Official Status:

Life History:

It is an erect biennial or more commonly a perennial herb of the Asteraceae (sunflower family), reaching 25 to 40 inches in height and has yellow flowers with heads measuring 0.3 to 0.4 inches in diameter. The gumplant genus is so named because of their very sticky (gummy) flower heads. Each Ash Meadows gumplant flower head can produce approximately 30 small seeds, and each branching individual can support several to up to a hundred flower heads. Therefore, in a good year, each plant may produce several hundred seeds. Dispersal of the small seed is most likely accomplished by strong winds because they could be blown for some distance. Those seeds which fall within close proximity of the parent plant could be further transported by water during the winter rainy season or during summer flash floods. Mammals and birds may also be responsible for dispersal of seeds.

Distribution and Habitat:

The Ash Meadows gumplant is endemic to the Ash Meadows Area in Nye County, Nevada, and
Inyo County, California. The Ash Meadows gumplant is concentrated in three main populations
and several smaller ones over an area of approximately 2,260 acres. Most of its distribution is within the Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge. One population occurs outside the Refuge boundary in the Carson Slough, primarily within the Ash Meadows Area of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC) managed by BLM.

Threats:

The loss of habitat by recent agricultural and municipal development activities, the clearing of land for road construction,the removal of ground water and diversion of surface spring flow, and local mining activities threaten the integrity of the species' habitat and,therefore, their survival.

Actions / Current Information: