''Eriogonum visheri'' is a species of wild buckwheat known by the common names Dakota wild buckwheat and Visher's buckwheat. It is native to the

Great Plains The Great Plains (french: Grandes Plaines), sometimes simply "the Plains", is a broad expanse of flatland in North America. It is located west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, an ...

in the United States, where it is known from

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the Native Americans in the United States, indigenous Dakota people, Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north a ...

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...

, and

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbi ...

.''Eriogonum visheri''.
Center for Plant Conservation.''Eriogonum visheri''.
The Nature Conservancy. This plant is an

annual Annual may refer to: * Annual publication, periodical publications appearing regularly once per year **Yearbook ** Literary annual * Annual plant * Annual report * Annual giving * Annual, Morocco, a settlement in northeastern Morocco * Annuals (b ...

herb In general use, herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables and other plants consumed for macronutrients, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal ...

with erect stems growing up to 10 centimeters tall. It is described as "skeletal" or "skeleton-like"''Eriogonum visheri''.
North Dakota's Federally Listed Endangered, Threatened, and Candidate Species. USGS Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center. in appearance. Leaves around the base of the plant are up to 2.5 centimeters long by 2.5 wide, and leaves higher on the stem are similar but smaller. The stems branch into an

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed o ...

studded with clusters of small yellowish flowers.''Eriogonum visheri''.
Flora of North America. Flowering occurs in June through September. The center of the plant's distribution is in South Dakota, and it extends into North Dakota and one county in Montana. The species is protected on the

Buffalo Gap National Grassland Buffalo Gap National Grassland is a National Grassland located primarily in southwestern South Dakota, United States. It is also the second largest National Grassland, after Little Missouri National Grassland in North Dakota. Characteristics of t ...

in South Dakota. It occupied

badlands Badlands are a type of dry terrain where softer sedimentary rocks and clay-rich soils have been extensively eroded."Badlands" in ''Chambers's Encyclopædia''. London: George Newnes, 1961, Vol. 2, p. 47. They are characterized by steep slopes, m ...

habitat, harsh, sparsely vegetated terrain. It is a

pioneer species Pioneer species are hardy species that are the first to colonize barren environments or previously biodiverse steady-state ecosystems that have been disrupted, such as by wildfire. Pioneer flora Some lichens grow on rocks without soil, so m ...

, growing on bare outcrops unoccupied by any other plants. The substrate experiences high rates of erosion and deposition, as well as high winds that may create blowouts in the soil. The plant has few

competitors Competition is a rivalry where two or more parties strive for a common goal which cannot be shared: where one's gain is the other's loss (an example of which is a zero-sum game). Competition can arise between entities such as organisms, indivi ...

. The substrate often has little actual soil, and is more of a rock outcropping with pockets of fine

entisol Entisols are soils defined in USDA soil taxonomy that do not show any profile development other than an A horizon. An entisol has no diagnostic horizons, and most are basically unaltered from their parent material, which can be unconsolidated sedi ...

s with little organic matter. The soils are high in calcium and sodium. The climate is characterized by wide variations in temperature and relatively little precipitation. While vegetation is sparse at these sites, associated species may include '' Agropyron dasystachyum'', ''

Agropyron smithii ''Pascopyrum'' is a monotypic genus of grass containing the sole species ''Pascopyrum smithii'', which is known by the common names western wheatgrass and red-joint wheatgrass, after the red coloration of the nodes. It is native to North America. ...

'', ''

Artemisia tridentata ''Artemisia tridentata'', commonly called big sagebrush,MacKay, Pam (2013), ''Mojave Desert Wildflowers'', 2nd ed., , p. 264. Great Basin sagebrush or (locally) simply sagebrush, is an aromatic shrub from the family Asteraceae, which grows in ari ...

'', '' Astragalus racemosus'', ''

Atriplex argentea ''Atriplex argentea'' is a species of saltbush known by the common names silverscale saltbush and silver orache. It is native to western North America from southern Canada to northern Mexico, where it grows in many types of habitat, generally on ...

'', ''

Atriplex nuttallii ''Atriplex nuttallii'', also known as Nuttall's saltbush, is native to central and western North America. It has been treated by some botanists as a synonym of ''Atriplex canescens''.Distichlis spicata ''Distichlis spicata'' is a species of grass known by several common names, including seashore saltgrass, inland saltgrass, and desert saltgrass. This grass is native to the Americas, where it is widespread. It can be found on other continents a ...

'', '' Eriogonum pauciflorum'', ''

Grindelia squarrosa ''Grindelia squarrosa'', also known as a curly-top gumweed or curlycup gumweed, is a small North American biennial or short-lived perennial plant. Description ''G. squarrosa'' is a decumbent to erect, much-branched perennial herb or subshrub gro ...

