''Aconitum noveboracense'', also known as northern blue monkshood or northern wild monkshood, is a flowering
plant
Plants are predominantly photosynthetic eukaryotes of the kingdom Plantae. Historically, the plant kingdom encompassed all living things that were not animals, and included algae and fungi; however, all current definitions of Plantae exclu ...
belonging to the buttercup family (
Ranunculaceae
Ranunculaceae (buttercup or crowfoot family; Latin "little frog", from "frog") is a family of over 2,000 known species of flowering plants in 43 genera, distributed worldwide.
The largest genera are ''Ranunculus'' (600 species), ''Delphinium' ...
). Members of its genus (''
Aconitum'') are also known as wolfsbane.
The
United States Fish and Wildlife Service
The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS or FWS) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats. The mission of the agency is "working with othe ...
government lists it as a
threatened
Threatened species are any species (including animals, plants and fungi) which are vulnerable to endangerment in the near future. Species that are threatened are sometimes characterised by the population dynamics measure of ''critical depensa ...
species. It grows in rare portions of
New York State
New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. stat ...
and in portions of the
Driftless Area
The Driftless Area, a topographical and cultural region in the American Midwest, comprises southwestern Wisconsin, southeastern Minnesota, northeastern Iowa, and the extreme northwestern corner of Illinois.
Never covered by ice during the las ...
.
Northern monkshood is noted for its very distinctive, blue hood-shaped flowers. The flowers are about 1 inch in length, and a single stem may have many flowers. Stems range from about 1 to 4 feet in length. The leaves are broad with coarse, toothed lobes.
* Only found in Iowa, Wisconsin, Ohio, and New York.
* Typically found on shaded to partially shaded cliffs,
algific talus slopes, or on cool, streamside sites. These areas have cool soil conditions, cold air drainage, or cold groundwater flowage. On algific talus slopes, these conditions are caused by the outflow of cool air and water from ice contained in underground fissures. These fissures are connected to sinkholes and are a conduit for the air flows.
Northern monkshood is a perennial and reproduces from both seed and small tubers. The flowers bloom between June and September and are pollinated when bumblebees pry open the blossom to collect nectar and pollen.
Causes of threatened status
* Habitat loss or degradation - Threats to northern monkshood include contamination and filling of sinkholes, grazing and trampling by livestock, human foot traffic, logging, maintenance of highways and power lines, misapplication of pesticides, quarrying, and road building.
* Collection - Some populations have been adversely affected by scientific collection.
* This plant is very rare it is currently only found in 4 states.
Protection
* Listing - Northern monkshood was added to the U.S. List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants in 1978.
* Recovery plan - The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has developed a recovery plan that describes actions needed to help the plant survive.
* Research - Many northern monkshood populations are being monitored to determine long-term population trends. Genetic studies are being conducted so population differences can be better understood.
* Habitat protection - A variety of government and private conservation agencies are all working to preserve the northern monkshood and its habitat. Voluntary protection agreements have also been made with some private landowners.
Images
Image:Aconitum-noveboracense01.jpg, Northern blue monkshood (''Aconitum noveboracense'')
Image:Northern monkshood.gif, Northern monkshood, white phase
Image:Monkshood garyTonhouse.jpg, Northern monkshood, blue phase
References
#
noveboracense
Flora of Iowa
Flora of Ohio
Flora of New York (state)
Flora of Wisconsin
Driftless Area
Plants described in 1886
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