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Micranthes pensylvanica

(L.) Haw.

Swamp Saxifrage

G5Secure Found in 7 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
G5SecureGlobal Rank
UnknownThreat Impact
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.156596
Element CodePDSAX0U1D0
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVascular Plant
Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations
KingdomPlantae
PhylumAnthophyta
ClassDicotyledoneae
OrderRosales
FamilySaxifragaceae
GenusMicranthes
Synonyms
Saxifraga pensylvanicaL.
Other Common Names
Eastern Swamp Saxifrage (EN) eastern swamp saxifrage (EN) Saxifrage de Pennsylvanie (FR)
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
FNA (vol. 8, 2009) transfers Saxifraga pensylvanica to Micranthes pensylvanica.
Conservation Status
Rank Method Rank calculation - Biotics v2
Review Date2024-05-23
Change Date1984-09-06
Edition Date2024-05-23
Edition AuthorsSoteropoulos (2024)
Threat ImpactUnknown
Range Extent200,000-2,500,000 square km (about 80,000-1,000,000 square miles)
Number of Occurrences> 300
Rank Reasons
Micranthes pensylvanica is a wide-ranging perennial herb in a variety of wetlands in northeastern North America from Ontario west to Saskatchewan in Canada and Maine west to Minnesota south to North Carolina west to Missouri in the United States. Threats include development, pollution, forest management, succession, deer browse, recreational activities, road maintenance, and invasive species. Little is known about trends, but with a large range extent and large number of occurrences, this species is considered secure.
Range Extent Comments
Micranthes pensylvanica occurs in northeastern North America from Ontario west to Saskatchewan in Canada and Maine west to Minnesota south to western North Carolina, eastern Tennessee, and Missouri in the United States (FNA 2009). Range extent was estimated to be almost 2.4 million square kilometers using herbarium specimens, photo-based observations, and NatureServe Network occurrence data documented between 1993 and 2024 (GBIF 2024, iNaturalist 2024, NatureServe 2024, SEINet 2024).
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 over 600 occurrences rangewide (GBIF 2024, iNaturalist 2024, NatureServe 2024, SEINet 2024).
Threat Impact Comments
Although threats are not widely documented, this species is highly threatened by land-use conversion, habitat fragmentation, and pollution (sedimentation, runoff of pesticides and herbicides from Christmas tree plantations), and to a lesser degree by forest management practices (Southern Appalachian Species Viability Project 2002). Additional threats include by deer browse, succession, recreational activities, roadside maintenance activities, invasive species, and other threats in some places.
Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Micranthes pensylvanica grows in "marshy meadows, mucky seepages in woods, swamp forests, montane bogs and seeps," "forested seeps and seepage swamps, fens, usually over mafic or calcareous rocks" (FNA 2009, Weakley and the Southeastern Flora Team 2024).
Palustrine Habitats
HERBACEOUS WETLANDFORESTED WETLANDBog/fen
Other Nations (2)
CanadaN1
ProvinceRankNative
OntarioS1Yes
ManitobaS1Yes
SaskatchewanS1Yes
United StatesN5
ProvinceRankNative
MichiganSNRYes
IowaSNRYes
IllinoisSNRYes
KentuckySNRYes
WisconsinSNRYes
DelawareS1Yes
PennsylvaniaS5Yes
VermontS5Yes
New HampshireSNRYes
OhioSNRYes
MissouriS3Yes
ConnecticutSNRYes
North CarolinaS1Yes
MassachusettsSNRYes
TennesseeS1Yes
Rhode IslandS1Yes
MaineSNRYes
VirginiaS3Yes
New YorkS4Yes
West VirginiaS1Yes
MarylandSNRYes
MinnesotaSNRYes
New JerseyS3Yes
IndianaSNRYes
Threat Assessments
ThreatScopeSeverityTiming
Unknown/undetermined———

—

Plant Characteristics
DurationPERENNIAL
Economic Value (Genus)No
Roadless Areas (7)
Vermont (3)
AreaForestAcres
Bread LoafGreen Mountain and Finger Lakes National Forests1,768
Devil's Den 09083Green Mountain and Finger Lakes National Forests9,169
Wilder Mountain 09082Green Mountain and Finger Lakes National Forests8,759
Virginia (1)
AreaForestAcres
JerkemtightGeorge Washington National Forest16,687
West Virginia (2)
AreaForestAcres
Cranberry AdditionMonongahela National Forest11,123
Cranberry Glades Botanical AreaMonongahela National Forest785
Wisconsin (1)
AreaForestAcres
09154 - St. Peters DomeChequamegon-Nicolet National Forest4,002
References (9)
  1. Flora of North America Editorial Committee (FNA). 2009. Flora of North America north of Mexico. Vol. 8. Magnoliophyta: Paeoniaceae to Ericaceae. Oxford University Press, New York. xxiv + 585 pp.
  2. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). 2024. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) data portal. Online. Available: https://www.gbif.org/ (accessed 2024).
  3. iNaturalist. 2024. Online. Available: https://www.inaturalist.org (accessed 2024).
  4. 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.
  5. NatureServe. 2024. NatureServe Network Biodiversity Location Data. NatureServe, Arlington, Virginia.
  6. 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.
  7. Southwest Environmental Information Network (SEINet). 2024. Collections Databases. Online. Available: https://swbiodiversity.org/seinet/collections/index.php (accessed 2024).
  8. Stubbs, R.L., R.A. Folk, D.E. Soltis, and N. Cellinese. 2020. Diversification in the Arctic: Biogeography and Systematics of the North American Micranthes (Saxifragaceae). Systematic Botany 45(4): 802-811.
  9. Weakley, A.S., and Southeastern Flora Team. 2024. Flora of the southeastern United States. Edition of March 4, 2024. University of North Carolina Herbarium (NCU), North Carolina Botanical Garden, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. 2203 pp.