''Kelseya'' is a

monotypic genus In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispec ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

s belonging to the family

Rosaceae Rosaceae (), the rose family, is a medium-sized family of flowering plants that includes 4,828 known species in 91 genera. The name is derived from the type genus ''Rosa''. Among the most species-rich genera are ''Alchemilla'' (270), ''Sorbus ...

. The only species is ''Kelseya uniflora''. It is commonly called the oneflower kelseya, spiraea or alpine laurel. The genus was named in honor of Francis Duncan Kelsey, a

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 ...

resident

botanist Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek wo ...

, who discovered the plant in 1888 at the "Gate of the Mountains" near

Townsend Townsend (pronounced tounʹ-zənd) or Townshend may refer to: Places United States *Camp Townsend, National Guard training base in Peekskill, New York *Townsend, Delaware *Townsend, Georgia *Townsend, Massachusetts, a New England town ** Townsend ...

Range and Habitat

Kelseya uniflora is a

perennial A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

limestone endemic that grows in cracks of volcanic and limestone outcrops at 1500-3500 m elevation. It is native in 3 states in Northwestern USA:

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyom ...

and

Wyoming Wyoming () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the south ...

. It typically grows as a solitary plant in a sun-exposed position as a ground covering

subshrub A subshrub (Latin ''suffrutex'') or dwarf shrub is a short shrub, and is a woody plant. Prostrate shrub is a related term. "Subshrub" is often used interchangeably with "bush".Jackson, Benjamin, Daydon; A Glossary of Botanic Terms with their Der ...

. This species has also been reported in

riparian A riparian zone or riparian area is the interface between land and a river or stream. Riparian is also the proper nomenclature for one of the terrestrial biomes of the Earth. Plant habitats and communities along the river margins and banks ar ...

woodland but this should be considered an outlier. Their most prolific growth is on the South Summit of Hunt Mountain in the

Bighorn Mountains The Bighorn Mountains ( cro, Basawaxaawúua, lit=our mountains or cro, Iisaxpúatahchee Isawaxaawúua, label=none, lit=bighorn sheep's mountains) are a mountain range in northern Wyoming and southern Montana in the United States, forming a nort ...

where it grows on

Karst Karst is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum. It is characterized by underground drainage systems with sinkholes and caves. It has also been documented for more weathering-resistant ro ...

features.

Description

This species rarely measures more than 10 cm tall but often achieves 1 m or more in diameter. Their

habit A habit (or wont as a humorous and formal term) is a routine of behavior that is repeated regularly and tends to occur subconsciously.

is an adaptation to the wind-blast exposed rocky ridges they grow on alongside

cushion plant A cushion plant is a compact, low-growing, mat-forming plant that is found in alpine, subalpine, arctic, or subarctic environments around the world. The term "cushion" is usually applied to woody plants that grow as spreading mats, are limited in ...

communities. Plants branch into numerous slender stems that are densely covered with imbricated leaves. The leaves are light to greyish green, leathery and hairy, ovate-oblong and grow in dense rosettes. Leaves become brownnish to black when withered and remain on the branch to form a hardened protective structure. The branches have fine hairs that collect moisture from cracks in the rock. The solitary

terminal Terminal may refer to: Computing Hardware * Terminal (electronics), a device for joining electrical circuits together * Terminal (telecommunication), a device communicating over a line * Computer terminal, a set of primary input and output devic ...

flowers are produced very early in spring and are reddish-purple to pinkish white. The flowers typically open as the snow melts back. The 5

sepals A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined b ...

are only 2 mm long with the 5 petals elliptic to oblong and advertising a shade of pink. The 7 to 12

stamens The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filame ...

are slightly longer than the

petals Petals are modified leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''corolla''. Petals are usually ...

Taxonomy

From very early on it was clear that these plants formed an outlier group within Rosaceae and together with '' Petrophytum'' and ''Eriogynia'' (now ''

Luetkea ''Luetkea'' is a genus of herbaceous plants in the family Rosaceae. One species is accepted. ''Luetkea pectinata'' (partridgefoot or luetkea) is a mat-forming semi-shrub. It is endemic to the cold portions of western North America occurring i ...

'') they were treated as sections within the genus Eriogynia. After a number of revisions and molecular analysis they are now member of tribe

Spiraeeae Spiraeeae is a tribe of the rose family, Rosaceae, belonging to the subfamily Amygdaloideae Amygdaloideae is a subfamily within the flowering plant family Rosaceae. It was formerly considered by some authors to be separate from Rosaceae, and ...

Uses

The reduction in plant stature and its xeric alpine habitat make it a popular but challenging subject for

alpine garden An alpine garden (or alpinarium, alpinum) is a domestic or botanical garden, or more often a part of a larger garden, specializing in the collection and cultivation of alpine plants growing naturally at high altitudes around the world, such as in ...

enthusiasts.

Conservation Status

''Kelseya uniflora'' is reported to have a global

NatureServe conservation status The NatureServe conservation status system, maintained and presented by NatureServe in cooperation with the Natural Heritage Network, was developed in the United States in the 1980s by The Nature Conservancy (TNC) as a means for ranking or catego ...

of "Secure". Its global status, however dates from 1987 and needs review. In the three states where it occurs its status is: * Idaho: SNR (No Status Rank) * Montana: S4 (Apparently Secure) * Wyoming: S2 (Imperiled) In 2006, naturalists from Montana and Wyoming were asked to report their findings on an apparent die-back occurring in local populations of this species. The author also mentioned the same happening with Petrophyton caespitosum, a species that inhabits a similar

ecological niche In ecology, a niche is the match of a species to a specific environmental condition. Three variants of ecological niche are described by It describes how an organism or population responds to the distribution of resources and competitors (for ...

References

External links

{{Taxonbar, from=Q9017413 Rosaceae Monotypic Rosaceae genera