RARE VASCULAR PLANTS

The Alaska Natural Heritage Program Botany Program collects data on plant species of conservation concern. We collect, validate, and distribute this information to land managers in Alaska. The Program is part of NatureServe, and our data are linked to similar programs in all 50 states, most Canadian provinces, and many Latin American countries.

Tracking List

Each year we publish a tracking list for vascular plants the Alaska Natural Heritage Program considers rare within Alaska. This list is based on data collected by us and other partners. Detailed information on select species can be found in the "Alaska Rare Plant Field Guide".

Only one plant has any formal status under the U.S. Endangered Species Act - Polystichum aleuticum- listed as an endangered species

Surveys

conduct surveys in partnership with land agencies in Alaska to assess the conservation status of rare, threatened and endangered vascular plants in Alaska. Recent surveys include:

• The Stewart River rare plant survey on the Seward Peninsula in 2006
• Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve Vascular Plant survey in 2004
• Klondike-Goldrush National Park Vascular Plant Survey in 2004
• Alagnak Scenic River and Katmai National Park and Preserve Vasulcar Plant Surveys in 2003

Below is a list of other surveys broken down by area of the state.

Northwest

• Cape Newnham
• Cape Romanzof
• Cape Lisburne
• Selected sites on the Seward Peninsula

Interior

• Air Force Long Range Radar Sites
• Tin City
• Fort Wainwright Military Installation near Fairbanks
• Selected sites in the Ogilvie Mountains and Black River region
• Selected sites in the Steese National Conservation Area and White Mountain National Recreation Area

Southcentral

• Kenai Fjords National Park
• Lake Clark National Park and Preserve
• Fort Richardson Army Base near Anchorage
• Selected sites in the Chugach National Forest

Southwest

• Aniakchak National Monument
• Alagnak Wild and Scenic River
• Katmai National Park and Preserve
• Narrow Cape
• Pribilof Islands
• Goodnews Bay uplands
• Kagati Lake

Southeast

• Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve
• Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park
• Misty Fiords National Monument
• Sitka National Historical Park
• Selected sites in the Tongass National Forest

In addtion, the Botany program has conducted status surveys and reports on the following rare species:

• Arnica lessingii Greene ssp. norbergii Hultén & Maguire
• Artemisia glomerata Ledeb. var. subglabra Hultén
• Cochlearia sessilifolia Rollins (in progress),
• Mertensia drummondii (Lehm.) G. Don
• Rumex krausei Yurtsev & Petrovsky
• Effects of grazing on the rare Chukchi Primrose Primula tschuktschorum Kjellman
  

The Alaska Natural Heritage Program also houses rare plant databases for the:

• Dalton Highway Utility Corridor;
• Steese National Conservation Area and White Mountain National Recreation Area; and
• Tongass and Chugach National Forests.

Partners

We partner with many other agencies and organizations in order to collect data to populate BIOTICS.