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Helianthus petiolaris

Nutt.

Prairie Sunflower

G5Secure Found in 21 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
G5SecureGlobal Rank
Least concernIUCN
UnknownThreat Impact
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.1370735
Element CodePDAST4N2A0
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVascular Plant
IUCNLeast concern
Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations
KingdomPlantae
PhylumAnthophyta
ClassDicotyledoneae
OrderAsterales
FamilyAsteraceae
GenusHelianthus
Other Common Names
Hélianthe des prairies (FR) prairie sunflower (EN)
Concept Reference
Keil, D.J. 2020. Helianthus, in Jepson Flora Project (eds.). Jepson eFlora, Revision 8. Online. Available: https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=466 (accessed 07 August 2023).
Taxonomic Comments
This record is for Helianthus petiolaris in the broad sense of Keil (2020) and FNA (vol. 21 ,2006) that includes H. niveus ssp. canescens, as H. petiolaris ssp. canescens, and includes H. couplandii in H. petiolaris ssp. petiolaris. In contrast, Kartesz (1994) recognized H. niveus ssp. canescens and H. couplandii as distinct from H. petiolaris.
Conservation Status
Rank Method Rank calculation - Biotics v2
Review Date2025-11-18
Change Date2002-08-09
Edition Date2025-11-18
Edition AuthorsSoteropoulos (2025)
Threat ImpactUnknown
Range Extent>2,500,000 square km (greater than 1,000,000 square miles)
Number of Occurrences> 300
Rank Reasons
Helianthus petiolaris is a wide-ranging annual herb found in dry, usually sandy soils in open areas, such as prairies, desert scrub, pinon-juniper woodlands, ponderosa pine forests, and disturbed areas. It occurs natively in North America from Manitoba west to Alberta, Canada, south in the United States to Missouri, Texas, and California, and Mexico. Nativity in Arkansas and Louisiana is uncertain, and it is nonnative east and west of the plains. There are over 1400 occurrences. Little is known about threats or trends, but with a large range extent and large number of occurrences, this species is considered secure.
Range Extent Comments
Helianthus petiolaris occurs natively in North America from Manitoba west to Alberta, Canada, south in the United States to Missouri, Texas, and California, and Mexico (FNA 2006, Villaseñor 2016). Nativity in Arkansas and Louisiana is uncertain, and it is nonnative east and west of the plains (Jepson 2025, OSU 2025, Weakley and the Southeastern Flora Team 2025, Weinmann et al. 2025, Werier et al. 2025). Range extent was estimated to be over 5 million square kilometers using herbarium specimens and photo-based observations documented between 1994 and 2025 (GBIF 2025, iNaturalist 2025, RARECAT 2025, SEINet 2025).
Occurrences Comments
By applying a 1 km separation distance to herbarium specimens and photo-based observations documented between 1994 and 2025, it is estimated that there are over 1400 occurrences rangewide (GBIF 2025, iNaturalist 2025, RARECAT 2025, SEINet 2025).
Threat Impact Comments
Although threats are not widely documented, this species is potentially threatened by development, invasive species, and other threats in some places. However, their overall impact is likely negligible given the species' broad range and large number of occurrences.
Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Helianthus petiolaris grows in dry, usually sandy soils in open areas, such as prairies, desert scrub, pinon-juniper woodlands, ponderosa pine forests, and disturbed areas (FNA 2006, Heil and O'Kane 2025).
Terrestrial Habitats
Woodland - ConiferShrubland/chaparralGrassland/herbaceousOld fieldSand/dune
Other Nations (2)
United StatesN5
ProvinceRankNative
Rhode IslandSNANo
TexasSNRYes
KentuckySNANo
WisconsinSNRYes
MontanaS4Yes
South DakotaSNRYes
North CarolinaSNANo
KansasSNRYes
MassachusettsSNRYes
UtahSNRYes
IdahoSNRYes
CaliforniaSNANo
New YorkSNANo
ColoradoS4Yes
IndianaSNANo
ArkansasSNRYes
LouisianaSNRYes
South CarolinaSNANo
WashingtonSNANo
TennesseeSNRYes
MarylandSNANo
ConnecticutSNANo
VermontSNANo
New MexicoSNRYes
West VirginiaSNRYes
NevadaSNRYes
ArizonaSNRYes
IowaS4Yes
IllinoisSNANo
VirginiaSNANo
PennsylvaniaSNRYes
North DakotaSNRYes
OhioSNANo
New JerseySNRYes
WyomingS4Yes
MaineSNANo
OregonSNANo
MichiganSNANo
MissouriSNRYes
MinnesotaSNRYes
NebraskaSNRYes
OklahomaSNRYes
CanadaN4
ProvinceRankNative
ManitobaS3Yes
OntarioSNANo
SaskatchewanS4Yes
AlbertaS3Yes
Threat Assessments
ThreatScopeSeverityTiming
Unknown/undetermined———

