Potentilla robbinsiana
Encyclopedia
Potentilla robbinsiana (Robbins' Cinquefoil) is a small, yellow-flowered, perennial found exclusively above the tree line in the White Mountains
of New Hampshire
. The plant is nearly stemless and measures two to four centimeters in diameter.
The Crawford Path of Mount Washington
, the oldest mountain hiking trail in America, was laid out in 1819 as a bridle path from Crawford Notch
to the summit. There is some discrepancy as to who discovered Potentilla robbinsiana, which some sources giving credit to its discovery in 1824 by English botanist and zoologist Thomas Nuttall
, five years after completion of the Crawford Path. The more likely case is its discovery in 1829 by James Robbins. After its discovery it was described by the botanist and explorer William Oakes. It was soon recognized as a rare plant and over 850 specimens were collected and occasionally sold commercially to collectors and herbariums. In the 1970s a "backpacker
boom" led to significantly increased use of the Crawford Path, making the plant's limited habitat vulnerable to hikers picking the flowers and trampling the plant.
This destruction led to the plant receiving Endangered Species Act
protection in 1980, with the known main population numbered at only 3,700 plants. However, due to a very successful awareness program and an effort to reroute trails away from the plant's habitat along with enclosures for the main population, the plant has since then recovered to well over 14,000 plants and was delisted in August, 2002. Additional efforts included public education, biological research, seed collection and transplant efforts.
The awareness program and repopulation efforts were successful in a large part due to a unique partnership between the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
, the Appalachian Mountain Club
, the U.S. Forest Service
, and the New England Wild Flower Society
.
heath meadow system of alpine communities, though it is also found on subalpine bare rock summits. The primary habitat is an exposed and barren fellfield
habitat with high winds and low temperatures. While frost heaving
is considered a requirement, too much causes mortality.
White Mountains (New Hampshire)
The White Mountains are a mountain range covering about a quarter of the state of New Hampshire and a small portion of western Maine in the United States. Part of the Appalachian Mountains, they are considered the most rugged mountains in New England...
of New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
. The plant is nearly stemless and measures two to four centimeters in diameter.
History
Mount Washington (New Hampshire)
Mount Washington is the highest peak in the Northeastern United States at , famous for dangerously erratic weather. For 76 years, a weather observatory on the summit held the record for the highest wind gust directly measured at the Earth's surface, , on the afternoon of April 12, 1934...
, the oldest mountain hiking trail in America, was laid out in 1819 as a bridle path from Crawford Notch
Crawford Notch
Crawford Notch is the steep and narrow gorge of the Saco River in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, located almost entirely within the town of Hart's Location...
to the summit. There is some discrepancy as to who discovered Potentilla robbinsiana, which some sources giving credit to its discovery in 1824 by English botanist and zoologist Thomas Nuttall
Thomas Nuttall
Thomas Nuttall was an English botanist and zoologist, who lived and worked in America from 1808 until 1841....
, five years after completion of the Crawford Path. The more likely case is its discovery in 1829 by James Robbins. After its discovery it was described by the botanist and explorer William Oakes. It was soon recognized as a rare plant and over 850 specimens were collected and occasionally sold commercially to collectors and herbariums. In the 1970s a "backpacker
Backpacking (wilderness)
Backpacking combines the activities of hiking and camping for an overnight stay in backcountry wilderness...
boom" led to significantly increased use of the Crawford Path, making the plant's limited habitat vulnerable to hikers picking the flowers and trampling the plant.
This destruction led to the plant receiving Endangered Species Act
Endangered Species Act
The Endangered Species Act of 1973 is one of the dozens of United States environmental laws passed in the 1970s. Signed into law by President Richard Nixon on December 28, 1973, it was designed to protect critically imperiled species from extinction as a "consequence of economic growth and...
protection in 1980, with the known main population numbered at only 3,700 plants. However, due to a very successful awareness program and an effort to reroute trails away from the plant's habitat along with enclosures for the main population, the plant has since then recovered to well over 14,000 plants and was delisted in August, 2002. Additional efforts included public education, biological research, seed collection and transplant efforts.
The awareness program and repopulation efforts were successful in a large part due to a unique partnership between the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
United States Fish and Wildlife Service
The United States Fish and Wildlife Service is a federal government agency within the United States Department of the Interior dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats...
, the Appalachian Mountain Club
Appalachian Mountain Club
The Appalachian Mountain Club is one of the United States' oldest outdoor groups. Created in 1876 to explore and preserve the White Mountains in New Hampshire, it has expanded throughout the northeastern U.S., with 12 chapters stretching from Maine to Washington, D.C...
, the U.S. Forest Service
United States Forest Service
The United States Forest Service is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 155 national forests and 20 national grasslands, which encompass...
, and the New England Wild Flower Society
New England Wild Flower Society
The New England Wild Flower Society is the nation's oldest conservation organization. Dedicated to the preservation of native plants, the Society operates Garden in the Woods, a native plant botanical garden, at its headquarters in Framingham, Massachusetts...
.
Distribution
The White Mountain National Forest contains 100% of this species' global population. The plant has four extant occurrences, with two being natural and two others from transplant efforts.Habitat
P. robbinsiana is generally placed in the dry/mesicMesic habitat
In ecology, a mesic habitat is a type of habitat with a moderate or well-balanced supply of moisture, e.g., a mesic forest, a temperate hardwood forest, or dry-mesic prairie. Compared to a dry habitat, a mesic habitat is moister....
heath meadow system of alpine communities, though it is also found on subalpine bare rock summits. The primary habitat is an exposed and barren fellfield
Fellfield
A fellfield or fell field comprises the environment of a slope, usually alpine or tundra, where the dynamics of frost and of wind give rise to characteristic plant forms in scree interstices.-Soil dynamics:...
habitat with high winds and low temperatures. While frost heaving
Frost heaving
Frost heaving results from ice forming beneath the surface of soil during freezing conditions in the atmosphere. The ice grows in the direction of heat loss , starting at the freezing front or boundary in the soil...
is considered a requirement, too much causes mortality.
See also
- Alpine plantAlpine plantAlpine plants are plants that grow in the alpine climate, which occurs at high elevation and above the tree line. Alpine plants grow together as a plant community in alpine tundra.-Alpine plant diversity:...
- Alpine meadow
- Alpine tundra