To See The Forest And The Trees

A couple of weeks ago, I was in Michigan to do a forest and Indiana Bat (Myotis sodalis) habitat assessment. Below are some photos of trees that are potential summer roost trees for this Federally Endangered species.


With a high percentage of exfoliating bark, Shagbark Hickory (Carya ovata) is the poster child for Indiana Bat roost trees.


Live or dead/dying trees with peeling bark are considered potential habitat for Indiana Bat. In addition to Shagbark Hickory and other hickories (Carya spp.), oaks (Quercus spp.), maples (Acer spp.), Eastern Cottonwood (Populus deltoides), and ashes (Fraxinus spp.) are the most common Indiana Bat summer roost trees. The White Oak (Quercus alba) shown above was greater than 3 feet in diameter at breast height (DBH), had peeling bark and hollow branches, and was located in a landscape position that would allow for roosting bats to access a clutter-free creek corridor. Aside from the fairly dense subcanopy in the immediate vicinity, this tree would make a good bat roost.


The White Oaks shown above and below are also potential Indiana Bat roost trees. All three of these were enormous, old, open-grown trees.


Overall at this site, we saw more than 40 trees greater than 25 inches DBH that were potential Indiana Bat roost trees. In addition, bat foraging habitat and connectivity were present, so it is likely that the next step will be for our bat biologist to set up mist nets and try to capture bats to see exactly what species are present.

2010 Spring Botanical Excursion, Part II

In a previous post, I began discussing the trip that I took to Missouri and Arkansas with Justin Thomas, Brad Slaughter, and Doug Ladd in April 2010. Here, I will conclude with my recap of our trip, beginning with the afternoon of 22 April 2010 after our visit at Dry Lost Creek Glade.

Our next stop was at Middle Fork Barrens Natural Area, a preserve with interesting shale barrens communities. One of our highlights at this site, and also one of my targeted plants for the trip, was Hubricht's Bluestar (Amsonia hubrichtii), pictured below. Hubricht's Bluestar is endemic to Arkansas and Oklahoma, found in the Ouachitas and just one county in the Ozarks. It can be found on gravel bars, along creeks, and in bottomlands.


Nuttall's Cornsalad (Valerianella nuttallii), pictured below, is endemic to the Ouachitas, only known from Arkansas and Oklahoma. Its global conservation status is G2, meaning that it is considered imperiled (at high risk of extinction due to very restricted range, very few populations, steep declines, or other factors). We also saw this species at Middle Fork Barrens Natural Area, growing in a shale glade.


Growing with Nuttall's Cornsalad was the much more common and widespread Beaked Cornsalad (Valerianella radiata). Notice that the flowers of Nuttall's Cornsalad are much larger than those of Beaked Cornsalad, shown below.


Yet another of my target plants, Entireleaf Western Daisy (Astranthium integrifolium ssp. ciliatum) was found in shale barrens at Middle Fork Barrens Natural Area. This composite is known from Nebraska, Missouri, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Texas. Most of the plants in the family Asteraceae bloom late in the year, but Entireleaf Western Daisy blooms from March to June.


Some of the additional plants we saw at Middle Fork Barrens Natural Area were Amsonia tabernaemontana, Arnoglossum plantagineum, Asclepias hirtella, Astragalus distortus var. engelmannii, Boltonia diffusa, Camassia scilloides, Carex bushii, Carex caroliniana, Carex cherokeensis, Carex digitalis var. macropoda, Carex granularis, Carex meadii, Carex oligocarpa, Carex oxylepis, Collinsia violacea, Delphinium carolinianum, Dodecatheon meadia, Draba aprica, Eleocharis tenuis var. verrucosa, Eleocharis wolfii, Glandularia canadensis, Grindelia lanceolata, Krigia caespitosa, Melica mutica, Minuartia patula, Muhlenbergia sobolifera, Nemastylis nuttallii, Nothoscordum bivalve, Ophioglossum engelmannii, Parthenium hispidum, Phemeranthus calycinus, Phlox pilosa var. ozarkana, Quercus stellata, Sabatia angularis, Scleria verticillata, Selenia aurea, Silphium laciniatum, Trepocarpus aethusae, and Triodanis leptocarpa.


We spent the morning of 23 April 2010 botanizing at Frog Hollow, a property with various habitats including mesic bluffs, floodplains, and ridgetop shale barrens. One of my highlights at this property was a plant of the southcentral and southeastern United States that I'd never heard of, Smallflower Baby Blue-eyes (Nemophila aphylla), pictured above. This small member of the water leaf family (Hydrophyllaceae) grows in moist woods, alluvial soil, and disturbed areas.


