boise)
_ Sah-Wah-Be (SE Idaho)
White Pine (Moscow)
__ Wood River (Ketchum-Sun Valley; please include $7 chapter dues)
- - - None. Those who do not live near a chapter are encouraged to join. We can put ,you in touch with other members in your area, and can coordinate with you on any state level activities you may wish to be involved in.
* Household memberships are allocated two votes.
Idaho Native Plant Society P.O. Box 9451 Boise, ID 83707
Non Profit Organization U.S. Postage Paid Moscow, ID 83843 Permit No. 471
New York Botanical Garden Library G558 Serials & Exchng. Bronx, NY 10458-5126
W Reminder— don’t let your membership lapse! December is renewal month.
Use the form in this issue to send in your renewal today.