Platanthera praeclara, known as the western prairie fringed orchid and the Great Plains white fringed orchid, is a rare and threatened species of orchid native to North America.
Platanthera praeclara arises from a fleshy tuber. It grows from 38 to 85 centimeters (1 ft 3 in to 2 ft 9 in) tall. Each plant can have up to two dozen or more flowers arranged in a stalk. P. praeclara is distinguished from Platanthera leucophaea, the eastern prairie fringed orchid, by its slightly larger flowers, petal shape, and longer nectar spur.
Platanthera praeclara is a long-lived perennial. It emerges in May and blooms in June or in July further north. The flowers are fragrant at night and are pollinated by large sphinx moths. P. praeclara is a plant of the tallgrass prairie and requires direct sunlight for growth. It is most often found in moist habitats or sedge meadows. P. praeclara has persisted in areas that have been lightly grazed, periodically burned, or regularly mowed. It is not yet understood how these activities affect plant survival. It may be that removal of dead grass mulch is beneficial, but heavy grazing is detrimental.
The major factor contributing to the decline of P. praeclara has been the conversion of native prairie to croplands. Fire suppression, overgrazing, and habitat fragmentation also have contributed to the decline of the species.
The species was listed as endangered in Canada in 2003.[4] The Canadian population is considered relatively stable though limited to a small geographic area.[5] The Nature Conservancy of Canada has protected habitat for 25% of the global population of Western Prairie Fringed Orchid.[6]
Referencesedit
^ abGoedeke, T.; Sharma, J.; Delphey, P.; Marshall Mattson, K. (2008). "Platanthera praeclara". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2008: e.T132834A3464336. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2008.RLTS.T132834A3464336.en. Retrieved 18 November 2021.
^ abSheviak, Charles J. (2002). "Platanthera praeclara". In Flora of North America Editorial Committee (ed.). Flora of North America North of Mexico (FNA). Vol. 26. New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press – via eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA.
^"Platanthera praeclara". County-level distribution map from the North American Plant Atlas (NAPA). Biota of North America Program (BONAP). 2014.
Media related to Platanthera praeclara at Wikimedia Commons
Data related to Platanthera praeclara at Wikispecies
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Western Prairie Fringed Orchid (Platanthera praeclara)
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Platanthera praeclara.
November 11, 2023
platanthera, praeclara, known, western, prairie, fringed, orchid, great, plains, white, fringed, orchid, rare, threatened, species, orchid, native, north, america, conservation, statusendangered, iucn, scientific, classificationkingdom, plantaeclade, tracheoph. Platanthera praeclara known as the western prairie fringed orchid and the Great Plains white fringed orchid is a rare and threatened species of orchid native to North America Platanthera praeclaraConservation statusEndangered IUCN 3 1 1 Scientific classificationKingdom PlantaeClade TracheophytesClade AngiospermsClade MonocotsOrder AsparagalesFamily OrchidaceaeSubfamily OrchidoideaeGenus PlatantheraSpecies P praeclaraBinomial namePlatanthera praeclaraSheviak amp M L BowlesSynonyms 2 Habenaria leucophaea var praeclara Sheviak amp M L Bowles Cronquist Fimbriella praeclara Sheviak amp M L Bowles Szlach amp Rutk Contents 1 Distribution 2 Description 3 Conservation 4 References 5 External linksDistribution editHistorically Platanthera praeclara was found in tallgrass prairies west of the Mississippi River It occurred from extreme southern Canada south to northeast Oklahoma In Oklahoma historical records 1975 exist for Craig and Rogers Counties Currently extant populations of the orchid are found in Iowa Kansas Manitoba Minnesota Missouri Nebraska and North Dakota 2 3 Description editPlatanthera praeclara arises from a fleshy tuber It grows from 38 to 85 centimeters 1 ft 3 in to 2 ft 9 in tall Each plant can have up to two dozen or more flowers arranged in a stalk P praeclara is distinguished from Platanthera leucophaea the eastern prairie fringed orchid by its slightly larger flowers petal shape and longer nectar spur Platanthera praeclara is a long lived perennial It emerges in May and blooms in June or in July further north The flowers are fragrant at night and are pollinated by large sphinx moths P praeclara is a plant of the tallgrass prairie and requires direct sunlight for growth It is most often found in moist habitats or sedge meadows P praeclara has persisted in areas that have been lightly grazed periodically burned or regularly mowed It is not yet understood how these activities affect plant survival It may be that removal of dead grass mulch is beneficial but heavy grazing is detrimental Conservation editThe plant has been listed as a threatened species in the United States since 1989 and in 2008 it was listed as an endangered species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature 1 The major factor contributing to the decline of P praeclara has been the conversion of native prairie to croplands Fire suppression overgrazing and habitat fragmentation also have contributed to the decline of the species The species was listed as endangered in Canada in 2003 4 The Canadian population is considered relatively stable though limited to a small geographic area 5 The Nature Conservancy of Canada has protected habitat for 25 of the global population of Western Prairie Fringed Orchid 6 References edit a b Goedeke T Sharma J Delphey P Marshall Mattson K 2008 Platanthera praeclara IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2008 e T132834A3464336 doi 10 2305 IUCN UK 2008 RLTS T132834A3464336 en Retrieved 18 November 2021 a b Sheviak Charles J 2002 Platanthera praeclara In Flora of North America Editorial Committee ed Flora of North America North of Mexico FNA Vol 26 New York and Oxford Oxford University Press via eFloras org Missouri Botanical Garden St Louis MO amp Harvard University Herbaria Cambridge MA Platanthera praeclara County level distribution map from the North American Plant Atlas NAPA Biota of North America Program BONAP 2014 Environment Canada 2006 Recovery Strategy for the Western Prairie Fringed orchid Platanthera praeclara in Canada Species at Risk Act Recovery Strategy Series Environment Canada Ottawa v 22 pp http www registrelep sararegistry gc ca document default e cfm documentID 916 Bleho B N Koper C Borkowsky amp C Hamel 2015 Effects of Weather and Land Management on the Western Prairie Fringed orchid Platanthera praeclara at the Northern Limit of its Range in Manitoba Canada American Midland Naturalist 174 2 191 203 https www researchgate net publication 282251102 Effects of Weather and Land Management on the Western Prairie Fringed orchid Platanthera praeclara at the Northern Limit of its Range in Manitoba Canada Nature Conservancy of Canada 2016 News Release Nature Conservancy of Canada in Manitoba making gains in the protection of the endangered western prairie fringed orchid http www natureconservancy ca en where we work manitoba news nature conservancy of canada 6 html Accessed November 9 2017External links edit nbsp Media related to Platanthera praeclara at Wikimedia Commons nbsp Data related to Platanthera praeclara at Wikispecies U S Fish and Wildlife Service Western Prairie Fringed Orchid Platanthera praeclara nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Platanthera praeclara Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Platanthera praeclara amp oldid 1055972916, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
