Home/Species/ San Rafael Cactus

Pediocactus despainii

Welsh & Goodrich

San Rafael Cactus

G2Imperiled Found in 12 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →

G2ImperiledGlobal Rank

Near threatenedIUCN

HighThreat Impact

Identity

Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.147621

Element CodePDCAC0E090

Record TypeSPECIES

ClassificationSpecies

Classification StatusStandard

Name CategoryVascular Plant

IUCNNear threatened

CITESAppendix II

Endemicendemic to a single state or province

KingdomPlantae

PhylumAnthophyta

ClassDicotyledoneae

OrderCaryophyllales

FamilyCactaceae

GenusPediocactus

Concept Reference

Kartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.

Conservation Status

Rank MethodLegacy Rank calculation - Excel v3.1x

Review Date2015-11-24

Change Date1987-10-07

Edition Date2015-11-24

Edition AuthorsRoth, E., rev. D. Atwood, rev. K. Maybury & B. Franklin (1996), rev. A. Tomaino (2013), rev. A. Treher (2015)

Threat ImpactHigh

Range Extent1000-5000 square km (about 400-2000 square miles)

Number of Occurrences21 - 80

Rank Reasons

Known from about 21 occurrences. Off-road vehicles and livestock trampling are serious threats. In addition, about half of this species' small range is covered by leases for oil and gas exploration and mining claims for gypsum and other minerals.

Range Extent Comments

Endemic to central Utah, occurring in Wayne and Emery Counties.

Occurrences Comments

Approximately 21 extant occurrences in Emery County (reported from Wayne County). Some sites are close to each other and connected by suitable habitat, so they might be part of one population (T. Switek, pers. comm., 2015).

Threat Impact Comments

Threatened by collecting, loss of individuals and habitat degradation associated with ORV and livestock trampling (USFWS 2007). About half of the population is in areas covered by oil and gas leases and/or mining claims for gypsum. However, at present, mineral exploration and subsequent mining is a minor threat (USFWS 2007). Other threats include climate change, and invasive exotic plant species (USFWS 2007).

Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Desert pavements of cobble or pebble in pinyon-juniper woodlands, 1500-1800 m (Flora of North America Editorial Committee 2003). Hills, benches and flats, of open, semi-arid grassland with scattered junipers and pinyon pines.

Reproduction

Members of Pediocactus produce dry, dull-colored fruit which are presumed not to be dispersed by birds or rodents, but rather wind or water. Little variation exists within populations. These populations can be separated by distances of several miles even when there is suitable habitat. Further, dispersal within populations appears to be staggered throughout the growing season from shortly after seeds are produced in June, to fall. This dispersal strategy may be disadvantageous for the genus, however, populations in the genus when left undisturbed seem to be healthy with all age classes represented (Heil et al. 1981).

Terrestrial Habitats

Forest/WoodlandWoodland - ConiferSavannaGrassland/herbaceousDesert

Other Nations (1)

United StatesN2

Province	Rank	Native
Utah	S2	Yes

Threat Assessments

Threat	Scope	Severity	Timing
2 - Agriculture & aquaculture	Large (31-70%)	Moderate or 11-30% pop. decline	—
2.3 - Livestock farming & ranching	Large (31-70%)	Moderate or 11-30% pop. decline	—
3 - Energy production & mining	Pervasive (71-100%)	Moderate or 11-30% pop. decline	—
3.1 - Oil & gas drilling	Large (31-70%)	Moderate or 11-30% pop. decline	—
3.2 - Mining & quarrying	Large (31-70%)	Moderate or 11-30% pop. decline	—
5 - Biological resource use	Large (31-70%)	Moderate - slight	—
5.2 - Gathering terrestrial plants	Large (31-70%)	Moderate - slight	—
6 - Human intrusions & disturbance	Large (31-70%)	Moderate or 11-30% pop. decline	—
6.1 - Recreational activities	Large (31-70%)	Moderate or 11-30% pop. decline	—
8 - Invasive & other problematic species, genes & diseases	Large - restricted	Slight or 1-10% pop. decline	—
8.1 - Invasive non-native/alien species/diseases	Large - restricted	Slight or 1-10% pop. decline	—
11 - Climate change & severe weather	Pervasive (71-100%)	Moderate or 11-30% pop. decline	—
11.2 - Droughts	Pervasive (71-100%)	Moderate or 11-30% pop. decline	—

Plant Characteristics

DurationPERENNIAL, Long-lived

Economic Value (Genus)No

Roadless Areas (12)

South Dakota (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
Indian Creek	Buffalo Gap National Grassland	24,666

Utah (11)

Area	Forest	Acres
Boulder Mtn. / Boulder Top / Deer Lake	Dixie National Forest	110,690
Capital Reef	Dixie National Forest	763
Happy Valley	Dixie National Forest	14,458
Long Neck Mesa / Steep Creek / Oak Creek - Steep Creek / Oak	Dixie National Forest	55,489
Lookout Peak	Fishlake National Forest	9,195
Mcdonald Basin	Fishlake National Forest	1,585
Mt. Johns Peak - Mt Alice	Fishlake National Forest	12,469
Muddy Creek - Nelson Mt.	Manti-Lasal National Forest	59,034
Solomon Basin	Fishlake National Forest	19,963
Thousand Lake Mountain	Fishlake National Forest	27,267
Wayne Wonderland	Fishlake National Forest	12,395

References (11)

Butterworth, C.A., J.H. Cota-Sanchez, and R.S. Wallace. 2002. Molecular systematics of tribe Cacteae (Cactaceae: Cactoideae): A phylogeny based on rpl16 intron sequence variation. Systematic Botany 27:257-270.
Butterworth, C., and J.M. Porter. 2013. Pediocactus despainii. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.1. Online. Available: http://www.iucnredlist.org (accessed 11 July 2013).
Dodge, R. 2011. March 3 last update. National Collection Plant Profile: Pediocactus despainii. Center for Plant Conservation. Online. Available: www.centerforplantconservation.org/ASP/CPC_ViewProfile.asp?CPCNum=3129 (Accessed 2013).
Flora of North America Editorial Committee (FNA). 2003b. Flora of North America north of Mexico. Vol. 4, Magnoliophyta: Caryophyllidae, part 1. Oxford University Press, New York. xxiv + 559 pp.
Heil, K., B. Armstrong and D. Schleser. 1981. A review of the genus Pediocactus. Cactus and Succulent Journal 53:17-39.
Kartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.
Porter, J. M., M. S. Kinney, and K. D. Heil. 2000. Relationships between Sclerocactus and Toumeya (Cactaceae) based on chloroplast trnL-trnF sequences. Haseltonia 7: 8-23.
Switek, Tracy. Personal communication. 2015. Ecologist. U.S. Fish and Wildlife, Salt Lake City, Utah.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). 1987. Endangered and threatened wildlife and plants; Determination of endangered status for Pediocactus despainii (San Rafael cactus). Federal Register 52(179): 34914-34917.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). 2007. Recovery outline for San Rafael Cactus (Pediocactus despainii) and Winkler Cactus (Pediocactus winkleri). Accessed online on May 9, 2011 at: http://ecos.fws.gov/speciesProfile/profile/speciesProfile.action?spcode=Q2QA#status
Welsh, S.L., N.D. Atwood, S. Goodrich, and L.C. Higgins (eds.) 1993. A Utah flora. 2nd edition. Brigham Young Univ., Provo, Utah. 986 pp.

Pediocactus despainii

Habitat

Reproduction

—