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Big Horseshoe Lake Bristleberry

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You never know what you might find when you get tired of driving and need to meander for a little bit. On the drive up to Duluth, after filling up with gas that’s just what I had to do. The area I found was rich in blackberries with a great variety of species. Not surprising with the patchy aspen forest opening up to some peaty wetlands and slightly drier grassy areas. What was surprising is the species growing in this habitat. Big horseshoe lake bristleberry is a state endangered, globally imperiled species. It is endemic to the upper Midwest; Minnesota, Iowa, and Wisconsin specifically. Minnesota is the stronghold of its population where it is only known from a handful of counties, mostly in the Anoka sandplain. It was likely always quite rare, but development in this highly urbanized area has been and continues to be the main threat to this species. Along with the draining of wetlands and introduction of invasive species that often is associated with urbanization. Around the cities ...
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Rubus of the North Shore

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For a little over a year lichens have been a predominant focus while I’m out exploring. This is largely based on the landscape. That’s just the thing to do on the North Shore. Between cliffs and talus, rivers, cedar/black ash swamps, shore line, pine forests, maple forests, etc. there is a tremendous amount of high quality habitat home to a great diversity of species. While there certainly are some fascinating species in the cities and surrounding area, it just isn’t the same.  So if not lichens what next? The brambles (blackberries and raspberries) in the genus Rubus are the top candidate for a new focus for now. Just as the North Shore is the place to lichenize, the Anoka Sandplain is  the place to brambulate? Rubus has 33 species and 2 hybrids native in Minnesota, by far the most diverse woody plant genus. Compare that to the willows which only has about 18 species and a handful of nonnative species (they readily hybridize so who could say how many of those are sitting arou...
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Northern Paintbrush

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Another contender for the coveted title of Minnesota’s rarest plant is northern paintbrush. It is a rare, disjunct alpine species. Its documented history is similar to other rare species of the area. First noted in 1891 at one location, it was then “lost” for nearly 100 years, until botanical surveys in the 1990s located two more small populations. To date that’s it, three extremely small locations. Unlike similar rare species which prefer crevices in the bedrock, this species favors cobble beaches. At least at this location. The nearby island The beach habitat of northern paintbrush Northern paintbrush (Castilleja septentrionalis) State Endangered Species They grow in decent sized clumps The shrubs and forbs do a good job of hiding them I first observed this species back on May 18. At the time it was just starting to emerge. Distinguishing features when not in flower include a square stem and slightly hair leaves. The photos below convinced me my ID was correct, but coming back and se...
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Cacti of Minnesota

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Most people are surprised to hear that Minnesota is home to cactus. Even more so when they learn not just one, but three species. Living only a 40 minute drive from some habitat chalked full of them, I didn’t learn about their existence until well into college. They have never been common, restricted to dry sandy prairies and harsh rock outcroppings of granite and gneiss. In recent decades a combination of fire suppression, plowing, and mining have drastically reduced their range. Cacti, or at least these species, are by no means a fire tolerant species. Luckily where they grow historically had very little fuel, so fires would rarely reach them or be of rather low intensity. Surrounding habitats with deeper soil produced more fuel and burned more often. Without these areas burning, shrubs like sumac and red cedar get a foothold and start to encroach, even spreading to these drier areas. Even worse than those two natives is the invasive buckthorn which is all over these habitats. Needle...
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Northern Arnica

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Gooseberry Falls may be Minnesota’s most visited state park, but of all the rivers leading into Superior on the North Shore it is one of the least known to me. Precisely because I usually avoid all the people. But with rain off and on, and looking to continue in the forecast, I figured it was worth stopping. As suspected, not many people were there. There was one species I knew grows along the river that I’ve wanted to see for a while, but had just never gotten around to. I was hoping to find it while looking for metallophytic lichens, but no luck. It took a while to hike to a spot that looked like it would grow. Once I got to the right habitat it took next to no time to find. Of course the species in question is northern arnica.  Northern arnica (Arnica lonchophylla) State Threatened Species  Up close Habitat along the river  An angle from slightly upstream Along the river Downstream of one of the falls Other species of interest: Shag-belly stippleback lichen (Dermatocar...
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