Yadon's piperia
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''Platanthera yadonii'', also known as Yadon's piperia or Yadon's rein orchid, is an endangered
orchid Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering ...
endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...
to a narrow range of
coast The coast, also known as the coastline or seashore, is defined as the area where land meets the ocean, or as a line that forms the boundary between the land and the coastline. The Earth has around of coastline. Coasts are important zones in n ...
al
habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...
in northern
Monterey County, California Monterey County ( ), officially the County of Monterey, is a county located on the Pacific coast in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, its population was 439,035. The county's largest city and county seat is Salinas. Monte ...
. In 1998 this plant was designated as an
endangered species An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and inv ...
by the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
government, the major threat to its survival being continuing land development from an expanding human population and associated habitat loss. One of the habitats of Yadon's piperia, the
Del Monte Forest Del Monte Forest (''Del Monte'', Spanish for "of the mountain") is a census-designated place (CDP) in Monterey County, California. As of the 2020 census, the CDP had a total population of 4,204, down from 4,514 at the 2010 census. The census area ...
near
Monterey, California Monterey (; es, Monterrey; Ohlone: ) is a city located in Monterey County on the southern edge of Monterey Bay on the U.S. state of California's Central Coast. Founded on June 3, 1770, it functioned as the capital of Alta California under bo ...
, is the subject of a federal lawsuit, based upon endangerment of this organism along with several other endangered species. This
wildflower A wildflower (or wild flower) is a flower that grows in the wild, meaning it was not intentionally seeded or planted. The term implies that the plant probably is neither a hybrid nor a selected cultivar that is in any way different from the w ...
may lie dormant in a given year and not emerge above the soil surface from its tuberous substructure. After leafing out in the spring, it will produce flowers on erect spikes, each flower possessing both green and white petals. It prefers sandy soils, and subsists on
nutrient A nutrient is a substance used by an organism to survive, grow, and reproduce. The requirement for dietary nutrient intake applies to animals, plants, fungi, and protists. Nutrients can be incorporated into cells for metabolic purposes or excret ...
extraction from intermediate
fungal A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from th ...
organism In biology, an organism () is any living system that functions as an individual entity. All organisms are composed of cells (cell theory). Organisms are classified by taxonomy into groups such as multicellular animals, plants, and ...
s.


Description

Along with most other orchids ''P. yadonii'': (a) is a
bisexual Bisexuality is a romantic or sexual attraction or behavior toward both males and females, or to more than one gender. It may also be defined to include romantic or sexual attraction to people regardless of their sex or gender identity, whi ...
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 ...
green plant that grows from buried
tuber Tubers are a type of enlarged structure used as storage organs for nutrients in some plants. They are used for the plant's perennation (survival of the winter or dry months), to provide energy and nutrients for regrowth during the next growing ...
s; manifests a fruit capsule bearing numerous minute seeds; (b) exhibits
