Rare Plants
Emerald Chapter members have been active in listing and monitoring rare and endangered plants in Lane County for many years. NPSO believes that listing and monitoring activities are central to rare plant and rare plant habitat perservation. Currently, Emerald Chapter's main R&E efforts are conducted through the Lane County Rare Plant Monitoring Project.


Lane County Rare Plant Monitoring Project

Goals
The primary goal of the monitoring project is to maintain current listing status and a database of rare and endangered plant species known to occur in Lane County.

A secondary goal is to “watch” for species known to exist close to Lane County and expected to occur in the County, that presently have no observation or collection recorded from the County.

Policy
During triennial updates, taxa which are found to meet the listing criteria will remain on or be added to lists, and some which are currently listed may be removed if populations become more secure or if new information reveals more frequent occurrence than originally recorded.

Nomenclature and Oregon occurrence information is kept current to articulate with Oregon Flora Project and Oregon Biodiversity Information Center data.

Procedures
Every third year, the Emerald Chapter R & E Chair will schedule a meeting to review the lists. Participants are current members of the Emerald Chapter, NPSO, or other plant enthusiasts who have knowledge of Lane County native flora. The R & E Chair will send notification at least 60 days prior to the meeting and invite participants to bring proposals for listing to the meeting. Proposals should include rationale for listing, locations of occurrence in Lane County, range outside Lane County, current Oregon list status, perceived threats or endangerments to survival.

Within 14 days a draft of list updates will be sent to participants. Following a 30-day comment period, the R & E Chair will compile a final list for Board of Directors approval and posting to Emerald Chapter’s website.

List Descriptions and Criteria

List A - Species with Federal (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service), State (Oregon Department of Agriculture) and/or are on the ORBIC List 1 or List 2. These species have some protection on state and federal lands:
  1. Federally (USFWS) listed as Endangered, Threatened, Candidate or Species of Concern
  2. State (ODA) listed as Endangered, Threatened or Candidate
  3. On ORBIC List 1 (endangered or threatened throughout range) or List 2 (endangered or threatened in Oregon, but stable elsewhere)
List B - Taxa, not on List A, that have few known populations in Lane County (generally 10 or fewer) and have some threat to their survival (to habitat, genetic diversity, over harvesting, etc.). These species have no statewide protective status under state or federal programs.

List C - Watch List: These are species Emerald Chapter, NPSO, wants to track. It includes:
  1. Species on ORBIC List 3 (Review List) unless already on List B because of special concern in Lane County.
  2. Rare species known to exist only from historic records unless already on List A.
  3. Species limited in number and not widespread in Lane County. Abundance has been documented. Populations are currently stable but should be watched.
  4. Species known from one to several sites in Lane County but actual abundance is uncertain. More research is needed to determine status.
  5. Species known to exist close to Lane County and expected to occur in the County, but presently no observation or collection is recorded from the County.
Federal (US Fish and Wildlife Service) status:
LE = listed endangered
LT = listed threatened
SOC = species of concern
State (Oregon Department of Agriculture) status:
LE = listed endangered
LT = listed threatened
C = candidate for listing
ORBIC (Oregon Biodiversity Information Center) list:
1 = endangered or threatened throughout range
2 = endangered or threatened in Oregon, but stable elsewhere
3 = more information is needed before status can be determined
4 = of conservation concern, but not currently threatened or endangered
Ecoregions:
CZ = Coastal Zone
CR = Coast Range
WV = Willamette Valley
WC = Western Cascades
HC = High Cascades

View all three lists, collated, in PDF format
last update: April 2012
Delphinium menziesii Cardamine nuttallii var. nuttallii Calypso bulbosa Ribes sanguineum var. sanguineum Camassia leichtlinii ssp. suksdorfii Viola sheltonii