Rare Species Guide

  Synonyms

Botrychium oneidense

  Basis for Listing

Sceptridium oneidense (blunt-lobed grape-fern) has a very narrow geographic range compared to most other Sceptridium species and is known to reach the western limit of its range in Minnesota. It was first found in Minnesota in 1991, which sparked an intensive search to determine the full extent of its range and habitat preferences within the state. At the time it was designated as endangered in 1996, only a handful of populations had been found. Since that time, however, additional botanical surveys have been conducted, and more than 40 populations have now been located. Most of the populations are confined to moist depressions in mesic hardwood forests in the east-central part of the state (Western Superior Uplands and Northern Minnesota Drift & Lake Plains sections), with a few populations recorded in mesic hardwood forests in extreme southeastern Minnesota (Paleozoic Plateau Section). This new information indicates that this species is not as rare as previously thought, and endangered status is no longer necessary. However, because most of the populations are small and localized around small forest wetlands, they are vulnerable to certain forest management activities, particularly practices that create significant canopy openings. Hydrologic changes and invasive species may also pose a threat to the species and its habitat. Given these concerns, it is needed and reasonable to give the species threatened status.

  Description

Once reaching maturity, each individual S. oneidense plant will normally produce a single photosynthetic leaf blade and a separate spore-bearing reproductive structure, both attached to a common stalk near ground level. The spore-bearing structure may or may not be produced annually and can be three times as long as the leaf blade. The leaf diverges from the stem about 2.5-5.0 cm (1-2 in.) above the ground and may be up to 20 cm (8 in.) wide and 20 cm (8 in.) long. The blade is usually divided in a pinnate pattern, 2 to 3 times. The ultimate leaf segments are mostly obtuse to rounded. Leaves stay bright green throughout the winter, with new leaves appearing in the spring (Gleason and Cronquist 1991; Wagner and Wagner 1993).

Similar species that occur in Minnesota include B. dissectum (dissected grape-fern), B. multifidum (leathery grape-fern), and S. rugulosum (Laurentian grape-fern). It can be very difficult to tell these species apart and may be necessary to consult a technical manual or a specialist to get a positive identification.

  Habitat

In Minnesota, S. oneidense occurs in mesic hardwood forests of Acer saccharum (sugar maple), Betula alleghaniensis (yellow birch), Fraxinus nigra (black ash), Quercus rubra (northern red oak), and Tilia americana (basswood). It occasionally occurs with Acer rubrum (red maple), Fraxinus pennsylvanica (green ash), Populus spp. (aspen), Pinus spp. (pine), Quercus macrocarpa (bur oak), and Thuja occidentalis (northern white cedar). Within the forest, S. oneidense usually grows in moist loam in low areas, swamp edges, or between the high and low water marks of vernal pools. It most often occurs as a few scattered plants; however, as many as a hundred plants have been observed at one location. It often occurs with other Botrychium species, most commonly B. multifidum (leathery grape-fern).

  Biology / Life History

As a member of the Ophioglossaceae (evergreen grape-fern family), the frond of S. oneidense is not killed by frost in the fall and holds its form through winter. During the summer, typically in late June, a new leaf begins to emerge and unfold. The overwintering leaf tends to disintegrate as the new leaf appears. An immature plant first emerges as a single sterile leaf and develops a spore-bearing stalk in subsequent years. Therefore, many plants are sterile in any given year. Leaves in successive years become more dissected as the plant ages. In the past, S. oneidense has been treated as a form or variety of B. dissectum (dissected grape-fern) or B. multifidum, as well as their hybrid. Botrychium dissectum, B. multifidum, and S. oneidense all look very similar when young (USFS 1999).

  Conservation / Management

So far, S. oneidense has only been found in forested habitats in Minnesota. Most populations are small and localized around small forest wetlands called 'vernal pools'. These habitats are vulnerable to any activity that would create significant gaps in the canopy. Such gaps could alter the habitat by allowing more light and heat to reach the ground layer, which is likely to change the floristic composition of the community. Any significant damage to the forest floor, such as soil compaction or rutting that might occur during a logging operation, could also alter the habitat and threaten existing plants. For these reasons, a reserve of 90 m (300 ft.) around known populations should be established. Outside the reserve, selection harvesting and certain forms of uneven-age management could be safely conducted during winter, when the ground is frozen; however, extra care must be taken because vernal pools cannot be easily detected in winter.

  Best Time to Search

Sceptridium oneidense is best identified by the shape of its single leaf, which is evergreen and survives for about one-year. For this reason, S. oneidense can be reliably identified any time after the leaf is exposed after snow-melt in spring and before the leaf is covered by leaf-fall in autumn.

  Conservation Efforts in Minnesota

Several populations occur on state forest and county forest lands. Because these sites are typically managed for timber production, special attention must be given to protecting this species and its habitat.

  References and Additional Information

Chadde, S., and G. Kudray. 2001. Conservation assessment for Blunt-lobe Grapefern (Botrychium oneidense). U.S. Forest Service Eastern Region, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. 47 pp.

Gleason, H. A., and A. Cronquist. 1991. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada. Second Edition. New York Botanical Garden, Bronx, New York. 910 pp.

Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. 2003. Field guide to the native plant communities of Minnesota: the Laurentian mixed forest province. Ecological Land Classification Program, Minnesota County Biological Survey, and Natural Heritage and Nongame Research Program. Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, St. Paul, Minnesota. 352 pp.

Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. 2005. Field guide to the native plant communities of Minnesota: the eastern broadleaf forest province. Ecological Land Classification Program, Minnesota County Biological Survey, and Natural Heritage and Nongame Research Program. Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, St. Paul, Minnesota. 394 pp.

Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Division of Ecological Resources. 2008. Rare species guide: an online encyclopedia of Minnesota's rare native plants and animals [Web Application]. Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, St. Paul, Minnesota. Accessed 1 July 2009.

Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Division of Fish and Wildlife. 1995. Statement of need and reasonableness in the matter of proposed amendment of Minnesota Rules, Chapter 6134: endangered and threatened species. Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, St. Paul, Minnesota. 336 pp.

Ownbey, G. B., and T. Morley. 1991. Vascular plants of Minnesota: a checklist and atlas. University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis. 320 pp.

Smith, W. R. 2023. Ferns and lycophytes of Minnesota: the complete guide to species identification. University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis. 368 pp.

U.S. Forest Service. 1999. Population viability assessment in forest plan revision. Statement of purpose and reason. Draft species data records: Botrychium oneidense. United States Forest Service, Region 9, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

U.S. Forest Service. 2000. Population viability assessment in forest plan revision. Questions for plant population viability assessment panel: Botrychium oneidense. United States Forest Service, Region 9, Duluth, Minnesota.

Wagner, W. H., Jr., and F. S. Wagner. 1993. Botrychium. Pages 86-101 in Flora of North America Editorial Committee, editors. Flora of North America north of Mexico. Volume 2. Oxford University Press, New York, New York.