pollen Pollen is a powdery substance produced by seed plants. It consists of pollen grains (highly reduced microgametophytes), which produce male gametes (sperm cells). Pollen grains have a hard coat made of sporopollenin that protects the gametophyt ...
that is sticky, and which is removed as
sessile Sessility, or sessile, may refer to: * Sessility (motility), organisms which are not able to move about * Sessility (botany), flowers or leaves that grow directly from the stem or peduncle of a plant * Sessility (medicine), tumors and polyps that ...
anther 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 filam ...
sacs; and (c) has a stigma fused with its
style Style is a manner of doing or presenting things and may refer to: * Architectural style, the features that make a building or structure historically identifiable * Design, the process of creating something * Fashion, a prevailing mode of clothing ...
into a column. Yadon's piperia exhibits a basal rosette leaf formation. The subsurface architecture of this terrestrial wild orchid consists of a
rhizome In botany and dendrology, a rhizome (; , ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from axillary buds and grow hori ...
structure, from which emanate
tuber Tubers are a type of enlarged structure used as storage organs for nutrients in some plants. They are used for the plant's perennation (survival of the winter or dry months), to provide energy and nutrients for regrowth during the next growing ...
s. The rhizome extracts nutrients from fungal intermediates and may also store some of these nutrients. A basal rosette of leaves develops from the tuber at the surface of the soil, each of the two or three leaves being
lanceolate The following is a list of terms which are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (a single leaf blade or lamina) or compound (with several leaflets). The edge of the leaf may be regular o ...
in shape.Morgan & Ackerman, Lindleyana 5:205–211 (1990) Each leaf ranges from 10 to 15 centimeters in length and 20 to 35 millimeters in width. Leaves of younger plants are often more diminutive in size. The dense
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 ...
is borne on a single erect vertical spike varying from 12 to 55 centimeters in height. Each flower has a spur of length 1.5 to 5 millimeters, short compared to other members of the genus. Yadon's Piperia typically presents three upper
tepal A tepal is one of the outer parts of a flower (collectively the perianth). The term is used when these parts cannot easily be classified as either sepals or petals. This may be because the parts of the perianth are undifferentiated (i.e. of very ...
s, each of which contains both green and white pigmentation; moreover, there are three lower tepals that are white only. The earliest blooming time is June. When ''P. yadonii'' blooms, as late as August, all of its sepals and petals may be purely white. Another key identification feature is the characteristically abbreviated
spur A spur is a metal tool designed to be worn in pairs on the heels of riding boots for the purpose of directing a horse or other animal to move forward or laterally while riding. It is usually used to refine the riding aids (commands) and to back ...
, which typically measures 1.5 to 6.0 millimeters in length. ''P. yadonii'''s leaves usually wither by blooming time, except for a small percentage of very large individuals. The geographic range of ''P. yadonii'' overlaps that of ''P. elegans'', ''P. elongata'', ''P. michaelii'', and ''P. transversa''; consequently, ''P. yadonii'' is clearly distinguished from them only in the flowering stage.
Sympatric In biology, two related species or populations are considered sympatric when they exist in the same geographic area and thus frequently encounter one another. An initially interbreeding population that splits into two or more distinct species sh ...
occurrences in mixed populations with ''P. elongata'' and ''P. elegans'' are noted in the literature.


Reproduction and symbiosis

Seeds of this species, like other orchids, lack an endosperm. The extremely small seeds must come in contact with appropriate soil
fungi A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from ...
in order to
germinate Germination is the process by which an organism grows from a seed or spore. The term is applied to the sprouting of a seedling from a seed of an angiosperm or gymnosperm, the growth of a sporeling from a spore, such as the spores of fungi, fer ...
. The resulting seedlings obtain fixed carbon from the fungus until they produce their first leaves and begin to photosynthesize. This strategy is known as myco-heterotrophy. Vegetative reproduction may also occur.


Distribution and habitat

Yadon's piperia is confined to a handful of locations in the coastal area of north
Monterey County Monterey County ( ), officially the County of Monterey, is a county located on the Pacific coast in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, its population was 439,035. The county's largest city and county seat is Salinas. Montere ...
primarily the
Del Monte Forest Del Monte Forest (''Del Monte'', Spanish for "of the mountain") is a census-designated place (CDP) in Monterey County, California. As of the 2020 census, the CDP had a total population of 4,204, down from 4,514 at the 2010 census. The census area ...
on the
Monterey Peninsula The Monterey Peninsula anchors the northern portion on the Central Coast of California and comprises the cities of Monterey, Carmel, and Pacific Grove, and the resort and community of Pebble Beach. History Monterey Monterey was founded in 17 ...
. Tiny populations have been found in the Prunedale Hills; and an isolated southernmost population on Rocky Creek Ridge (Cushing Mountain) at
Big Sur Big Sur () is a rugged and mountainous section of the Central Coast of California between Carmel and San Simeon, where the Santa Lucia Mountains rise abruptly from the Pacific Ocean. It is frequently praised for its dramatic scenery. Big Sur ha ...
. Specific places of occurrence within those areas are the S.F.B. Morse Botanical Reserve; Manzanita County Park; and the
Nature Conservancy The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is a global environmental organization headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. it works via affiliates or branches in 79 countries and territories, as well as across every state in the US. Founded in 1951, The Natu ...
’s Blohm Ranch Nature Preserve. Each colony is rather small in patch size, measured on the order of twenty acres or less. All of the occurrences are below about 250 meters above mean sea level and all are within six miles of the
Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
. Yadon's piperia is generally restricted to three habitats: (a)
Monterey pine ''Pinus radiata'' ( syn. ''Pinus insignis''), the Monterey pine, insignis pine or radiata pine, is a species of pine native to the Central Coast of California and Mexico (Guadalupe Island and Cedros island). It is an evergreen conifer in the fa ...
(''Pinus radiata'')
forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...
, sometimes with Gowen's cypress (''
Cupressus goveniana ''Cupressus goveniana'', now reclassified as ''Hesperocyparis goveniana'', with the common names Californian cypress and Gowen cypress, is a species of cypress, that is endemic to California. Distribution The tree is endemic to the Monterey Pen ...
ssp. goveniana'') which includes more than 80 percent of the known populations; (b) California Northern coastal scrub, with dwarfed Hooker's
manzanita Manzanita is a common name for many species of the genus ''Arctostaphylos''. They are evergreen shrubs or small trees present in the chaparral biome of western North America, where they occur from Southern British Columbia and Washington to Or ...
(''
Arctostaphylos hookeri ''Arctostaphylos hookeri'' is a species of manzanita known by the common name Hooker's manzanita. Description ''Arctostaphylos hookeri'' is a low shrub which is variable in appearance and has several subspecies. These are generally mat-forming p ...
ssp. hookeri'') or Eastwood's manzanita (''
Arctostaphylos glandulosa ''Arctostaphylos glandulosa'', with the common name Eastwood's manzanita, is a species of manzanita. Distribution This shrub is native to the coastal slopes of western North America from Oregon through California to Baja California. Descriptio ...
''); and (c)
Monterey cypress ''Hesperocyparis macrocarpa'' is a coniferous tree. It is commonly known as the Monterey cypress and is one of several species of cypress trees endemic to California. The Monterey cypress is found naturally only on the Central Coast of Califor ...
(''
Cupressus macrocarpa ''Hesperocyparis macrocarpa'' is a coniferous tree. It is commonly known as the Monterey cypress and is one of several species of cypress trees endemic to California. The Monterey cypress is found naturally only on the Central Coast of Califor ...
'') forest. The colonies in woodland settings are found under partial canopy in an open, primarily
herbaceous Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition of t ...
understory In forestry and ecology, understory (American English), or understorey (Commonwealth English), also known as underbrush or undergrowth, includes plant life growing beneath the forest canopy without penetrating it to any great extent, but abov ...
shape. The Monterey Peninsula and northern Big Sur areas are influenced by a
marine Marine is an adjective meaning of or pertaining to the sea or ocean. Marine or marines may refer to: Ocean * Maritime (disambiguation) * Marine art * Marine biology * Marine debris * Marine habitats * Marine life * Marine pollution Military * ...
climate that is pronounced due to the
upwelling Upwelling is an oceanographic phenomenon that involves wind-driven motion of dense, cooler, and usually nutrient-rich water from deep water towards the ocean surface. It replaces the warmer and usually nutrient-depleted surface water. The nutr ...
of cool water from the
Monterey submarine canyon Monterey Canyon, or Monterey Submarine Canyon, is a submarine canyon in Monterey Bay, California with steep canyon walls measuring a full 1 mile in height from bottom to top, which height/depth rivals the depth of the Grand Canyon itself. It is ...
. Rainfall is 40 to 50 centimeters per year, but summer
fog drip Fog is a visible aerosol consisting of tiny water droplets or ice crystals suspended in the air at or near the Earth's surface. Reprint from Fog can be considered a type of low-lying cloud usually resembling stratus, and is heavily in ...
is a primary source of moisture for Yadon's Piperia and other plants that would otherwise not be able to persist with such low
precipitation In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravitational pull from clouds. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, rain, sleet, snow, ice pellets, graupel and hail. ...
.


