Paronychia argyrocoma
(Michx.) Nutt.
Silverling
G4Apparently SecureGlobal Rank
LowThreat Impact
Kate Martin, CC BY-NC 4.0
Will Bennett, CC BY-NC 4.0
NEcology, CC BY-NC 4.0
NEcology, CC BY-NC 4.0
Annkatrin Rose, CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
Rachel Knoepfel, CC BY-NC 4.0
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.147786
Element CodePDCAR0L020
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVascular Plant
Endemicendemic to a single nation
KingdomPlantae
PhylumAnthophyta
ClassDicotyledoneae
OrderCaryophyllales
FamilyCaryophyllaceae
GenusParonychia
Other Common Names
silvery nailwort (EN) Silvery Nailwort (EN)
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.
Taxonomic Comments
Two varieties (var. albimontana and the typical var. argyrocoma) have sometimes been recognized; Kartesz (1994 checklist) does not distinguish these.
Conservation Status
Rank Method Rank calculation - Biotics v2
Review Date2024-04-12
Change Date1988-01-06
Edition Date2024-04-12
Edition AuthorsNordman, C. (2024).
Threat ImpactLow
Range Extent200,000-2,500,000 square km (about 80,000-1,000,000 square miles)
Number of Occurrences81 - 300
Rank Reasons
Silverling (Paronychia argyrocoma) occurs in the Southern and Northern Appalachians, from northern Alabama and Georgia to Virginia and West Virginia, and from Massachusetts to Maine. It is endemic to the United States, and there are between 81 and 300 occurrences, including on National Forests, the Blue Ridge Parkway, State Parks, and other conservation lands. It has a restricted habitat and limited number of occurrences, making it especially vulnerable to human disturbance, development impacts, trampling in popular vista areas, recreational ATV impacts, and invasive exotic plants.
Range Extent Comments
Silverling (Paronychia argyrocoma) occurs in the Southern and Northern Appalachians, from northern Alabama and Georgia to Virginia and West Virginia, and from Massachusetts to Maine. It is endemic to the United States, and does not occur in Peru. Range extent was estimated to be 275,000 square kilometers using herbarium specimens, photo-based observations, and NatureServe Network occurrence data collected between 1993 and 2024 (Flora of North America Editorial Committee 2005, GBIF 2024, Iamonico and Montesinos-Tubée 2023, iNaturalist 2024, NatureServe 2024, SEINet 2024, Weakley and Southeastern Flora Team 2023).
Occurrences Comments
By applying a 1 km separation distance to herbarium specimens, photo-based observations, and NatureServe Network occurrence data documented between 1993 and 2024, it is estimated that there are between 81 and 300 occurrences of Silverling (Paronychia argyrocoma) rangewide (GBIF 2024, iNaturalist 2024, NatureServe 2024, SEINet 2024).
Threat Impact Comments
Silverling (Paronychia argyrocoma) has a restricted habitat and limited number of occurrences, making it especially vulnerable to human disturbance, including development impacts, plants can be subject to trampling in popular vista areas, recreational ATV impacts are also a threat, and invasive exotic plants are a threat (NatureServe 2024, Schori 2001, Southern Appalachian Species Viability Project 2002).
Ecology & Habitat
Habitat
Silverling occurs on or among rocks and rock outcrops, on thin soils in the mountains (and in riverside areas) in New England, on Southern Appalachian mountain summits at medium to high elevations, and on a few Piedmont monadnocks, at elevations of 200 - 1800 meters, plus one site in New England is near sea level (Flora of North America Editorial Committee 2005, Schori 2001, Weakley and Southeastern Flora Team 2023).
Reproduction
Flowers from spring to early fall (Flora of North America Editorial Committee 2005).
