The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is proposing to reclassify the large-flowered skullcap, a plant found in Georgia and Tennessee, from endangered status to threatened status under the Endangered Species Act.
Under the Act, a species is designated as endangered when it is at risk of becoming extinct throughout all or a significant portion of its range. A threatened designation means the species is likely to become endangered throughout all or a significant portion of its range.
Since the large-flowered skullcap was listed as an endangered species in 1986, many Federal and State agencies and private organizations have searched for, and protected, populations of this plant. The Tennessee Valley Authority annually surveys known populations and also conducts annual searches for additional populations. The National Park Service also monitors populations on its lands. Both the Tennessee and Georgia Natural Heritage Inventories have conducted surveys that discovered new populations. The Tennessee River Gorge Trust now owns and protects some of the largest populations.
The large-flowered skullcap (Scutellaria montana) is a perennial herb with solitary, erect, square stems usually from 12 to 20 inches tall. It is typically found on rocky, dry slopes, ravines, and stream bottom forests in the ridges, valleys and Cumberland Plateau of northwestern Georgia (Dade, Floyd, Chattooga, Gordon, Catoosa, and Walker Counties) and adjacent southeastern Tennessee (Hamilton, Marion, and Sequatchie Counties).
The Service completed a recovery plan for large-flowered skullcap in 1996 which stated that the large-flowered skullcap should be considered for removal from the list of threatened and endangered species when there are 15 adequately protected and managed, self-sustaining populations. Currently there are 11 self-sustaining populations. A population is considered "self-sustaining" if monitoring data shows that it is reproducing successfully and is stable or increasing in size. The minimum number of individuals necessary for a self-sustaining population is 100. Populations must be distributed throughout the species
