The “Plants, Pollinators, and Powerlines” study we are conducting with our partners at the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), the Mississippi Entomological Museum, and the Electric Power Research Institute was revived in 2021 after being on hiatus in 2020 due to the COVID pandemic. I’ve been busy the last month identifying specimens and analyzing botanical data from our 2021 field season. I’m happy to report that between the 2019 and 2021 seasons the botany field team documented more than 30 occurrences of 16 species of state conservation concern (rare species) from ten sites in Alabama and Tennessee.
The 16 species of state conservation concern that we documented are:
Sandplain Gerardia (Agalinis decemloba)
Southern Long Sedge (Carex lonchocarpa)
Bog Oat-grass (Danthonia epilis)
Small’s Stonecrop (Diamorpha smallii)
Dwarf Sundew (Drosera brevifolia)
Pink Sundew (Drosera capillaris)
Short-leaved Beardgrass (Gymnopogon brevifolius)
Naked-stem Sunflower (Helianthus occidentalis)
Early St. John’s Wort (Hypericum nudiflorum)
Hairy Seedbox (Ludwigia hirtella)
Swamp Ragwort (Packera crawfordii)
Yellow Crested Orchid (Platanthera cristata)
White Fringeless Orchid (Platanthera integrilabia)
Rose Pogonia Orchid (Pogonia ophioglossoides)
Granite Gooseberry (Ribes curvatum)
Muhlenberg’s Nutrush (Scleria muehlenbergii)
Detailed data on occurrences of these species will be sent to the Tennessee Valley Authority and the respective state natural heritage programs.
Early St. John’s Wort (Hypericum nudiflorum). Photo credit: Brittney Georgic, SGI
Yellow Crested Orchid (Platanthera cristata). Photo credit: Brittney Georgic, SGI
White Fringeless Orchid (Platanthera integrilabia). Photo credit: Brittney Georgic, SGI
Large portions of the flat to gently rolling surface of the Cumberland Plateau historically supported large areas of open pine and oak savannas and woodlands with small open prairies in some areas. Most of the biodiversity dependent on these open habitats has declined dramatically in the last 200 years, with many of the rarest species now hanging on primarily in open utility corridors, roadsides, and other habitats where the native grassland ground flora persists under open conditions.
The study, which began in 2019, was designed to quantify the biodiversity of grassland plants and pollinators in TVA powerline rights-of-way on the Cumberland Plateau. You can learn more about the project in the blog article, The Importance of Rights-of-Way to Sun-Loving Grassland Species. Between 2019 and 2021 the botany field team for this project has included Darrell Brandon, Mason Brock, Adam Dattilo (TVA), Dwayne Estes, Brittney Georgic, Zach Irick, John Michael Kelley, Joey Shaw (University of TN Chattanooga), Zach Wood, and myself. The “Plants, Pollinators, and Powerlines” study will conclude in 2022.
Muhlenberg’s Nutrush (Scleria muehlenbergii). Photo credit: Brittney Georgic, SGI
Theo Witsell, SGI Chief Ecologist
Theo explores our native grasslands, gathers and synthesizes data on their ecological and historical significance, and provides scientific direction and ecological context for the Southeastern Grasslands Initiative.