Solidago houghtonii

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Solidago houghtonii
Oligoneuron-houghtonii01.jpg
1913 illustration [1]
Status TNC G3.svg
Vulnerable  (NatureServe) [2]
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Genus: Solidago
Section: S. sect. Ptarmicoidei
Species:
S. houghtonii
Binomial name
Solidago houghtonii
Torr. & A.Gray ex A.Gray
Synonyms [3]
  • Aster houghtonii(Torr. & A.Gray) Kuntze
  • Oligoneuron houghtonii(Torr. & A.Gray) G.L.Nesom

Solidago houghtonii is a rare North American species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae known as Houghton's goldenrod. It is native to southern Ontario, Canada and the northern United States (Michigan and New York). [4] It is threatened by the loss and degradation of its habitat. It is a federally listed threatened species of the United States and it is designated a species of special concern by Canada's Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. [2]

Contents

Description

Solidago houghtonii is a perennial herb producing one or more erect stems up to 60 centimeters (2 feet) tall or more from a branching caudex covered with the remains of previous seasons' leaves. The leaves near the base of the plant are oval in shape and those higher on the stem are linear or lance-shaped and up to 17 or 18 centimeters (6.8-7.2 inches) in length. The inflorescence is an array of many flower heads each up to a centimeter long. The head contains 6 to 12 yellow ray florets surrounding several disc florets. The fruit is about half a centimeter (0.2 inches) long including the pappus of bristles at the tip. [5] Blooming occurs in August. [2]

Taxonomy

Houghton's goldenrod was originally described by John Torrey and Asa Gray in 1848 as Solidago houghtonii. In 1993, Guy Nesom transferred it to the genus of flat-topped goldenrods, Oligoneuron . [6] This goldenrod is now treated by some sources as Oligoneuron houghtonii [7] and by others as Solidago houghtonii, [8] [5] [9] [10] within the section Solidago sect. Ptarmicoidei. [11]

The name honors Douglass Houghton (1809–1845), a doctor, botanist, geologist, and civic leader who discovered this species in 1839 in Mackinac County, Michigan, on the shores of Lake Michigan. [12]

Distribution and habitat

Solidago houghtonii grows on the shores of the Great Lakes, mainly Lake Huron and Lake Michigan, near the Michigan-Ontario border at Sault Ste. Marie. [5] It grows in sandy lakeshore habitat types as well as moist limestone alvars. The habitat is sometimes submerged but the plants return when water levels drop. [13] It also occurs in bog habitat. [2]

Conservation

Houghton's goldenrod is threatened by the loss, degradation, and fragmentation of its habitat during development and construction. Any disturbance of the dunes among which the plant grows can be harmful. The use of off-road vehicles in the habitat is detrimental, and the installation of walls, roads, and other structures affects the dunes. Maintenance activities such as herbicide application, mowing, and road salting are threats, as is beach recreation. [2] Since 1975 about 20% of the populations of this plant have been eliminated. [2]

Related Research Articles

<i>Solidago</i> Genus of plants in the family Asteraceae

Solidago, commonly called goldenrods, is a genus of about 100 to 120 species of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae. Most are herbaceous perennial species found in open areas such as meadows, prairies, and savannas. They are mostly native to North America, including Mexico; a few species are native to South America and Eurasia. Some American species have also been introduced into Europe and other parts of the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Astereae</span> Tribe of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae

Astereae is a tribe of plants in the family Asteraceae that includes annuals, biennials, perennials, subshrubs, shrubs, and trees. They are found primarily in temperate regions of the world. Plants within the tribe are present nearly worldwide divided into over 250 genera and more than 3,100 species, making it the second-largest tribe in the family behind Senecioneae.

<i>Symphyotrichum frondosum</i> Species of flowering plant in family Asteraceae

Symphyotrichum frondosum is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae native to western North America. Commonly known as short-rayed alkali aster, it is an annual or perennial herbaceous plant that may reach 140 centimeters tall.