'', ''

Gutierrezia sarothrae ''Gutierrezia sarothrae'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae known by the common names broom snakeweed, broomweed, snakeweed, and matchweed. It is a subshrub native to much of the western half of North America, from western ...

'', ''

Machaeranthera canescens ''Dieteria canascens'' (formerly ''Machaeranthera canescens'') is an annual plant or short lived perennial plant in the family Asteraceae, known by the common names hoary tansyaster and hoary-aster.Mojave Desert Wildflowers, Pam MacKay, 2nd Ed., ...

'', ''

Melilotus officinalis ''Melilotus officinalis'', known as sweet yellow clover, yellow melilot, ribbed melilot and common melilot, is a species of legume native to Eurasia and introduced in North America, Africa, and Australia. Description ''Melilotus officinalis'' c ...

'', '' Oenethera cespitosa'', '' Salsola iberica'', and ''

Sarcobatus vermiculatus ''Sarcobatus'' is a North American genus of two species of flowering plants, formerly considered to be a single species. Common names for ''S. vermiculatus'' include greasewood, seepwood, and saltbush. Traditionally, ''Sarcobatus'' has been ...

'' in North Dakota. In South Dakota '' Agropyron trachycaulum'', ''

Artemisia cana ''Artemisia cana'' is a species of sagebrush native to western and central North America, a member of the sunflower family. It is known by many common names, including silver sagebrush, sticky sagebrush, silver wormwood, hoary sagebrush, and dw ...

'', ''

Atriplex canescens ''Atriplex canescens'' (or chamiso, chamiza, four-wing saltbush) is a species of evergreen shrub in the family Amaranthaceae native to the western and midwestern United States. Description ''Atriplex canescens'' has a highly variable form, and ...

'', ''

Chrysothamnus nauseosus ''Ericameria nauseosa'' (formerly ''Chrysothamnus nauseosus''), commonly known as Chamisa, rubber rabbitbrush, and gray rabbitbrush, is a shrub in the sunflower family (Aster) found in the arid regions of western North America. Two subspecies ...

'', '' Dyssodia papposa'', ''

Kochia scoparia ''Bassia scoparia'' is a large annual herb in the family Amaranthaceae (''sensu lato'') native to Eurasia. It has been introduced to many parts of North America,

'', ''

Oryzopsis hymenoides ''Eriocoma hymenoides'' (common names: Indian ricegrass and sand rice grass) is a cool-season, perennial bunchgrass with narrow, rolled leaf blades.Mojave Desert Wildflowers, Pam MacKay, 2nd Ed., p287 It is native to western North America east of ...

'', '' Polygonum ramosissimum'', ''

Solanum rostratum ''Solanum rostratum'' is a species of nightshade (genus ''Solanum'') that is native to the United States and northern and central Mexico. Common names include buffalobur nightshade, buffalo-bur, spiny nightshade, Colorado bur, Kansas thistle, ba ...

'', ''

Sphaeralcea coccinea ''Sphaeralcea coccinea'', the scarlet globemallow, is a perennial plant growing 10–30 cm tall from spreading rhizomes with a low habit. They have grayish stems with dense, star-shaped hairs and alternately arranged leaves. The leaf blades ...

'', and ''

Helianthus annuus The common sunflower (''Helianthus annuus'') is a large annual forb of the genus ''Helianthus'' grown as a crop for its edible oily seeds. Apart from cooking oil production, it is also used as livestock forage (as a meal or a silage plant), as b ...

'' also occur. There are fewer than 100 occurrences of this species. Threats include cattle grazing and trampling, however, the plant grows at sites with little vegetation and these sites are avoided by cattle. In addition, the cattle do not seem to graze the species directly. Trampling by the animals degrades the habitat and spreads

introduced species An introduced species, alien species, exotic species, adventive species, immigrant species, foreign species, non-indigenous species, or non-native species is a species living outside its native distributional range, but which has arrived there ...

of plants. The worst

invasive plants An invasive species otherwise known as an alien is an introduced organism that becomes overpopulated and harms its new environment. Although most introduced species are neutral or beneficial with respect to other species, invasive species ad ...

are ''Salsola iberica'' and ''Kochia scoparia''.

Mining Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic via ...

is a potential threat, as there are deposits of

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when dea ...

in the area. It is not a current threat. While this plant is considered a "sensitive" species by the

United States Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands. The Forest Service manages of land. Major divisions of the agency inc ...

, it is no longer a candidate for federal protection.

References

Further reading