History and conservation

''Platanthera yadonii'' was named for Vern Yadon, former longtime director of the Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History. The
Monterey Peninsula The Monterey Peninsula anchors the northern portion on the Central Coast of California and comprises the cities of Monterey, Carmel, and Pacific Grove, and the resort and community of Pebble Beach. History Monterey Monterey was founded in 17 ...
, where all colonies of Yadon's piperia occur, is recognized to have a high degree of species endemicism. Species with more northern ranges often reach their southern limits on the Peninsula; species with more southern affinities reach their northern limits there as well. On the Monterey Peninsula some taxa comprising habitat for ''P. yadonii'', such as the coastal closed-
cone A cone is a three-dimensional geometric shape that tapers smoothly from a flat base (frequently, though not necessarily, circular) to a point called the apex or vertex. A cone is formed by a set of line segments, half-lines, or lines con ...
pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The World Flora Online created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanical Garden accep ...
s and
cypress Cypress is a common name for various coniferous trees or shrubs of northern temperate regions that belong to the family Cupressaceae. The word ''cypress'' is derived from Old French ''cipres'', which was imported from Latin ''cypressus'', the ...
es are
relict A relict is a surviving remnant of a natural phenomenon. Biology A relict (or relic) is an organism that at an earlier time was abundant in a large area but now occurs at only one or a few small areas. Geology and geomorphology In geology, a r ...
stands, e.g. species that once extended more widely in the mesic climate of the late
Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological Epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fina ...
period, but then retreated to small pockets of cooler and wetter conditions along the coast ranges during the hotter, drier early
Holocene The Holocene ( ) is the current geological epoch. It began approximately 11,650 cal years Before Present (), after the Last Glacial Period, which concluded with the Holocene glacial retreat. The Holocene and the preceding Pleistocene togethe ...
period between 6000 and 2000 BC. Yadon's piperia, along with certain other threatened species in the northern
California Floristic Province The California Floristic Province (CFP) is a floristic province with a Mediterranean-type climate located on the Pacific Coast of North America with a distinctive flora similar to other regions with a winter rainfall and summer drought climate l ...
, has been designated as a species meriting protection by the U.S. Government, State of California, local governments and private conservation groups. These designations have led to blueprints for protection of Yadon's piperia in the form of official endangerment classifications and a species Recovery Plan, the latter promulgated by the
U.S. 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 oth ...
. Even with all these efforts, the total current population is not necessarily above the
minimum viable population Minimum viable population (MVP) is a lower bound on the population of a species, such that it can survive in the wild. This term is commonly used in the fields of biology, ecology, and conservation biology. MVP refers to the smallest possible siz ...
without further elements of protection. The listing as a federally endangered species occurred in 1998, prompted by a study conducted by Earth Metrics for the city of Monterey, which found the colony in the Del Monte forest to be threatened by proposed land development.C.M. Hogan, G. Deghi, M. Papineau et al., ''Environmental Impact Report for the Pebble Beach Properties project by Del Monte Forest'', Earth Metrics Inc. Prepared for the city of Monterey and State of California Clearinghouse (1992) Subsequently, in 1995 the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service acted on this new information regarding Yadon's piperia, and promulgated a notice of intent to classify the species as endangered. Monitoring
population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction using a ...
s of Yadon's piperia is challenging since each
tuber Tubers are a type of enlarged structure used as storage organs for nutrients in some plants. They are used for the plant's perennation (survival of the winter or dry months), to provide energy and nutrients for regrowth during the next growing ...
does not produce emergent leaves or flowers in a given year. To complicate matters further, the plant can only be identified conclusively in its flowering stage, and yet, even when the plant leafs out, it may not necessarily produce a flower in a given year. Furthermore, by the time a flower is produced, the leaves have typically senesced; thus, a survey conducted during the flowering season will miss plants that have leafed out but not flowered.


See also

*''
Platanthera elegans ''Platanthera elegans'' is a species of orchid known by several common names, including elegant piperia, coast piperia, hillside rein orchid, and hillside bogorchid. This is a showy flowering plant native to western North America. It grows from ...
'' *
Hickman's potentilla ''Potentilla hickmanii'' (called Hickman's potentilla or Hickman's cinquefoil) is an endangered perennial herb of the rose family. This rare plant species is found in a narrowly restricted range in two locations in coastal northern California, ...
*
Minimum viable population Minimum viable population (MVP) is a lower bound on the population of a species, such that it can survive in the wild. This term is commonly used in the fields of biology, ecology, and conservation biology. MVP refers to the smallest possible siz ...


References


External links

*
Calflora: ''Piperia yadonii'' (Yadon's piperia, Yadon's rein orchid) USDA Plants Profile for ''Piperia yadonii'' (Yadon's piperia)Jepson eFlora: ''Piperia yadonii''U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service species profile for ''P. yadonii'' ''Piperia yadonii'' — UC Photos gallery
{{Taxonbar, from=Q28816713 Endemic flora of California Orchids of California Endemic orchids of the United States Natural history of Monterey County, California yadonii Orchids of the United States