<i>Solidago nemoralis</i> Species of plant

Solidago nemoralis is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. It is native to North America, where it is widely found in Canada and the United States. Its common names include gray goldenrod, gray-stem goldenrod, old-field goldenrod, field goldenrod, prairie goldenrod, dwarf goldenrod, and dyersweed goldenrod.

<i>Solidago gigantea</i> Species of plant in the family Asteraceae native to North America

Solidago gigantea is a North American plant species in the family Asteraceae. Its common names include tall goldenrod and giant goldenrod, among others.

<i>Solidago missouriensis</i> Species of flowering plant

Solidago missouriensis is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae known by the common names Missouri goldenrod and prairie goldenrod. It is native to North America, where it is widespread across much of Canada, the United States, and northern Mexico. It grows from British Columbia east to Manitoba, south as far as Sonora, Coahuila, Texas, and Mississippi.

Solidago verna is a species of flowering plant in the aster family known by the common names springflowering goldenrod and spring goldenrod. It is native to North Carolina and South Carolina in the United States.

<i>Symphyotrichum falcatum</i> Species of flowering plant in family Asteraceae

Symphyotrichum falcatum is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. Commonly called white prairie aster and western heath aster, it is native to a widespread area of central and western North America.

<i>Solidago ptarmicoides</i> Species of flowering plant

Solidago ptarmicoides, the prairie goldenrod, white flat-top goldenrod or upland white aster, is a North American perennial flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. It is native to the central and eastern Canada and parts of the United States (mostly Great Lakes region, the Northeast, the Ozarks, and the northern Great Plains, with isolated populations in Wyoming, Colorado, Oklahoma, and scattered locations in the Southeast. It has also been called upland white solidago, upland white goldenrod, and sneezewort goldenrod

<i>Solidago riddellii</i> Species of flowering plant

Solidago riddellii, known as Riddell's goldenrod, is a North American plant species in the genus Solidago of the family Asteraceae. It grows primarily in the Great Lakes and eastern Great Plains of Canada and the United States. It is sometimes considered part of the genus Oligoneuron, but as a Solidago, included in the section Solidago sect. Ptarmicoidei, the flat-topped goldenrods.

<i>Solidago rigida</i> Species of flowering plant

Solidago rigida, known by the common names stiff goldenrod and stiff-leaved goldenrod, is a North American plant species in the family Asteraceae. It has a widespread distribution in Canada and the United States, where it is found primarily east of the Rocky Mountains. It is typically found in open, dry areas associated with calcareous or sandy soil. Habitats include prairies, savannas, and glades.

<i>Solidago mollis</i> Species of flowering plant

Solidago mollis is a North American species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae known by the common names velvety goldenrod, soft goldenrod or Ashly goldenrod. It is native to the central United States and central Canada, primarily the Great Plains from the Canadian Prairie Provinces south as far as Texas and New Mexico.

<i>Symphyotrichum shortii</i> Species of flowering plant in family Asteraceae

Symphyotrichum shortii, commonly called Short's aster, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. It is native to North America, where it is primarily found in interior areas east of the Mississippi River. Its natural habitat is in thin rocky soils of woodlands and thickets often around limestone bluffs. It is common throughout much of its range, although it is generally restricted to intact natural communities.

<i>Solidago <span style="font-style:normal;">sect.</span> Ptarmicoidei</i> Section of flowering plants in the genus Solidago

Solidago sect. Ptarmicoidei is a section of flowering plants in the genus Solidago. They are sometimes considered a separate genus: Oligoneuron. Like related species they are known as goldenrods. This section contains seven species of perennial herbs, all native to North America. They are distinguished from other goldenrods by their corymbiform flowerheads, which are flat or rounded in profile and about as broad as tall or broader, for which they are sometimes called flat-topped goldenrods.

<i>Symphyotrichum boreale</i> Species of flowering plant in family Asteraceae

Symphyotrichum boreale is a species of flowering plant of the aster family (Asteraceae) native to North America. Commonly known as rush aster, northern bog aster, and slender white aster, it is a perennial, herbaceous plant that may reach heights of 85 centimetres.

