PROC. N.S. INST. SCI. (2008) Volume 44, Part 2, pp. 109-123 NEW DISTRIBUTION RECORDS FOR FLOWERING PLANTS IN ANTIGONISH COUNTY, NOVA SCOTIA BARRY R. TAYLOR, JONATHAN FERRIER, RANDOLPH LAUFF, DAVID J. GARBARY* Department of Biology St. Francis Xavier University P.O. Box 5000 Antigonish, Nova Scotia B2G 2W5 Distributions of over 50 species of flowering plants from Antigonish County, Nova Scotia are presented based on collections made primarily over the last ten years. Some of these are new county records representing range extensions from the western and central parts of the province. Many are new records for the eastern mainland and north shores of the province. Rare species discussed are Asclepias incarnata, Comandra umbellata and Triosteum aurantiacum. Several species, including Asparagus officinalis, Centaurea cyanus, Lathyrus latifolius, Lysimachia nummularia, and Origanum vulgare, likely represent recent or older garden escapes. Sedum ochroleucum is reported outside of cultivation for the first time from Nova Scotia, based on a single population that has been established for at least two years. On décrit la répartition de plus de 50 espèces d’angiospermes dans le comté d’Antigonish (Nouvelle-Écosse), d’après des collectes effectuées essentiellement les dix dernières années. Il s’agit parfois de nouveaux cas signalés dans le comté, représentant des prolongements de l’aire de répartition depuis l’ouest et le centre de la province et, dans bien d’autres cas, de nouveaux signalements pour l’est de la péninsule et les côtes nord de la province. Les espèces rares présentées sont Asclepias incarnata, Comandra umbellata et Triosteum aurantiacum. Plusieurs espèces comme Asparagus officinalis, Centaurea cyanus, Lathyrus latifolius, Lysimachia nummularia et Origanum vulgare sont vraisemblablement des plantes échappées de cultures. Sedum ochroleucum est signalé pour la première fois à l’état sauvage en Nouvelle-Écosse, dans une seule population établie depuis au moins deux ans. INTRODUCTION Nova Scotia has a long history of floristic study (e.g., Macoun 1889) that culminated in the floras by Roland and Smith (1966, 1969) and its most recent revision by M. Zinck (Roland 1998). The extensive collections on which this flora is based are housed primarily in the E.C. Smith and Roland Herbaria (ACAD and NSAC; herbarium abbreviations follow Holmgren and Holmgren (1998)) with important additional collections also housed in the Nova Scotia Museum (NSPM). These collections provided the basic floristic and distributional information on which Roland (1998) is based. Despite this wealth of collections, the flora of several parts of the province, including Antigonish County, is incompletely known. * Author to whom correspondence should be addressed E-mail: [email protected] 110 TAYLOR, FERRIER, LAUFF AND GARBARY Over the last ten years there has been a concerted effort to enlarge the Herbarium at St Francis Xavier University (STFX) to provide a reference collection of vascular plants for the eastern and northern mainland of Nova Scotia. Most groups are well represented in STFX, except for the Poaceae to which only a limited collecting effort has been devoted. Two extensive studies on flowering phenology were carried out in the fall of 2001 and fall and early winter of 2005-06 (Taylor & Garbary 2003, 2007). Here we report on plant collections that represent new distributions for Antigonish County or plants considered rare in Nova Scotia for which we have discovered significant populations in the County. MATERIALS AND METHODS Unless noted otherwise, all of the collections referred to in this paper are based on voucher specimens deposited in the Herbarium of St Francis Xavier University (STFX), in Antigonish. Most of the collections were made by two of us (DJG and BRT) since 1998, with significant additions by the other authors and our various colleagues, student assistants and research technicians. We define rare plants as those that are numerically infrequent at some spatial scale. The Atlantic Canada Conservation Data Centre (ACCDC) maintains a list of rare plants in the province, while the Nova Scotia Depart- ment of Natural Resources (DNR) has classified most species according to the degree to which their provincial populations are at risk of extirpation, as green (secure), yellow (vulnerable) or red (threatened). Rarity is only one element determining whether a species is at risk. We used these lists, along with distributional information in Roland (1998) and older data in Pronych and Wilson (1993) to determine rarity. RESULTS Abutilon theophrasti Medik (Malvaceae) A single non-flowering plant was collected from a cornfield adjacent to South River in 2001. This is a minor range extension from Pictou Co. Allium schoenoprasum L. (Liliaceae) Three records from waste ground in Antigonish Co. are likely garden escapes, but provide first observations of this species in the wild from the eastern mainland or north shore of Nova Scotia. Anthemis tinctoria L. (Asteraceae) Several