Welcome to my second post about a few spectacular Wenatchee Mountain endemic plants. Way back in a March blog, I featured the striking native wildflower, Snow Douglasii, blooming at the edge of melting snow in the upper Wenatchee Foothills at 3700″ in chilly mid-March.
Two months later on May 25, 2020, I found this same species in full bloom on Icicle Ridge at 5300 feet, also with melting snow nearby. How interesting to have a plant able to thrive at such a wide range of elevations, yet is only found in the Wenatchee Mountains and north into Okanogan County. That’s an endemic species for you: widespread where it grows within a narrow limited geography.
Botanists call our region “The Wenatchee Mountains.” This geography has the highest concentration of endemic plants in all of Washington. 35 are state-classified as rare plants and 30 more are “just” endemics. Many rare plants are endemic, but not all endemics are rare!
Our region’s most beloved endemic plant is Tweedy’s lewisia, affectionately nicknamed Wenatchee Rock Rose (Lewisiopsis tweedyi). Look for it around rock outcroppings in the Douglas-fir and ponderosa pine forests. From May to June, you’ll find it along trails in the Mission Ridge, Icicle, Tumwater, Chiwawa, and Entiat watersheds.
The petal colors vary from peach to pink to white, and the fleshy large basal leaves frame the blooms in green. This endemic plant is widespread just along a narrow strip of the eastside of the Cascades, from Kittitas to Okanogan County.
History was made on May 6, 2020, when a rare endemic plant was featured on the front page of the Wenatchee World newspaper. The bold headline read “DNR Land Swap Will Protect Plant Unique to Malaga Area.” Whited’s milk-vetch is a state listed endangered plant that only grows within a 10-square mile patch of Earth, near Malaga.
I was pretty excited to read: Commissioner of Public Lands Hilary Franz said in the release. “We strive to ensure that state lands can best support our beneficiaries — schools, counties, and critical services across Washington state. Through this exchange, we will be able to do that while preserving this unique plant habitat.”
During May, I had my own personal experience learning about a Wenatchee Mountain endemic – Whited’s fuzzy tongue penstemon (Penstemon eriantherus var. whitedii). It is classified by the state as a rare plant with few documented locations in the Wenatchee area. During the Covid19 stay-at-home order, I found myself walking on the Castle Rock Natural Area trails very close to my home. Surprisingly, I found my first fuzzy tongue penstemon next to the trail. Starting on May Day with newly trained eyes, I was able to spot and take field notes documenting dozens of plants in this small city park.
At first glance, this disturbed steep habitat doesn’t appear to be a very inviting place for a special plant. However, the thin rocky slopes are exactly where this plant thrives. As I widened my explorations in the Wenatchee Foothills, I was able to document over 200 more plants across a wide range of elevations, soil types, and aspects. I am a community science volunteer for the UW RareCare Program, that works closely with the Washington DNR Natural Heritage program, tracking rare plants. I reported my findings to both programs.
What should you do when you think you’ve found a rare plant? Plant identification can be tricky, and there are many look-alike species. First, take photos of the flowers, leaves, full plant, and the habitat and record your location. Then, reach out to a local botanist or member of the Wenatchee Valley Washington Native Plant Society. for technical guidance. The state of Washington Natural Heritage program publishes a list of all state-identified rare plants. and the Burke Museum Herbarium website includes photos and distribution maps for all species. If you think you’d like to become a community science volunteer helping to grow our collective knowledge of rare plants, consider signing up for the RareCare program.
References:
- Review of Endemic Plants of the Wenatchee Mountains and Adjacent Areas Prepared for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Region 1 by Joseph Arnett, Sept. 10, 2012. Natural Heritage Report 2012-06, WA DNR.
- FIeld Guide to the Rare Plants of Washington, edited by Pamela Camp and John G. Gammon, University of Washington Press. An on-line version of this publication is at: https://www.dnr.wa.gov/NHPfieldguide