Pityopsis oligantha
(Chapman ex Torr. & Gray) Small
Coastal Plain Silk-grass
G2ImperiledGlobal Rank
HighThreat Impact
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.143514
Element CodePDAST7B060
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVascular Plant
Endemicendemic to a single nation
KingdomPlantae
PhylumAnthophyta
ClassDicotyledoneae
OrderAsterales
FamilyAsteraceae
GenusPityopsis
SynonymsChrysopsis oliganthaChapman ex Torr. & Gray
Other Common NamesCoastal Plain Golden-aster (EN) grassleaf goldaster (EN)
Concept ReferenceKartesz, 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 Date2018-10-29
Change Date2018-10-29
Edition Date2018-10-29
Edition AuthorsN. Stoner (1993), rev. C. Nordman (2018).
Threat ImpactHigh
Range Extent20,000-200,000 square km (about 8000-80,000 square miles)
Number of Occurrences21 - 80
Rank ReasonsIt is now known from only three southern U.S. states, but is very rare outside of Florida, in southern Alabama and southwest Georgia. Pityopsis oligantha is dependent on frequent prescribed fire (Chafin 2007).
Range Extent CommentsOccurs in the coastal plain of the Florida Panhandle, southern Alabama, and southwest Georgia (NatureServe Network Database as of October 2018, Semple 2013, Weakley 2015). Records from Mississippi, Louisiana, and east Texas are based on misidentifications (Semple 2013, Weakley 2015).
Threat Impact CommentsHighly threatened by succession from lack of frequent prescribed fire, and certain intensive forest management practices, such as ditching, bedding and maintaining closed pine canopy (Chafin 2007, Southern Appalachian Species Viability Project 2002). Other threats include land-use conversion, habitat fragmentation, and certain herbicide use on right of ways where Pityopsis oligantha occurs.
Ecology & Habitat
Description
Pityopsis oligantha is a flowering composite 20 - 50 cm tall with rhizomes 5 - 15 cm long. It has less than 10 yellow flower heads. Most leaves are basal, with only 2 - 6 leaves along the stem (Flora of North America Editorial Committee 2006).
Diagnostic Characteristics
Pityopsis oligantha is the only normally spring flowering species in this genus of late summer or fall flowering plants (Semple 2013). It has less than 10 yellow flower heads. Most leaves are basal, with only 2 - 6 leaves along the stem (Flora of North America Editorial Committee 2006).
Habitat
Wet pine flatwoods, pine savannas, seepage slopes, pitcher plant bogs, and edges of cypress ponds (Bridges 2005, Chafin 2007, Weakley 2015).
Palustrine HabitatsHERBACEOUS WETLAND
Other Nations (1)
United StatesN2
| Province | Rank | Native |
|---|
| Georgia | S1 | Yes |
| Florida | S3 | Yes |
| Louisiana | SNR | Yes |
| Alabama | S2 | Yes |
Plant Characteristics
DurationPERENNIAL, SPRING-FLOWERING
Economic Value (Genus)No
Roadless Areas (3)
Florida (3)
| Area | Forest | Acres |
|---|
| Clear Lake | Apalachicola National Forest | 5,592 |
| Gum Bay | Apalachicola National Forest | 11,645 |
| Savannah | Apalachicola National Forest | 1,927 |
References (8)
- Bridges, Edwin. 2005. Assessment of biodiversity and conservation status priorities for pitcher plant bogs and wetland savannas of the Apalachicola National Forest. Unpublished report to the US Forest Service. Botanical and Ecological Consultant. Bremerton, WA.
- Chafin, L.G. 2007. Field guide to the rare plants of Georgia. State Botanical Garden of Georgia, Athens, Georgia.
- Flora of North America Editorial Committee (FNA). 2006b. Flora of North America north of Mexico. Vol. 20. Magnoliophyta: Asteridae, part 7: Asteraceae, part 2. Oxford Univ. Press, New York. xxii + 666 pp.
- 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.
- Semple, J.C. 2013. <i>Pityopsis oligantha</i>, Few-headed Grass-leaved Goldenaster. Asteraceae Lab home, Department of Biology, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada. Online. Available: https://uwaterloo.ca/astereae-lab/pityopsis-oligantha (accessed 2018).
- Small, J.K. 1933. Manual of the southeastern flora. Two volumes. Hafner Publishing Company, New York.
- Southern Appalachian Species Viability Project. 2002. A partnership between the U.S. Forest Service-Region 8, Natural Heritage Programs in the Southeast, NatureServe, and independent scientists to develop and review data on 1300+ regionally and locally rare species in the Southern Appalachian and Alabama region. Database (Access 97) provided to the U.S. Forest Service by NatureServe, Durham, North Carolina.
- Weakley, A.S. 2015. Flora of the Southern and Mid-Atlantic States. Working Draft of 21 May 2015. University of North Carolina Herbarium (NCU), North Carolina Botanical Garden, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Online. Available: www.herbarium.unc.edu/FloraArchives/WeakleyFlora_2015-05-29.pdf (Accessed 2015).