1997-06-13_REPORT - M1981302 (17)

Home Browse Search

uncommon. There are several specimens from both Green Mountain and Bear Peak . Smilax herbacea var . lasioneuron. This plant , known as carrion flower , is the only representative of the Carrionflower family in Colorado. Found along the base of the mountains from Fort Collins to Colorado Springs , from about 5500 to 6500 feet , its habitat is under substantial pressure from housing developments . There are only 10 known sites in Colorado and many of the specimens are very old. In the Boulder area it is known from the mouths of several canyons , but easist to find in Gregory Canyon, just a few yards up the trail from the parking lot . Pyrola picta . This attractive pyrola has been seen or collected a few times in the "Twin Springs" area , north slope, Green Mountain, often just a few yards from the Malaxis and Listera orchids . Also known from the Royal Arch area and at Walker Ranch. However, other than these sites , the pyrola is known only from 3 other localities in Colorado. One of the rarest members of the Heath (or Pyrola) family in Colorado. White Rocks : Asplenium andrewsii (Asplenium adiantum-nigrum var. andrewsii ) . According to Weber , this fern is known from only a very few widely scattered locations in North America. At White Rocks, it grows in cracks in the cliff face. Very rare and hard to find, even at White Rocks . Apios americana. According to Weber , this member of the pea family is a species of the eastern US, found only at White Rocks in Colorado. Floodplain of South Boulder Creek: Spiranthes diluvialis. This is the second-rarest orchid in Colorado. Known only from two sites along Clear Creek , Jefferson County and along South Boulder Creek at Baseline Road. In 1985, there were 21 plants seen in the Boulder colony. This year , only 6 have been found. It is possible that it may be present elsewhere in the tallgrass prairie relictual areas , but no one has checked. As orchids go, a very rare orchid, with only a few sites in Utah, Nevada , and Arizona known. Described in the journal Brittonia in 1984 by Dr . Charles J . Sheviak of the New York State Museum. Sisyrinchium angustifolium. This member of the Iris family is not supposed to be in Colorado, but numerous plants seen in the tallgrass prairie relictual areas seem to be this species. If the identification is correct , these plants are disjunct from their main range in the eastern US by hundreds of miles (known from as far west as eastern Kansas ) . This blue-eyed grass is smaller than the common S. montanum, blooms later , and has branched stems .