Also at Frog Hollow we came across a population of the parasitic Oneflowered Broomrape (Orobanche uniflora). This species, shown above, is known from much of North America and 49 of the 50 states in the United States (it is not known from Hawaii). Because the roots of this species take nutrients from a host plant, it has no need for green leaves, and instead has brown scale-like leaves at the base of the plant. The flowers range from white to lavendar (sometimes blue).


We knew that Kentucky Lady's Slipper (Cypripedium kentuckiense) grew in moist woods at Frog Hollow and that it might be in flower. As we were searching for this target plant, we happened upon Greater Yellow Lady's Slipper (Cypripedium parviflorum var. pubescens) (above). This orchid was very quickly overshadowed (figuratively and literally), however, by the enormous Kentucky Lady's Slipper (below).


Kentucky Lady's Slipper grows up to 3 feet tall. The creamy yellow blooms are more blunt at the tip than are the lemon-yellow slippers of Greater Yellow Lady's Slipper. The slipper opening in the lip of Kentucky Lady's Slipper is also larger than that of Greater Yellow Lady's Slipper. Kentucky Lady's Slipper is found throughout the southeastern United States.

Other plants we saw at Frog Hollow include Aescula pavia, Amorpha nitens, Amsonia tabernaemontana, Aristolochia reticulata, Arundinaria gigantea, Asclepias variegata, Astranthium integrifolium ssp. ciliatum, Bignonia capreolata, Carex abscondita, Carex blanda, Carex crinita, Carex debilis, Carex digitalis var. macropoda, Carex intumescens, Carex jamesii, Carex joorii, Carex muehlenbergia, Carex nigromarginata, Carex ouachitana, Carex radiata, Carex retroflexa, Carex torta, Carya texana, Celtis laevigata, Chaerophyllum tainturieri, Chasmanthium sessiliflorum, Chionanthus virginicus, Coreopsis grandiflora, Corydalis flavula, Desmodium dillenii, Desmodium rotundifolium, Dichanthelium ashei, Dichanthelium boscii, Dichanthelium commutatum, Dichanthelium depauperatum, Dichanthelium dichotomum, Galium uniflorum, Glandularia canadensis, Halesia caroliniana, Hamamelis vernalis, Hybanthus concolor, Ilex opaca, Iris cristata, Itea virginica, Krigia dandelion, Lathyrus venosus, Liquidambar styraciflua, Lyonia ligustrina, Melica mutica, Muhlenbergia sobolifera, Muhlenbergia sylvatica, Nuttallanthus texanus, Oxalis violacea, Pedicularis canadensis, Penstemon arkanasanus, Phlox pilosa var. ozarkana, Piptochaetium avenaceum, Planera aquatica, Platanthera lacera, Poa autumnalis, Poa sylvestris, Quercus nigra, Quercus phellos, Quercus stellata, Ranunculus micranthus, Salvia lyrata, Silene virginica, Taxodium distichum, Trachelopsermum difforme, Tradescantia ernestiana, Tradescantia hirsuticaulis, Trillium recurvatum, Uvularia sessilifolia, Vaccinium arboreum, Vaccinium virgatum, Vaccinium pallidum, Vaccinium stamineum, and Wisteria frutescens, among others.

Our next stop was at Alum Fork Ponds. Unfortunately, we were rained out at this site, but not before seeing species including Carex albolutescens, Carex debilis, Dulichium arundinaceum, Gratiola brevifolia, Itea virginica, Juncus coriaceus, Nyssa sylvatica, and Viola lanceolata.

While driving, we stopped along roadsides at various Saline County locations. At one of those locations in moist woods, we saw Southern Twayblade (Listera australis), shown below. This tiny orchid can very easily be overlooked. It is known from the southern and northeastern United States and several eastern Canadian provinces.


At another roadside location, we stopped to photograph Yellow Wild Indigo (Baptisia sphaerocarpa). The Latin name of this species describes the spherical fruit (unlike other species of Baptisia that have fruit that look more like legumes) that are formed in summer. Yellow Wild Indigo grows in sandy soils and roadsides in the southern United States from Texas to Alabama.


