Abstract Detail

Floristics & Taxonomy

Maher, Madeline [1].

A floristic inventory of private and public lands in Gunnison County, Colorado.

An inventory of vascular flora was conducted on public and private property in southwestern Gunnison County, Colorado. The study area consisted of 3,004 acres of private land and 1,850 acres of adjacent public land owned by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The study area ranges in elevation from 8,690 to 10,070 feet, and is home to diverse plant communities, including dry montane meadows of Festuca, Lupinus and Artemisia; Carex- and Salix-dominated riparian areas; spruce-fir forests; mixed coniferous forests; aspen woodlands; xeric mesas and rocky hillsides; and talus cliffs. While the BLM-owned portion of the study area had been at least partially surveyed in the late 1990s, the private land remained uninvestigated. Fieldwork was conducted in the growing seasons of 2016 and 2017. New county records include Pyrola picta Sm., which is rare in Colorado. The presence of taxa not previously documented in the area emphasizes the need for continued floristic study of private lands and other undersampled areas.

1 - Colorado State University, Biology, 251 W Pitkin Street, Fort Collins, CO, 80521, USA

Keywords:
Pyrola
Trifolium
floristics
inventory
private land
conservation easement
public land
BLM
Gunnison
Colorado
field botany
montane
Rocky Mountains
Equisetum
flora of Colorado.

Presentation Type: Oral Paper
Session: 46, Floristics & Taxonomy
Location: 105/Mayo Civic Center
Date: Wednesday, July 25th, 2018
Time: 3:45 PM
Number: 46009
Abstract ID:701
Candidate for Awards:None