Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.142063
Element CodePDBRA112X0
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVascular Plant
Endemicendemic to a single state or province
KingdomPlantae
PhylumAnthophyta
ClassDicotyledoneae
OrderCapparales
FamilyBrassicaceae
GenusDraba
Other Common NamesTushar Mountain Whitlow-grass (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 Method Rank calculation - Biotics v2
Review Date2025-04-23
Change Date1995-08-04
Edition Date2025-04-23
Edition AuthorsR. Douglas Stone, rev. B. Franklin (1996), rev. A. Tomaino (2009), rev. L. Oliver (2011), rev. M. McCormick (2023) and N. Ventrella (2025)
Threat ImpactHigh
Range Extent<100 square km (less than about 40 square miles)
Number of Occurrences1 - 5
Rank ReasonsDraba ramulosa is a perennial forb occurring on Tertiary ash-flow tuffs in alpine communities on talus and scree slopes of the Tushar Mountains of Utah in the western United States. This is an endemic plant of one known occurrence with an extremely narrow range. It is primarily threatened by climate change and herbivory impacts from introduced mountain goats. Trends from permanent monitoring plots established for Draba ramulosa show declines in plant density from 2018 to 2022, indicating that conservation actions are urgently needed.
Range Extent CommentsDraba ramulosa occurs in the western United States, where it is endemic to the Tushar Mountains of Beaver and Piute counties, Utah (Welsh et al. 2015). Range extent was calculated using data from the Utah Rare Plant Database (2023), excluding historical observations over 40 years old (UNHP 2023).
Occurrences CommentsBy applying a 2 km separation distance to population location data from the Utah Rare Plant Database (2023), there is only one known occurrence of this species (UNHP 2023).
Threat Impact CommentsThreats to Draba ramulosa include grazing-related impacts, climate change, and drought (UNHP 2023, UNPS 2025). Recreational use of habitat, such as foot traffic, biking, dispersed camping, winter recreation, and off-road vehicles may pose a threat to some populations (Franklin 2005, Allphin 2023).
Mountain goats were introduced to the Tushar Mountains in 1986 for the purpose of trophy hunting and are now naturalized to the region (Taye 1995). This species is threatened by grazing by mountain goats (UNHP 2023, UNPS 2025). In an ungulate forage utilization study of high alpine plants of the Tushars, Draba ramulosa was present within three mountain goat feeding sites, three deer feeding sites, and three random sampling points, but no utilization of this species was recorded (Shipp 2022). However, when a fecal DNA analysis was conducted on mountain goats in the Tushars, 8.2% of samples had Draba ramulosa DNA, indicating that this species is utilized by mountain goats (Allphin 2025). In contrast, no DNA of this species was found in deer fecal samples. Populations of Draba ramulosa are in decline, and the Utah Natural Heritage Program considers mountain goats to have a serious impact to this species (UNHP 2023).
Climate change is also a threat likely impacting this species throughout its range (Wrobleski 2023). Droughts and rapid snowmelt due to wind-blown sediments are melting snowpack earlier than normal in the region (UNPS 2025), and as of 2025, according to the North American Drought Monitor, Utah is in "severe" to "exceptional" drought in many parts of the state, which is likely impacting this species in similar ways as it is other perennial forbs in Utah (Hadwen et al. 2025).