| Abstract Detail
Systematics Section Larson, Jason [1]. The vascular flora of Salt Fork State Park, Guernsey County, Ohio. Salt Fork State Park is the largest Ohio state park, encompassing 8167 hectares, accounting for nearly 10% of all Ohio state park land. While the majority of state park land is utilized for public recreation, many parts of these parks are isolated and seldom used by the public. These remote areas potentially provide habitat and protection for endangered and threatened species. However, limited knowledge exists for the majority of Ohio’s state parks regarding their flora and fauna. The purpose of this study is to document the vascular plant diversity in the park. A comprehensive list of species likely to be found in particular habitats was compiled for Guernsey County and all surrounding counties. Potential species were matched to habitats within the park, and comprehensive surveys were conducted for all habitats to maximize the likelihood of locating all expected species including cryptic species that are often overlooked in floristic studies. From August 1998 to April 2009, 102 families, 218 genera, and 535 species of vascular plants were identified within the park boundaries. Of these species, 103 comprised new records for Guernsey County. Among them was a healthy population of the potentially threatened, Asclepias viridiflora. Voucher specimens have been deposited in the Ohio University Bartley Herbarium, where they will be entered into a multi-herbarium database for southeastern Ohio. This study provides a procedural model for those who seek to document the floristic diversity of other state parks and evaluate habitats for conservation management and habitat restoration.
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1 - Ohio University, Environmental and Plant Biology, Porter Hall 315, Athens, Ohio, 45701, U.S.A.
Keywords:
vascular flora
North American Flora.
Presentation Type: Poster:Posters for BSA Sections
Session: P1
Location: Event Tent/Cliff Lodge
Date: Monday, July 27th, 2009
Time: 5:30 PM
Number: P1SP027
Abstract ID:867 |