The evening of 23 April 2010 and morning of 24 April 2010 were spent botanizing at Camp Road Shale Barrens. The lighting was bad while we were at this site, so I didn't get to take many photos. One of the highlights, though, was Longtube Cornsalad (Valerianella longiflora), a species endemic to Arkansas and Oklahoma. In the photograph below, you can see the long floral tube for which this species is named.


Some of the other plants observed at Camp Road Shale Barrens were Acer leucoderme, Asclepias viridiflora, Callirhoe pedata, Crataegus triflorum, Delphinium carolinianum, Dichanthelium linearifolium, Echinacea pallida, Eriogonum longifolium, Euphorbia ouachitana, Ilex vomitoria, Lonicera sempervirens, Piptochaetium avenaceum, Rhus trilobata var. trilobata, Ribes curvatum, Scutellaria parvula var. australis, Solidago petiolaris, Thelesperma filifolium, Vaccinium stamineum, and Yucca arkansana.

Theo was not able to join us for the rest of our trip, but he set us up with several sites to visit. Our next stop was at a novaculite glade at Tall Peak. Highlights on the glade included Cardamine ouachitana, Cheilanthes tomentosa, Houstonia ouachitana, Liatris compacta, and Liatris squarrosa var. hirsuta.

We next drove to Cossatot River State Park, where we quickly found yet another of our target species, Brown's Waterleaf (Hydrophyllum brownei). Brown's Waterleaf is only known from eight counties in Arkansas and is endemic to the Ouachitas. It is considered globally imperiled (G2), as there are less than 30 known occurrences of the species worldwide. Unfortunately, it was not quite in flower, as seen in the photograph below. Brown's Waterleaf grows in moist, rich, deciduous forests, and was described as new to science in 1991.


Other species observed at this location at Cossatot River State Park included Asarum canadense, Carex basiantha, Carex blanda, Chaerophyllum procumbens, Claytonia virginica, Elephantopus carolinianus, Enemion biternatum, Erigenia bulbosa, Festuca subverticillata, Lactuca floridana, Podophyllum peltatum, Sanguinaria canadensis, Sedum ternatum, Symphoricarpos orbiculatus, Trillium recurvatum, Valerianella palmeri, and Viola pubescens. Some of our highlights at Cossatot Falls included Amorpha nitens, Amorpha ouachitana, Carex latebracteata, Ceanothus herbaceus, Clematis pitcheri, Dichanthelium commutatum, Dichanthelium laxiflorum, Dichanthelium villosissimum, Leptopus phyllanthoides, Panicum bicknellii, Ulmus alata, Valerianella palmeri, and Vernonia lettermannii. We also botanized at Sand Bar Ridge along the Cossatot River, where we saw Arundinaria gigantea, Salix caroliniana, Tephrosia virginiana, and Ulmus alata, among other things.

While driving through a rich, seepy forest on 24 April 2010, we stopped for some quick roadside botany and found Large Whorled Pogonia (Isotria verticillata) in flower.


The final stop on our destination was to the highest point in Arkansas, Mount Magazine. In addition to breathtaking views, we were treated to some excellent botanizing.


We found our target species, Mapleleaf Oak (Quercus acerifolia). The leaf shown below was one of few that we saw that actually looked a lot like a maple... most looked more like Shumard's Oak (Quercus shumardii), which makes sense because Mapleleaf Oak was treated as a variety of Shumard's Oak until 1990. Mapleleaf Oak is a Ouachita endemic known only from Arkansas, where it is considered threatened. Globally, it is considered critically imperiled (G1), with only a few hundred individuals known from six occurrences. Mapleleaf Oak is a scrubby tree that grows in open woods and on rocky ledges.


We also came across several populations of Dwarf Crested Iris (Iris cristata), a handsome species of rich wooded slopes and forested floodplains found throughout the eastern United States. Flower color of this species ranges from white to lavendar to blue.


Other species of note observed in our half day at Mount Magazine include Amsonia tabernaemontana, Carex artitecta, Carex umbellata, Chionanthus virginicus, Clinopodium glabellum, Corydalis micrantha, Delphinium tricorne, Deschampsia flexuosa, Dichanthelium scoparium, Dichanthelium villosissimum, Dryopteris marginalis, Galium arkansanum, Gillenia stipulata, Hydrangea arborescens, Hypericum gentianoides, Ligusticum canadense, Lonicera flava, Oenothera pilosella, Orbexilum pedunculatum, Nothoscordum bivalve, Parthenium hispidum, Penstemon tubiflorus, Philadelphus pubescens, Polymnia canadensis, Quercus marilandica, Quercus stellata, Ranunculus harveyi, Saxifraga palmeri, Silphium asteriscus, Solidago arguta, Solidago hispida, Solidago petiolaris, Symphyotrichum anomylum, Symphyotrichum patens, Thaspium barbinode, Trillium viridescens, Vaccinium arboreum, Vaccinium pallidum, Vaccinium stamineum, and Woodsia obtusa.


