Rare, endemic wildflower in McDowell County, North Carolina — 2019-03-22

For years, I’ve been aware of a rare variety of Shortia galacifolia or Oconee Bells which grows in a single county (endemic to McDowell County) in North Carolina. This variety is known as Shortia galacifolia var. brevistyla or Northern Oconee Bells. Its preferred habitat is moist slopes, creek banks, and rock outcrops in humid escarpment gorges with high rainfall, and generally in deep shade under Rhododendron maximum or Rosebay Rhododendron at elevations of between 1150-1800 feet (350-500 meters). It is found only on tributaries of the Catawba River. It is disjunct from the less rare, Shortia galacifolia var. galacifolia by about 65 miles (100 km). Not a lot has been written about it, and there are very few photographs, so when the opportunity to see and photograph it presented itself, I did not hesitate to take that opportunity.

In early March, Lesley Starke, plant ecologist with the North Carolina Plant Conservation Program and manager of the small preserve in which these plants reside, set up an invitation workday for pulling invasive Hedera helix or English Ivy from around some of the patches of Northern Oconee Bells.

The preserve was dedicated in April, 2016, and is home to the largest population of this rare species variety. Thanks to donations raised by The Friends of Plant Conservation, a 501(c)(3) group headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina, this site was purchased and is now protected. There are only a handful of other sites for this variety — all within 5 miles (8 km) of this preserve. The other sites have small populations from 100 to 1000 plants, whereas this large site has upwards of 15,000 plants. This species has a Global Ranking of G3T2, which means that the species is “vulnerable” or at moderate risk or extinction, while the variety is “imperiled” or at high risk of extinction due to very restricted range or very few populations. In addition, it has a state rank of S2 or “endangered, exploited, and endemic”.

Here is a close-up image of this beautiful wildflower:

Northern Oconee Bells

Here is a shot of a group of Northern Oconee Bell flowers:

Some botanical “geekiness” follows:

The differences between the two varieties of this species are considered “subtle”, but here is a side-by-side image comparison of both of them.

See if you can tell the differences. For me, the differences I have noticed in my brief acquaintance of these varieties are as follows:

1. The style (long, slender stalk that connects the stigma and the ovary) is longer in var. galacifolia.
2. The style in var. brevistyla is often pink to reddish; more so than in var. galacifolia.
3. The flowers in var. brevistyla appear to be “flattened” somewhat, with shorter, broader petals.
4. The translucent veins in the petals of var. brevistyla are often bifurcated or split multiple times.
5. The filaments connecting the stamens to the ovary are shorter in var. brevistyla.

As I mentioned previously, this was a special workday (by invitation only) since the preserve is closed to the public. Lesley had expected a larger group than what showed up, but life often gets in the way of fun, so we made the best of what we had. Present were Lesley Starke, manager of the Preserve; Jan Cantrell and Merri McLean, both from Asheville, North Carolina; Alan Cressler from Atlanta, Georgia; and myself. The stated purpose of the workday was to pull as much English Ivy as possible that was encroaching on one of the colonies of Northern Oconee Bells. Here is an iPhone shot of our group (minus the photographer) hard at work:

We ended up spending about 3 hours of hard labor. Afterwards, all remarked at how much better the area looked, and we were quite pleased with our efforts. It was now time for lunch, but Jan and Merri decided to head back to Asheville. We ate our lunch and afterward, Lesley gave Alan and me the tour of the rest of the preserve. She decided that some Rhododendron pruning was in order, so we helped her haul out the pruned branches as well as some of the dead limbs that had fallen during the winter on the Shortia patches. We also cleared limbs from the trail that runs beside the creek and beside the Shortia.

It was now time for us to do some serious photography. There were so many opportunities — the Shortia was at peak bloom — that it was difficult to decide which group of flowers was going to be the subject of our photographs. We split up so that we wouldn’t be in each other’s shots and quickly got down to business. Here are some of the images that made the cut:

What a great day to be out in the field with like-minded people who have a passion for conserving native plants! Lesley was a great host, and she regaled us with stories about her work as a preserve manager, and she gave us lots of useful information about the work that the conservation groups in North Carolina were doing to preserve these unique areas of rare plants. There are not enough field biologists like her around to do all of the work that is necessary to ensure that future generations will be able to see and enjoy all of the natural wonders that the southeast has to offer.

Spring has just begun here in the Southern Appalachian Mountains, and there is much yet to come.

Stay tuned…

–Jim