<i>Symphyotrichum racemosum</i> Species of flowering plant in family Asteraceae

Symphyotrichum racemosum is a species of flowering plant native to parts of the United States and introduced in Canada. It is known as smooth white oldfield aster and small white aster. It is a perennial, herbaceous plant in the family Asteraceae. It is a late-summer and fall blooming flower.

<i>Symphyotrichum porteri</i> Species of flowering plant in family Asteraceae

Symphyotrichum porteri is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae endemic to the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in the U.S. states of Wyoming, Colorado, and New Mexico. Commonly known as Porter's aster, it is a perennial, herbaceous plant that may reach 10 to 50 centimeters tall. Its flowers have white, rarely pinkish, ray florets and yellow, becoming pink then brown, disk florets. S. porteri grows at elevations of 1,800–2,900 meters. Its limited range makes it a NatureServe Vulnerable (G3) species, and it is classified Critically Imperiled (S1) in Wyoming.

<i>Symphyotrichum yukonense</i> Species of flowering plant in family Asteraceae

Symphyotrichum yukonense is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae endemic to disjunct areas in Alaska and the Canadian territories of Yukon and Northwest Territories. It has the common name of Yukon aster, and it is a perennial, herbaceous plant 5 to 30 centimeters in height. Its flowers have purple to blue ray florets and yellow to brown disk florets. S. yukonense grows at elevations of 300–1,500 meters in mud flats and on sandy or silty lake shores. It is a NatureServe Vulnerable (G3) species and is classified Imperiled (S2) in its Canadian range.

<i>Symphyotrichum spathulatum</i> Species of flowering plant in family Asteraceae

Symphyotrichum spathulatum is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae native to western North America including northwestern Mexico. Commonly known as western mountain aster, it is a perennial, herbaceous plant that may reach 20 to 80 centimeters tall. Its flowers, which open in July and August, have violet ray florets and yellow disk florets.

<i>Symphyotrichum adnatum</i> Species of flowering plant in family Asteraceae

Symphyotrichum adnatum is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae native to the southeastern United States and the Bahamas. It is a perennial, herbaceous plant that may reach 30 to 120 centimeters tall with flowers that have lavender ray florets and yellow disk florets. The common name scaleleaf aster has been used for this species.

References

  1. illustration from USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913. Illustrated flora of the northern states and Canada. Vol. 3: 398.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Oligoneuron houghtonii. The Nature Conservancy.
  3. The Plant List, Solidago houghtonii Torr. & A.Gray
  4. "Biota of North America Program 2014 county distribution map". bonap.net. Retrieved 1 November 2018.
  5. 1 2 3 Semple, John C.; Cook, Rachel E. (2006). "Solidago houghtonii". In Flora of North America Editorial Committee (ed.). Flora of North America North of Mexico (FNA). Vol. 20. New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press. Retrieved 2018-10-30 via eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA.
  6. Nesom, G. L. (1993). "Taxonomic infrastructure of Solidago and Oligoneuron (Asteraceae: Astereae) and observations on their phylogenetic position." Phytologia 75(1):1-44.
  7. NRCS. "Oligoneuron houghtonii". PLANTS Database. United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  8. "Solidago houghtonii Torr. & A.Gray ex A.Gray". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanical Gardens Kew. Retrieved 2018-10-30.
  9. "Solidago houghtonii Torr. & A. Gray". Germplasm Resources Information Network . Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture . Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  10. Reznicek, A. A.; Voss, E. G.; Walters, B. S., eds. (February 2011). "Solidago houghtonii". Michigan Flora Online. University of Michigan Herbarium. Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  11. Semple, John C.; Cook, Rachel E. (2006). "Solidago sect. Ptarmicoidei". In Flora of North America Editorial Committee (ed.). Flora of North America North of Mexico (FNA). Vol. 20. New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press. Retrieved 2018-10-30 via eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA.
  12. "Houghton's goldenrod fact sheet". www.fws.gov. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  13. Oligoneuron houghtonii Center for Plant Conservation.