—

Plant Characteristics
DurationANNUAL
Economic Value (Genus)Yes
Roadless Areas (21)
Arizona (1)
AreaForestAcres
Burro CanyonKaibab National Forest19,928
California (1)
AreaForestAcres
City CreekSan Bernardino National Forest9,997
New Mexico (1)
AreaForestAcres
Chama WS RiverSanta Fe National Forest4,168
North Dakota (7)
AreaForestAcres
Collar / Bennett - CottonwoodDakota Prairie Grasslands19,697
Lone ButteDakota Prairie Grasslands11,465
Long X DivideDakota Prairie Grasslands10,099
MagpieDakota Prairie Grasslands21,281
SheyenneDakota Prairie Grasslands14,537
Tracy MountainDakota Prairie Grasslands9,756
VenloDakota Prairie Grasslands5,317
Utah (11)
AreaForestAcres
0401023Ashley National Forest8,352
0401037Ashley National Forest1,166
418014Uinta National Forest9,683
418015Uinta National Forest17,289
418016Uinta National Forest35,240
Lava BedsDixie National Forest14,944
Lewis PeakWasatch-Cache National Forest11,616
Lone Peak ContiguousWasatch-Cache National Forest874
Stansbury MountainsWasatch-Cache National Forest39,696
Steves MountainFishlake National Forest22,649
Wayne WonderlandFishlake National Forest12,395
References (15)
  1. Flora of North America Editorial Committee (FNA). 2006c. Flora of North America north of Mexico. Vol. 21. Magnoliophyta: Asteridae, part 8: Asteraceae, part 3. Oxford Univ. Press, New York. xxii + 616 pp.
  2. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). 2025. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) data portal. Online. Available: https://www.gbif.org/ (accessed 2025).
  3. Heil, K.D., and S.L. O'Kane. 2025. Vascular plants of New Mexico. Missouri Botanical Garden Press, St. Louis. 1119 pp.
  4. iNaturalist. 2025. Online. Available: https://www.inaturalist.org (accessed 2025).
  5. Jepson Flora Project (eds.) 2025. Jepson eFlora. Online. Available: https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/ (accessed 2025).
  6. 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.
  7. Keil, D.J. 2020. <i>Helianthus</i>, in Jepson Flora Project (eds.). Jepson eFlora, Revision 8. Online. Available: https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=466 (accessed 07 August 2023).
  8. Native Plant Trust. 2025. Go Botany website. Online. Available: https://gobotany.nativeplanttrust.org (accessed 2025).
  9. Oregon State University (OSU). 2025. Oregon Flora website. Oregon State University Herbarium at Oregon State University. Online. Available: https://oregonflora.org/ (accessed 2025).
  10. <p>NatureServe's Rapid Analysis of Rarity and Endangerment Conservation Assessment Tool (RARECAT). 2025. Version: 2.1.1 (released April 04, 2025).</p>
  11. Southwest Environmental Information Network (SEINet). 2025. Collections Databases. Online. Available: https://swbiodiversity.org/seinet/collections/index.php (accessed 2025).
  12. Villaseñor, J.L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Revista Mexicana de Biodiversidad 87: 559-902.
  13. Weakley, A.S., and Southeastern Flora Team. 2025. Flora of the southeastern United States Web App. Edition of February 18, 2025. University of North Carolina Herbarium (NCU), North Carolina Botanical Garden, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Online. Available: https://fsus.ncbg.unc.edu (accessed 2025).
  14. Weinmann, F., P.F. Zika, D.E. Giblin, B. Legler. 2002+. Checklist of the Vascular Plants of Washington State. University of Washington Herbarium. Online. Available: http://biology.burke.washington.edu/herbarium/waflora/checklist.php (Accessed 2025).
  15. Werier, D., K. Webster, T. Weldy, A. Nelson, R. Mitchell, and R. Ingalls. 2025. New York Flora Atlas. Online. Available: https://newyork.plantatlas.usf.edu (accessed 2025).