Orobanche Corymbosa, A
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Kelseya uniflora ---* CI Vol 6, No 4 eItey SUMMEN 1993 Newsletter ol the lfontana Natlve Plant OROBANCHE CORYMBOSA, A ''LOW PROFILE" MONTANA NATIVE - Judy Hoy Historically, Orobanche corymbosa (flattopped broomrape) Except on the hillside between Willoughby Creek and has succeeded in maintaining a low profile in Montana, Sunset Bench were it was first found, the plants are scattered figuratively as well as literally. and not abundant, so finding lhem takes a sharp eye and a UntilAugust 1992, this inconspicuous little plant had been fair amount of searching. recorded from only two or three sites in the state of Montana. This broomrape apparently responded to the heavy early Consequently, it was classified as an 51 species by the July rains which occurred in western Montana in 1992. lts Montana Natural Heritage floral spikes began pushing up Program, a rating given to a through the ground the first part of plant which has been reported August. Most of 1992's blossoms did from five or fewer sites in the not have time to mature before the state. late August frost. only a few plants O. arymbosa belongs to the were found with mature seed pods. Orobanchaceae (Broomrape The frost turned the entire floral Family), all of whose members spike bright rust red or burnt sienna are parasitic leafless herbs color. These dried rust red floral which grow on the roots of other parts could still be found near big plants. Plants in this group do sagebrush plants in late fall and not contain chlorophyll and so ffi ranged in height from one to four are not green. The roots of o. inches. corymbosa invade the roots of illustration lrom Hitchcock et al, Wth careful examination of the Artemisia tridentata (Big sage- Vascular Plants of the Pacttlc Nonhwest dried floral parts, O. corymbosa e,an brush), from which it derives all easily be distinguished from the dried of its nutrients and water. floraf spikes of other species ol Orobanche, especially the ln late July and early. August, the pale spike-like fairfy widespred O. fasciculata (common broomrape). O. inflorescence pushes up through the soil. The ailractive fasciculata is parasitic on several species of Artemisia yellow and purple flowers open just above ground, ranging (incfuding A. tridentata) and so is found in the same areas as from three to eight inches in height. At maturity, the oval O. corymbosa. seed capsules split and release tiny spore-like seeds" The prolonged rainy season Montana is experiencing in In August of 1992, 50 to 60 plants of flattopped broomrape 1993 will no doubt mean another banner year for this species. were found on a south-facing, sagebrush covered hillside in Flattopped broomrape seems to be most abundant in areas the Bitterroot drainage, between Willoughby Creek and the top with older stands of A. tridentata, on south or southwest of Sunset Bench. Since that discovery, several botanists and facing slopes. Anyone finding O. cor-ymbosa in counties amateur plant enthusiasts have done surveys for O" other than Deerlodge and Ravalli should send complete data corymbosa. Their findings indicate .that it can be found lo the Montana Natural Heritage Program, 1515 E 6th Av, wherever A. tridentata grows in the foothills of the Sapphire Helena MT 59620. Mountains, on the east side of the Bitterroot River. lt was also found on the West Fork of lhe Bittenoot River in Ravalli Judy Hoy has a ranch in the Bittenoot Valley, and is a lrequent Gounty. Botanists in Deerlodge County report finding O. contributor to KELSEYA, including 'A Bittenoot Valley Refugium lor corymbosa there after being alerted to watch for it. Dryland Species," and "Rediscovering Lost Species." MNPS Sixth Annual Meeting: ALPINE WILDFLOWERS OF THE GRAVELLY RANGE Registration fee is $10.00 FRIDAY, JULY 23 ALPINE WILDFLOWER Books Availabte 7:30 pm Registration and slide show of alpine areas and Instead of having a silent auction, we will be selling wildflowers in the Nortfrern Rockies autographed copies of Alpine Wildflowers of the Rocky Mountains by Duft and Moseley, and limited edition SATURDAY, JULY 24 Gravelly Range t-shirts to raise money for tre state coffers. 