| Abstract Detail
Floristics & Taxonomy Jesus, Maria [1]. Worth More than Gold: A vascular flora of the southern Inyo Mountains, Inyo County, CA. The Inyo Mountains in Inyo County, California, mark a regionally important transition zone where the Great Basin Desert and Mojave Desert bioregions meet. A preliminary vascular plant checklist, based on observations and voucher specimens, was established 1973 by Mary DeDecker and continues to be maintained by local botanists. However, much of this arid mountain range remains poorly documented and extensive work is needed to assess the vascular plant diversity via a specimen-based study. In particular, the southern extent of the range had been lacking in botanical collections despite an abundance of distinctive biogeographic features and high diversity in rare and endemic plant species. Much of this ecologically intact and nearly roadless area is urgently threatened by gold mining which would impact numerous rare plant species and culturally important plant populations. Vascular plant specimens were collected between July 2018 and June 2021 and will form the basis of a published floristic study including an annotated checklist. Preliminary results indicate a high proportion (8%) of the taxa in this study are listed as rare in California. In addition to reviewing preliminary findings, I will also discuss how spending nearly 100 days in this remote mountain range uniquely poised me to advocate for its protection.
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Keywords:
desert
California
conservation
Flora.
Presentation Type: Oral Paper
Session: FTII, Floristics & Taxonomy II
Location: Virtual/Virtual
Date: Wednesday, July 21st, 2021
Time: 2:00 PM(EDT)
Number: FTII007
Abstract ID:844
Candidate for Awards:None |
