The History and Management of the Western Prairie Fringed Orchid at Pipestone National Monument

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The History and Management of the Western Prairie
Fringed Orchid at Pipestone National Monument
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History

• First documented at the Monument in the early
  1980s

• 1993
• random search for flowering plants recorded
  height of inflorescence from the soil surface
  flowers and flower buds counted
• 1994
• all flowering orchids marked so they can be
  tracked over time
• Photographic monitoring point established

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• 1995
• monitoring continues as part of the National Park
  Services Long Term Ecological Monitoring Program
• all flowering orchids marked to be tracked over
  time

• record number of flowering orchids, height of
  flowering plants, number of inflorescence and
  buds counted
• plants mapped using a total station or GPS unit
• RAWS weather station placed near orchids in 1995
  to collect daily temperatures, precipitation,
  wind speed and direction, and soil moisture
  probes

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Prescribed Fire Management

• burn no later then the first week of May
• how to optimize the control of invasive species
• research question of what impact does an early
  spring burn have on the flowering for the year
• what about fall burns?
• how long between burns?
• Is it okay to burn in drought years?

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Exotics and encroachment of woody species

• smooth brome, reed canary grass, buckthorn, sweet
  clovers, Canada thistle
• Native woody species such as wild plum, choke
  cherry, willows species how often should we
  manually remove these species?

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Hydrology

• concerns with changes in Pipestone Creeks
  hydrology
• does pumping quarries impact the orchids (pumping
  started in the early 1970s)
• 1994 report stated that the disturbed hydrology
  is unlikely affecting the orchids now. The
  population reproduces by seeds so it has probably
  adapted to the hydrologic changes.
• 1994 NPS report identified that a soil moisture
  strategy needs to be set up and remain a
  priority. Soil moisture is believed to be a
  primary factor influencing the orchid population.

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Number of flowering orchids by year and date of
previous fire, 1993-2000
March precipitation missing
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Total Reproductive Output annually map
distribution of flowering plants, measure plant
height and count the number of flowers/buds.
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Survivorship of 94 and 95 Flowering
Individuals (56 flowering plants total)
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- 16 dormancy events witnessed - 27 of
individuals exhibited dormancy - average dormancy
duration 1.43 years (range from 1 to 3)
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The Orchid Puzzle for Pipestone
Objective To assess changes in the population of
orchids in relation to management actions and
weather.
Status of Non-Flowering Individuals.
Number of Flowering Individuals, Total
Reproductive Output
Correlation with Management and Weather.
Undetermined
Longevity of Flowering Individuals
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Context for Monitoring Non-flowering Individuals
- The population at Pipestone is small, highly
variable, and patchily distributed.
Consequently, the population is highly
susceptible to trampling. - Resources of the
program preclude a demographic monitoring
approach.
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Adaptive Sampling sampling designs in which the
procedure for selecting sites or units to be
included in the sample may depend on values of
the variable of interest observed during the
survey
Thompson, Steven. 1992. Adaptive Sampling.
John Wiley Sons, INC. New York.
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