Thanks to Doug, Justin, and Brad for a great spring botanizing trip, and to Theo for setting us up with some great sites to see some amazing plants. For more photos from our trip, see my post at Get Your Botany On!.

Like a Kid in a Candy Store

This past Saturday, I was lucky enough to botanize in southern Indiana with the one of Indiana's botanical rock stars, Mike Homoya. I try to travel around and see plants in other parts of the country and the world as much as possible, but I have severely neglected the southern part of my own state of residence.

We first visited Prairie Creek Barrens in Daviess County, a preserve where the observation of a few remnant rare species prompted the radical restoration act of scraping the sandy substrate to remove River Birch (Betula nigra) that had invaded the site as a result of natural succession. This natural invasion had led to a mostly nonexistent understory. Removing the River Birch and scaping the soil may seem like an extreme form of restoration, but at this site it has led to the restoration of a rich and conservative flora from the buried seed bank.
The photograph above shows a portion of the site where River Birch had not invaded. You may notice a few sedge species. The sedges in this photo include Oklahoma Sedge (Carex oklamomensis) and False Hop Sedge (Carex lupuliformis). Click here to see my post about these sedges on Get Your Botany On!.

The photograph below shows the portion of the site where restoration has taken place. It is difficult to see the variety of species present in this photo, so I will highlight some of them below.

Maryland Meadowbeauty (Rhexia mariana) is one of the more charismatic species present in the wet sand flat community. The family Melastomataceae, to which Maryland Meadowbeauty belongs, is mostly a tropical family. The four pink petals and sharply contrasting yellow, curved anthers make the genus Rhexia one of my favorites. This species is similar to Handsome Hairy (Rhexia virginica), which grows in my neck of the woods, but Handsome Hairy has wider leaves and a slightly winged stem.

Slender Yelloweyed Grass (Xyris torta) is another unique species that often shows up in wet sand flats that have recently been disturbed. It can also be found in bogs. The specific epithet torta means twisted, referring to the twisted stem and leaves. Although the common name of this plant makes it sound like it is a grass, it is not; it is in the family Xyridaceae.

One of the plants that I really wanted to see and that Mike was able to find for me was Blackfoot Quillwort (Isoetes melanopoda), shown in the two photos below. Melanopoda literally means "black foot," and refers to the dark bases of the leaves. The quillworts are technically fern allies, as opposed to angiosperms or gymnosperms.

Below, you can see the inflated bases of the leaves. The sporangia (reproductive parts) form within this inflated leaf base. I have searched for Isoetes on several occasions, but I had never been successful until Saturday... and this success was thanks to Mike. Vegetatively, quillworts look a lot like spikerushes (Eleocharis). Blackfoot Quillwort is found in wet prairies and in depressions on sandstone.

Click here for an interesting write-up on Isoetes at The Vasculum.

A large population of Creeping St. Johnswort (Hypericum adpressum) is present in both the scraped and unscraped areas of the site. This St. Johnswort can look similar to several other species in the genus, but the plant is not woody and the leaves and sepals are revolute-margined (the margins are rolled under). This is an endangered species in several states, including Indiana, where it is only known from 2 or 3 counties. It is found most commonly on pond shores and in wet, sandy soil.

One of the plants that Mike told me we might see was Axilflower (Mecardonia acuminata). Say what? I had never heard of this Scroph, which can be found in the southern United States from Kansas to Texas and east. Looking at photos online, I thought it may look like a hedgehyssop (Gratiola) or a false pimpernel (Lindernia), but after seeing it first hand I don't think I could ever mistake it for anything else. Unfortunately, it was not yet in flower, but it certainly is still an interesting little plant. Axilflower can be found in a range of habitats, including swamps, floodplains, flatwoods, alluvial woods, savannas, bogs, and marshes.

Surrounding the wetland portion of the preserve are rolling windblown sandhills on which prairie restoration is taking place. But this isn't your typical prairie restoration (planting) full of dense Big Bluestem (Andropogon gerardii), Little Bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium), Indian Grass (Sorghastrum nutans) and Switch Grass (Panicum virgatum). At this site, care has been taken to collect seed mostly locally and to choose species that occurred in this area based on presettlement notes and records from Charles Deam.

