Home/Species/ Pygmy Bladderpod

Physaria parvula

(Greene) O'Kane & Al-Shehbaz

Pygmy Bladderpod

G3Vulnerable (G3?) Found in 5 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →

G3VulnerableGlobal Rank

High - lowThreat Impact

Identity

Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.139790

Element CodePDBRA1N210

Record TypeSPECIES

ClassificationSpecies

Classification StatusStandard

Name CategoryVascular Plant

Endemicendemic to a single nation

KingdomPlantae

PhylumAnthophyta

ClassDicotyledoneae

OrderCapparales

FamilyBrassicaceae

GenusPhysaria

Synonyms

Lesquerella alpina ssp. parvula(Greene) Rollins & ShawLesquerella parvulaGreene

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 Date2011-12-12

Change Date1990-03-22

Edition Date2011-12-12

Edition AuthorsTomaino, A.

Threat ImpactHigh - low

Range Extent5000-20,000 square km (about 2000-8000 square miles)

Number of Occurrences21 - 80

Rank Reasons

Regional endemic, known only from north-central Colorado, southwestern Wyoming and northeastern Utah. Further information on number of populations is needed. Few threats are documented but potential threats include grazing, exotic species, fire, off-road vehicles, road construction/maintenance, and climate change.

Range Extent Comments

Known only from two disjunct areas, north-central Colorado and southwestern Wyoming/northeastern Utah (O'Kane 2006). In Wyoming, range extent is approximately 3100 sq km (EO data in the NatureServe central database as of July 2011).

Occurrences Comments

In Wyoming, there are approximately 14 extant occurrences (Fertig and Handley 2009). In Utah, there are approximately 19 occurrences (O'Kane 2006). In Colorado, estimates of number of occurrences range from 10 to 20 (Warren 2003; O'Kane 2006). Additional occurrences are likely to be found with intensive surveys (O'Kane 2006).

Threat Impact Comments

Threats may include grazing, exotic species, fire, off-road vehicles, road construction/maintenance, and climate change (O'Kane 2006). Grazing could increase erosion or soil compaction, or open habitat for exotic species (O'Kane 2006). The exotic Carduus nutans occurs adjacent to roadsides in the vicinity of an occurrence on the Medicine Bow National Forest (O'Kane 2006). On the Medicine Bow National Forest, road construction and maintenance may have impacted individuals on the road shoulder and on turnouts (Proctor personal communication 2004 cited by O'Kane 2006). The climate where this species occurs is likely to become drier and warmer in the future (EPA 1997 cited by O'Kane 2006).

Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Open areas in sagebrush and mountain shrub communities (O'Kane 2006). Occurs on exposed windblown ridges, gravelly hills, open rocky knolls, gravelly hilltops, clay hillsides, granitic sand, reddish soil, in sagebrush, mountain scrub, and pinyon-juniper areas from 1800-2800 m. elevation (Flora of North America Editorial Committee 2010).

Terrestrial Habitats

Shrubland/chaparralGrassland/herbaceous

Other Nations (1)

United StatesN3

Province	Rank	Native
Utah	S2	Yes
Colorado	S2	Yes
Wyoming	S2	Yes

Threat Assessments

Threat	Scope	Severity	Timing
2 - Agriculture & aquaculture	Large - small	Slight or 1-10% pop. decline	—
4 - Transportation & service corridors	Restricted - small	Unknown	—
6 - Human intrusions & disturbance	Large - small	Serious - slight	—
7 - Natural system modifications	Restricted - small	Unknown	—
8 - Invasive & other problematic species, genes & diseases	Restricted - small	Slight or 1-10% pop. decline	—
11 - Climate change & severe weather	Restricted - small	Unknown	—

Plant Characteristics

Economic Value (Genus)Yes

Roadless Areas (5)

Colorado (2)

Area	Forest	Acres
Dome Peak	Routt NF	35,716
Troublesome South	Routt NF	47,359

Utah (2)

Area	Forest	Acres
0401001	Ashley National Forest	11,705
0401031	Ashley National Forest	7,110

Wyoming (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
Bear Mountain	Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest	9,440

References (7)

Fertig, W., and J. Handley. 2009. February 5 last update. Lesquerella paysonii State Species Abstract, Wyoming Natural Diversity Database. Online. Available: http://www.uwyo.edu/wynddsupport/docs/Reports/SpeciesAbstracts/Lesquerella_parvula.pdf (accessed 11 December 2011).
Flora of North America Editorial Committee (FNA). 2010. Flora of North America north of Mexico. Vol. 7. Magnoliophyta: Salicaceae to Brassicaceae. Oxford University Press, New York. xxii + 797 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.
O'Kane, S. L. 2006. Lesquerella parvula (pygmy bladderpod): a technical conservation assessment. USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Region. Online. Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/r2/projects/scp/assessments/lesquerellaparvula.pdf (assessed 11 December 2011).
Stone, R.D. 1998. Endemic and rare plants of Utah: an overview of their distribution and status. Prepared for: Utah Reclamation Mitigation and Conservation Commission, U.S. Department of the Interior by Utah Division of Wildlife Resources. 566 pp. + appendices. [https://dwrcdc.nr.utah.gov/ucdc/ViewReports/plantrpt.htm]
Warren, N. 2003. R2 Individual Species Recommendations for Lesquerella parvula. U.S. Forest Service.
Weber, W.A., and R.C. Wittmann. 1996b. Colorado flora: Western slope. Univ. Press of Colorado, Niwot, Colorado. 496 pp.

Physaria parvula

Habitat

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