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Prairie Goldenrod - Solidago ptarmicoides
Other Names:
Oligoneuron album, Aster ptarmicoides
State Rank Reason (see State Rank above)
DRAFT: Requesting feedback on the 2026 revised rank, factors, and State Rank Reason outlined below and in the Conservation Status Rank Report.
Solidago ptarmicoides is vulnerable to extirpation in Montana due to the small number of occurrences and relatively low population numbers. The species does not appear to face any significant or potential threats at this time. Actual trend numbers are unknown though it is assumed that population numbers have been relatively stable or experienced only minor declines as its habitat has largely remained intact and in good condition.
Surveys are needed to more accurately document population size and extent for many occurrences. Surveys of potentially suitable habitat are likely to find additional populations.
General Description
Prairie Aster has stems that are 1-7 dm high and clustered on a woody-thickened, branched rootcrown. The narrowly lance-shaped leaves near the base of the plant have entire margins and are petiolate and up to 20 cm long, while those on the upper stem are shorter, strap-shaped, and lacking petioles. Foliage is glabrous to slightly roughened. The 3-60 flower heads are borne in an open, flat-topped inflorescence. The glabrous, overlapping involucral bracts of each head are 5-7 mm long, each with a greenish apex and a prominent, thickened midrib. The 10-25 rayflowers are white and 5-9 mm long, and the numerous disk flowers are white. The achene is glabrous and has a pappus of bristles that are thickened toward the top.
Phenology
Flowering August-September.
Diagnostic Characteristics
This species differs from other Solidago in having white flowers, resembling species formerly placed in Aster (in its broader taxonomic sense). It can be distinguished from the latter by its flat-topped inflorescence, its thickened, involucral bracts that are often blunt at the tips, and the thickened pappus bristles.
Species Range
Montana Range
Range Descriptions
Native
Range Comments
SK to QC south to OK, OH and SC. Known from Richland and Wibaux counties (Lesica et al. 2012. Manual of Montana Vascular Plants. BRIT Press. Fort Worth, TX).
Observations in Montana Natural Heritage Program Database
Number of Observations: 103
(Click on the following maps and charts to see full sized version)
Map Help and Descriptions
Relative Density
Recency
(Observations spanning multiple months or years are excluded from time charts)
Habitat
Open, dry grasslands, often on sandy soil or limestone on the plains.
National Vegetation Classification System Groups Associated with this Species
Forest and Woodland
Low Elevation - Xeric Forest and Woodland
Grassland
Lowland - Prairie Grassland
Ecology
POLLINATORS The following animal species have been reported as pollinators of this plant species or its genus where their geographic ranges overlap:
Bombus vagans,
Bombus appositus,
Bombus bifarius,
Bombus borealis,
Bombus fervidus,
Bombus flavifrons,
Bombus huntii,
Bombus melanopygus,
Bombus mixtus,
Bombus nevadensis,
Bombus rufocinctus,
Bombus ternarius,
Bombus terricola,
Bombus sitkensis,
Bombus occidentalis,
Bombus pensylvanicus,
Bombus bimaculatus,
Bombus griseocollis,
Bombus impatiens,
Bombus insularis,
Bombus suckleyi,
Bombus bohemicus,
Bombus flavidus, and
Bombus kirbiellus (Plath 1934, Heinrich 1976, Thorp et al. 1983, Johnson 1986, Shaw and Taylor 1986, Mayer et al. 2000, Colla and Dumesh 2010, Colla et al. 2011, Koch et al. 2012, Williams et al. 2014, Tripoldi and Szalanski 2015).
Stewardship Responsibility
Threats or Limiting Factors
STATE THREAT SCORE REASON
Threat impact not assigned because threats are not known (MTNHP Threat Assessment 2021).
References
- Literature Cited AboveLegend:
View Online Publication
Colla, S., L. Richardson, and P. Williams. 2011. Bumble bees of the eastern United States. Washington, DC: USDA Forest Service, Pollinator Partnership. 103 p.- Colla, S.R. and S. Dumesh. 2010. The bumble bees of southern Ontario: notes on natural history and distribution. Journal of the Entomological Society of Ontario 141:39-68.
- Johnson, R.A. 1986. Intraspecific resource partitioning in the bumble bees Bombus ternarius and B. pennsylvanicus. Ecology 67:133-138.
- Koch, J., J. Strange, and P. Williams. 2012. Bumble bees of the western United States. Washington, DC: USDA Forest Service, Pollinator Partnership. 143 p.
- Lesica, P., M.T. Lavin, and P.F. Stickney. 2012. Manual of Montana Vascular Plants. Fort Worth, TX: BRIT Press. viii + 771 p.
- Mayer, D.F., E.R. Miliczky, B.F. Finnigan, and C.A. Johnson. 2000. The bee fauna (Hymenoptera: Apoidea) of southeastern Washington. Journal of the Entomological Society of British Columbia 97: 25-31.
- MTNHP Threat Assessment. 2021. State Threat Score Assignment and Assessment of Reported Threats from 2006 to 2021 for State-listed Vascular Plants. Botany Program, Montana Natural Heritage Program, Helena, Montana.
- Plath, O.E. 1934. Bumblebees and their ways. New York, NY: Macmillan Company. 201 p.
- Shaw, D.C. and R.J. Taylor.1986. Pollination ecology of an alpine fell-field community in the North Cascades. Northwest Science 60:21-31.
- Thorp, R.W., D.S. Horning, and L.L. Dunning. 1983. Bumble bees and cuckoo bumble bees of California (Hymenoptera: Apidae). Bulletin of the California Insect Survey 23:1-79.
- Tripoldi, A.D. and A.L. Szalanski. 2015. The bumble bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Bombus) of Arkansas, fifty years later. Journal of Melittology 50: doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.17161/jom.v0i50.4834
- Williams, P., R. Thorp, L. Richardson, and S. Colla. 2014. Bumble Bees of North America. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. 208 p.
- Additional ReferencesLegend: View Online Publication
Do you know of a citation we're missing?- Lesica, P., M.T. Lavin, and P.F. Stickney. 2022. Manual of Montana Vascular Plants, Second Edition. Fort Worth, TX: BRIT Press. viii + 779 p.
- Vanderhorst, J.P., S.V. Cooper, and B.L. Heidel. 1998. Botanical and vegetation survey of Carter County, Montana. Unpublished report prepared for the Bureau of Land Management. Montana Natural Heritage Program, Helena. 116 pp. + app.
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