Fringeleaf Wild Petunia (Ruellia humilis) is one of the more attractive species growing in the prairie restoration. This species is similar to the Limestone Wild Petunia discussed in my recent post on Loblolly Marsh; both are way more attractive than the annual petunias used in landscaping. I don't see wild petunias very often in the Chicago Region, so it was really a treat to see both species within a week. Fringeleaf Wild Petunia grows in prairies, open woodlands, limestone glades, and sandy areas.

The plant species that the insects seemed to find most attractive was Narrowleaf Mountainmint (Pycnanthemum tenuifolium). If you click on the photo to enlarge it, you will probably be able to find at least three insects; there were probably 10 or more insects easily visible on the plant when I first saw it. Narrowleaf Mountainmint is similar to Virginia Mountainmint (Pycnanthemum virginianum), but the leaves of Narrowleaf Mountainmint are narrower and have only a faint odor when crushed, and the stems are completely hairless. In Virginia Mountainmint, the leaves are wider and very fragrant when crushed, and the four angles of the stem are pubescent. This is a species of prairies.

A common but still interesting plant that we observed at the site was the prairie species Purple Milkwort (Polygala sanguinea). What is shown below is a raceme composed of many flowers. An individual flower is made up of two enlarged pinkish-purple sepals (commonly referred to in the genus Polygala as "wings"), three very small sepals, and a tube of three small petals, one with a crest at the tip.

After Prairie Creek Barrens, we visited Plaster Creek Seeps Nature Preserve, a Forest Service and TNC property in Martin County, Indiana. Here we saw plant communities unlike any I had seen in Indiana previously. One of those communities was the sandstone glade.

Notice the small, gnarled trees and the exposed sandstone substrate in the photo above. On other portions of the glade, mosses dominated. I don't claim to know mosses, but I think the moss in the photo below may be a Leucobryum. Hopefully someone will correct me if I'm wrong.

Two oak species found in the sandstone glades of southern Indiana but not found in the northern part of the state are Chestnut Oak (Quercus prinus) and Blackjack Oak (Quercus marilandica).

Leaves of Chestnut Oak are shown above, and those of Blackjack Oak are below.

There weren't a lot of plants flowering in the sandstone glade community. One of the herbaceous plants we found was Narrowleaf Pinweed (Lechea tenuifolia). This species can also be found growing on sand in Black Oak savannas in northwest Indiana.

After spending some time on the glade, we descended to the sandstone ledges. Water was seeping out from spots along the ledges, and was likely dripping from the ledges earlier in the year. It was very interesting to see Sphagnum Moss (Sphagnum sp.), a species typically associated with bogs, growing on these ledges. I had seen this earlier in the year when in Georgia as well. The presence of Sphagnum on a sandstone ledge creates a very unique and interesting plant community.

Also growing on the ledges was what we believe to be Rock Clubmoss (Huperzia porophila). This species is known from much of eastern North America, but it seems to be rather uncommon in every state and province that it is known. Rock Clubmoss grows on damp, shaded, acidic sandstone. Rock Clubmoss is similar to Shining Clubmoss (Huperzia lucidula), but can be distinguished by leaf shape and number of teeth on the leaves (obovate with 1 to 8 irregular teeth in Shining Clubmoss; lanceolate with up to 3 low teeth in Rock Clubmoss).

After examining the ledges, we followed the seeping water into the sandstone seep. This community was very interesting and consisted mostly of species I am familiar with from acidic woods in northern Indiana, including Cinnamon Fern (Osmunda cinnamomea), Royal Fern (Osmunda regalis v. spectabilis), and Brome-like Sedge (Carex bromoides).

Another interesting plant common in the sandstone seep was Lizard's Tail (Saururus cernuus). Isn't that Latin name just about the funnest thing you've ever said? Lizard's Tail is found throughout much of eastern North America, often in swampy woods and other wet soil. As the inflorescence matures, it will droop, which is why the specific epithet is "cernuus" (cernuus = nodding).

By this point, we were thoroughly exhausted, in part from the heat and humidity, and in part from the steep and difficult terrain (for Indiana, that is), so we called it a day. I vowed to try to get back to southern Indiana at least once a year to continue to learn about the unique natural communities present just a few hours from home.