7:00 am Board of Directors Meeting (over breaKast at Wall Creek) MOTEL/CABIN ACCOMMODATIONS 8:00 am Breakf,ast on your own (coffee, hot chocolate, The Upper Madison gets tourist sweet rolls will be provided) healy traffic all summer recommend you make Regisfation - reservation inquiries as soon as possiblel 9:00 am Head for the Hillsl Carpool to the Gravelly Ridge Road at 10,000 ft (bring a lunch, warm clothes, Motels in Ennis (about 20 miles north of Wall Creek); rain gear, field guides, camera etc,) prices are for two persons for one night: 10:30am Field Trips - Meet on Gravelly Ridge Road. There El Western (ffi2-4217\ $65 will be three tips of varying difficulty: Hickey's Four Seasons Motel (682-4:|78) $,35-40 (1) climb Black Butte or Cave Mountain, a gain of (kitchen units available, add $4) about 1500 vertical feet; Rainbow Valley Motel (682-4264) $50-5s (2) Big Horn Mtn. a gentle climb and 3-4 mile (kitchen units available) hike; or RiversideMotel (682-4240, 1-800-53s-4139) $38-48 (3) Short hikes off of Gravelly Ridge Road - (kitchen units available) suitable for children, photographers and less Silvertip Lodge (682-21384) $35 vigorous adults. Trips will be led by Bob Moseley, (all rooms have reftigerators) Steve Cooper and Peter Lesica. Sportsmans Lodge (682-4242) $38-45 4:00 pm Return to Wall Creek Near Cameron: 6:00 pm Supper on your own Madison Valley Gabins (682-4890) $32 7:30 pm General membership meeting (located 10 miles north of Wall Creek) 9:00 pm Campfire - S'Mores and Ghost Stories (bring your Beartooth Lodge (682-7525) 95s scariest tale) (located 4 miles ftom Wall Creek) SUNDAY, JULY 25 8:00 am Breakhst on your own (coffee, hot chocolate, sweet rolls will be provided) 9:00 am Committee meetings 1.1 :30am Lunch on your own 12:00pm Madison Valley field trip (a short hike to look at wildflowers on the valley floor 3:00 pm Break camp and cleanup HO}V TO GET THEBE The meeting will be held at the Wall Creek Witdtife Management Area, roughly 20 miles south of Ennis, just west of the Madison River. The main building will be available for activities in case of rain. Camping is allowed on the premises. Large trailers can find accommodations half a mile east at BLM's West Madison Recreation Area on the river. Fishing and hiking are alternate activities for those not interested in wildflowers. FOOD Please note that no food will be provided except coffee, hot chocolate and sweet rolls for breaKast. A microwave oven is available at Wall Creek WMA The Blue Moon Saloon and Restaurant, seven miles north at Cameron, seryes meals and is reasonably priced. The nearest grocery is in Ennis; Cameron has a convenience store. Drinking water is available at the camping area. Page 2 KELSEYA, Summer 1993 PEOPLE CHANGE - SO DO PI.ANT COMMUNITIES Richard A Prodgers Do you ever think back and conclude, "l was a different species responses. Notice also that the years of minimum person then"? Or meet a friend from bygone days and find and maximum crop are different in some cases. that they - or you - are hardly recognizable in comparison Now, let's consider how similar floristically the same to memories? Of course. Parole boards reflect society's community was over a four-year period. This time we'll consensus that people change. use canopy-coverage data (an ocular estimate) collected lf integrated organisms like people change over time, by the same investigator at the same twenty 20x5ocm plots how about plant communities? Plant species combine in at the same time of year. This time we'll consider all recognizable, more-or-less definite communities. the species, not just the dominant grasses. We'll need a "more or less" qualifier refers to the level of homogeneity formula (or index) to compare data sets, and the one we'll present in communities, and the distinctness of boundaries use is: with other communities. Mapping plant communities is an 2C interesting exercise that focuses your mind on some Similarity = ------- x 100 fundamental questions about the nalure of vegetation. A+B While no vegetation map can do justice to the complicated where: pattern .of species distributions and abundances, maps A = Average total canopy-coverage, year A; have undeniable utility. B = Average total canopy-coverage, year B; We know that plant communities vary in space, but how C = Amount of species in common, years A and B. do they vary in time? This is a complicated question, with This is a good similarity index because when you many answers, Some believe that change is change, compare a data set to itself, it is 10% similar, which is not nothing more. Others think they see directional changes, true for some indices. All similarity indices have some proceeding toward or away from climax plant communities. problems, such as the assumption that species are equally Classifications such as habikt types or range conditions different, but we can live with that for now. are based on models of plant succession. We are considering the similarity of "a community" to We would expect the greatest changes in plant itself over a four year period. Similarity was highest (847o) communities to occur where relatively short-lived species in the consecutive years of 1980 and 1981 . However, data inhabit a variable environment. Here in Montana, we from 1978 and 1981 revealed only a 67% similarity.