|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Species Image Gallery (opens in a new window) |
|||||||||
| THE GRAPEFERN FAMILY | |||||||||
| The grapefern family is a unique group of plants. Most of the grapeferns found in Saskatchewan are considered endangered or threatened. These plants have short rootstocks and often have a cluster of fleshy roots. The sterile and fertile blades have a common stalk. The common stalk is enlarged at the base and encloses the bud for the next year’s growth. The sterile blades are sessile or on stalks and can be simple to compound. The fertile blades are generally long stalks and may be branched or unbranched. The spore sacs are arranged in two rows on the fertile leaves. The spores are small and yellowish. | |||||||||
| PECULIAR MOONWORT | |||||||||
| LATIN NAME: Botrychium paradoxum | |||||||||
| WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE? | |||||||||
| Peculiar moonwort is a small, inconspicuous fern. This plant is unique because it has two fertile blades instead of a fertile and a sterile blade. The fertile blades are between 0.5 and 4 cm long, and are linear in outline. The blades can be delicate or fleshy and usually have a bluish tinge. There are two or three sporangia per branch. | |||||||||
| WHERE DOES IT GROW? | |||||||||
| Peculiar moonwort grows in snowfields and secondary growth pastures. | |||||||||
| WHERE IS IT FOUND IN SASKATCHEWAN? | |||||||||
| This species is very limited in Saskatchewan and occurs only in the Cypress Upland ecoregion. | |||||||||
| WHY IS IT RARE? | |||||||||
| Peculiar moonwort is endangered because of extreme rarity in Saskatchewan. It is regionally restricted to one small subregion in the province. Immediate or probable threats have been identified. | |||||||||
| HOW TO IDENTIFY PECULIAR MOONWORT | |||||||||
| * Are there two fertile blades instead of a fertile
blade and sterile blade? * Are there 2 to 3 spore sacs per branch? * Is the plant less than 15 cm tall? * Did you find it in the Cypress Hills in Saskatchewan? |
|||||||||
| If you answered yes to all of these questions, you may have found peculiar moonwort! | |||||||||