collections were made from the same population on a roadside in Antigonish during the fall of 2005. This species is widely distributed in the western part of the province, with Truro being the nearest location to Antigonish (Roland 1998). NEW DISTRIBUTION RECORDS FOR FLOWERING PLANTS 111 Aronia arbutifolia (L.) Ell. (Rosaceae) Roland (1998) refers to this species as occurring primarily in the south- western part of the province and extending east to Colchester Co. There is a single collection from Antigonish Co. at Pomquet Beach Provincial Park, where A. arbutifolia forms part of the heath vegetation on old dunes. Asclepias incarnata L. (Asclepiadaceae) This species has recently been collected from marshy, productive soil in the outflow of Gaspereaux Lake and in similar habitat in the East Branch St Mary’s River below Lochaber Lake (Guysborough County). A. incarnata is uncommon in the province; ACCDC (2007) reports observations from most southern and central counties, but not Antigonish or Pictou counties. The plant appears to have narrow habitat requirements, specifically for saturated ground very near (or in) flowing water. In both populations, the plants were growing in part to full sun among lush marshland vegetation of grasses and forbs. Asparagus officinalis L. (Liliaceae) Five collections of this widely cultivated species have been made in Antigonish County. Three are from roadsides (St Andrews, Lochaber and Antigonish), the fourth on the St FX campus, and the fifth on waste ground at Pomquet Point. These are the first records for this species from the eastern mainland or north shore of Nova Scotia. The closest previous record is from Truro (Roland 1998). A. officinalis grows well among roadside grass; the colony in St. Andrews has persisted for at least 8 years. Aster borealis (T. & G.) Prov. Roland (1998) refers to this species as uncommon and shows no occur- rences in the northern mainland of Nova Scotia. We have a single specimen from typical habitat for A borealis: the gravelly shore of Lochaber Lake. Aster ciliolatus Lindl. (Asteraceae) This species was originally found as part of the fall flowering survey of 2001 (Taylor & Garbary 2003) and many plants were noted during the 2005 fall phenology study. It is evidently common in Antigonish County. Roland (1998) notes its distribution in adjacent Guysborough Co. Bellis perennis L. (Asteraceae) This species was initially reported from Nova Scotia by Macoun (1889) based on plants from the extreme southern end of the province and from North Sydney. The two plants collected on waste ground in Antigonish in 2001 (Taylor & Garbary 2003) are therefore a significant find. Return visits to the same site in 2005 and 2006 did not reveal additional plants. Berteroa incana (L.) DC. (Brassicaceae) A single collection of this species was made in November 2005 from Antigonish. The plants occurred as a small population adjacent to a seed 112 TAYLOR, FERRIER, LAUFF AND GARBARY and agricultural supply outlet in Antigonish. This is the only collection of the species east of the Annapolis Valley, where it can be an aggressive weed in fields (Roland 1998). Carex lupulina Willd. (Cyperaceae) A single collection from the shore of eutrophic Lake St Joseph provides a range extension east from Pictou Co (Roland 1998) and the only record from Antigonish Co. ACCDC (2007) reports C. lupulina only from Colchester and Hants counties. Centaurea cyanus L. This species is widely scattered through the province; however a single collection from a roadside in gravel and sand represents the only record from Antigonish Co or from the north shore of Nova Scotia (Roland 1998). Comandra umbellata (L.) Nutt. This species is considered rare in Nova Scotia with a known distribution in Cape Breton and Pomquet Beach in Antigonish County. DNR classifies C. umbellata as a red (potentially endangered) species. Recent collections verify the Pomquet site and added Beshong Cove in Tracadie Harbour as well as Doctor Island in Caribou Provincial Park, Pictou Co. Both sites sup- port substantial colonies of C. umbellata, and suggest a strong preference for coastal habitats. This species may be better considered under-collected rather than rare. Draba verna L. (Brassicaceae) This tiny plant is abundant at two sites in Antigonish Town and County, both of which are campgrounds. The plants are conspicuous in April and May when the small white flowers and the dense inflorescences can form a haze 2-5 cm off the ground. Local plants have two leaf dimensions. The most common form has small leaves (5-8 × 2-5 mm), giving a rosette diameter of 13-17 mm. A larger and much less common form has leaves 13-18 × 4-5 mm. Our records from Antigonish provide the only collections of D. verna from the northern mainland of Nova Scotia. Draba verna has been reported from other campgrounds and tourist facilities with gravel parking lots, such as Grand Pré National Historic Park (Newell 2006). This habitat reflects a near-perfect fit between the biology of the plant and human activity.