Terrestrial Habitats
AlpineBare rock/talus/scree
Other Nations (1)
United StatesN4
| Province | Rank | Native |
|---|---|---|
| Virginia | S4 | Yes |
| Maine | S1 | Yes |
| Georgia | S1 | Yes |
| Vermont | SNR | Yes |
| District of Columbia | SNR | Yes |
| Massachusetts | S1 | Yes |
| Maryland | SNR | Yes |
| West Virginia | S3 | Yes |
| Kentucky | S1 | Yes |
| North Carolina | S3 | Yes |
| New Hampshire | S2 | Yes |
| Tennessee | S1 | Yes |
| Alabama | S1 | Yes |
Threat Assessments
| Threat | Scope | Severity | Timing |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 - Residential & commercial development | Small (1-10%) | Moderate or 11-30% pop. decline | High (continuing) |
| 1.3 - Tourism & recreation areas | Small (1-10%) | Moderate or 11-30% pop. decline | High (continuing) |
| 6 - Human intrusions & disturbance | Small (1-10%) | Serious - moderate | High (continuing) |
| 6.1 - Recreational activities | Small (1-10%) | Serious - moderate | High (continuing) |
| 8 - Invasive & other problematic species, genes & diseases | Restricted (11-30%) | Moderate or 11-30% pop. decline | High (continuing) |
| 8.1 - Invasive non-native/alien species/diseases | Restricted (11-30%) | Moderate or 11-30% pop. decline | High (continuing) |
Plant Characteristics
DurationPERENNIAL
Economic Value (Genus)No
Roadless Areas (16)
Georgia (3)
| Area | Forest | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| Boggs Creek | Chattahoochee National Forest | 2,073 |
| Helton Creek | Chattahoochee National Forest | 2,348 |
| Miller Creek | Chattahoochee National Forest | 701 |
Maine (1)
| Area | Forest | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| Caribou - Speckled Ext | White Mountain National Forest | 5,988 |
New Hampshire (3)
| Area | Forest | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| Pemigewasset Ext | White Mountain National Forest | 15,840 |
| Sandwich Range | White Mountain National Forest | 16,797 |
| Wild River | White Mountain National Forest | 46,878 |
North Carolina (1)
| Area | Forest | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| Linville Gorge Addition | Pisgah National Forest | 2,809 |
Virginia (6)
| Area | Forest | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| Adams Peak | George Washington National Forest | 7,135 |
| Mt. Pleasant | George Washington National Forest | 8,933 |
| North Mountain | Jefferson National Forest | 8,377 |
| The Friars | George Washington National Forest | 2,035 |
| The Priest | George Washington National Forest | 5,737 |
| Three Ridges | George Washington National Forest | 4,745 |
West Virginia (2)
| Area | Forest | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| Dolly Sods Roaring Plain | Monongahela National Forest | 13,392 |
| North Mountain Hopeville | Monongahela National Forest | 6,525 |
References (10)
- Flora of North America Editorial Committee (FNA). 2005. Flora of North America north of Mexico. Vol. 5. Magnoliophyta: Caryophyllidae: Caryophyllales, Polygonales, and Plumbaginales. Oxford Univ. Press, New York. vii + 656 pp.
- Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). 2024. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) data portal. Online. Available: https://www.gbif.org/ (accessed 2024).
- Iamonico, D. and D.B. Montesinos-Tubée. 2023. The Genus <i>Paronychia</i> (Caryophyllaceae) in South America: Nomenclatural Review and Taxonomic Notes with the Description of a New Species from North Peru. Plants, 12(5), 1064. Online. Available: https://doi.org/10.3390/plants12051064 (accessed 2024).
- iNaturalist. 2024. Online. Available: https://www.inaturalist.org (accessed 2024).
- 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.
- NatureServe. 2024. NatureServe Network Biodiversity Location Data. NatureServe, Arlington, Virginia.
- Schori, Alice. 2001. <i>Paronychia argyrocoma</i> (Michx.) Nutt. (Silverling) Conservation and Research Plan. New England Wild Flower Society, Framingham, Massachusetts, USA. Online. Available: https://newfs-society.s3.amazonaws.com/documents/Paronychiaargyrocoma.pdf (accessed 2024).
- 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.
- Southwest Environmental Information Network (SEINet). 2024. Collections Databases. Online. Available: https://swbiodiversity.org/seinet/collections/index.php (accessed 2024).
- Weakley, A.S., and Southeastern Flora Team. 2023. Flora of the southeastern United States. Edition of April 14, 2023. University of North Carolina Herbarium (NCU), North Carolina Botanical Garden, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. 2105 pp.