Slender Blazing-star Liatris cylindracea Scientific Name Family Name Liatris cylindracea Michx. Asteraceae Aster Family Did you know? The presence of Liatris cylindracea at Niagara Falls was first publishing in the Flora of New York by John Torrey in 1843. It has never been found in any other place in the state. Summary Protection Endangered in New York State, not listed federally. Rarity G5, S1 This level of state protection means: listed species are those with: 1) 5 or fewer extant sites, or 2) fewer than 1,000 individuals, or 3) restricted to fewer than 4 U.S.G.S. 7 ½ minute topographical maps, or 4) species listed as endangered by U.S. Department of Interior. A global rarity rank of G5 means: This species is demonstrably secure globally, though it may be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery. A state rarity rank of S1 means: This plant is endangered/critically imperiled in New York because of extreme rarity (typically 5 or fewer populations or very few remaining individuals) or is extremely vulnerable to extirpation from New York due to biological NYNHP Conservation Guide - Slender Blazing-star (Liatris cylindracea)
factors. Conservation Status in New York There is one existing population that has been known since 1839. No other historical records are known for the species. Short-term Trends The plants have been relatively stable in numbers over the years even though they have been impacted by visitors. Long-term Trends The plants have been relatively stable in numbers over the years even though they have been impacted by visitors. Numbers of plants were not recorded in the 1800s or early 1900s. Conservation and Management Threats The plants are threatened by improper trail maintenance activities and increased recreational use of the trails. There are some invasive species nearby. Conservation Strategies and Management Practices Make sure personnel who are maintaining the trails know the locations of the plant so they can be avoided. Suppress invasive species in the area of the plants. Research Needs Habitat Research is needed to see if the local population could be augmented through seed propagation. The sole known New York population is found amid a calcareous talus slope in the Niagara River gorge (NYNHP 2013). Prairies, limestone outcrops, bluffs, barrens, and glades, marl, sandstone outcrops, dunes, roadsides, sandy pine-oak, wooded northern slopes (Nesom 2006). Dry sandy jack pine, oak, aspen woodland; fields, dunes, and prairies (Voss 1996). Dry, open places (Gleason and Cronquist 1991). Dry calcareous or siliceous soil (Fernald 1950). Associated Ecological Communities Calcareous Talus Slope Woodland An open or closed canopy community that occurs on talus slopes composed of calcareous bedrock such as limestone or dolomite. The soils are usually moist and loamy; there may be numerous rock outcrops. NYNHP Conservation Guide - Slender Blazing-star (Liatris cylindracea) 2
Associated Species Common Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) Tall Thimbleweed (Anemone virginiana) Butterfly Milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa) Whorled Milkweed (Asclepias verticillata) White Ash (Fraxinus americana) Woodland Sunflower (Helianthus divaricatus) Red Cedar (Juniperus virginiana) White Sweetclover (Melilotus albus) Prairie Goldenrod (Oligoneuron album) Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) Smooth Cliff-brake (Pellaea glabella ssp. glabella) Choke Cherry (Prunus virginiana) Buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica) Broad-leaved Goldenrod (Solidago flexicaulis) Skyblue Aster (Symphyotrichum oolentangiense) White-arrow Aster (Symphyotrichum urophyllum) Northern White Cedar (Thuja occidentalis) Eastern Poison Ivy (Toxicodendron radicans) False Pennyroyal (Trichostema brachiatum) Identification Comments Liatris cylindracea is a native, erect perennial growing from a swollen underground stem base (corm) to an overall height of 20 to 60 cm. The stems are smooth and hairless (glabrous) and the leaves are 3(-5) nerved, 0.8 to 2.5 cm long and generally linear. Since Liatris is in the aster family, the infloresences are arranged radially into "heads" of many separate ray and disc flowers, superficially resembling a single flower. The flowering heads of Slender Blazing-star are borne singly or in elongated or spike-like arrangements. The flowering heads are rose or pink-colored and sessile or spreading-ascending on 2 to 10(-20) mm stalks. The whorls of bracts (involucre) encompassing the flower heads are bell-shaped and (11-)13 to 18 mm long by 6 to 8 mm wide, The involucres enclosing the flower heads are comprised of individual bracts (phyllaries) that are leathery, stiff and tough, with thin, membranous, translucent margins. These phyllaries occur in series of 5 to 7, and are strongly unequal (the outer ones are shorter). The fruits are one-seeded and 5 to 7 mm long, and bear feather-like (plumose) tufts of bristles on the top that have lateral branches more than 8 times longer than the diameter of the main bristle. (Nesom 2006) Best Life Stage for Identifying This Species The entire stem with intact leaves, flowering heads and mature fruits is best for positive identification. The Best Time to See Liatris cylindracea typically flowers starting in mid-july and continuing through late August. Fruiting typically occurs from mid-august through mid-september. NYNHP Conservation Guide - Slender Blazing-star (Liatris cylindracea) 3
Flowering Fruiting Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Similar Species The time of year you would expect to find Slender Blazing-star in New York. All other Liatris species in New York can be distinguished from L. cylindracea by their strongly barbed tuft of bristles (pappus) on the top of their fruit which have lateral branches less than 5 times longer than the diameter of the main bristle. Liatris cylindracea also typically has only one to a few bell-shaped flowering heads while our other species have several to many cylindrical or button-shaped flowering heads. L.aspera and L. pycnostachya also have reflexed or spreading involucural bracts, while L. cylindracea's are appressed or only slightly loose (Voss 1996). Taxonomy Kingdom Phylum Plantae Anthophyta Class Dicots (Dicotyledoneae) Order Asterales Family Asteraceae (Aster Family) Additional Common Names Blazing-star Synonyms Lacinaria cylindrica ((Michx.) Kuntze) Additional Resources Links New York Flora Atlas species page http://newyork.plantatlas.usf.edu/plant.aspx?id=331 USDA Plants Database http://plants.usda.gov/java/namesearch?mode=sciname&keywordquery= LIATRIS+CYLINDRACEA NatureServe Explorer http://natureserve.org/explorer/servlet/natureserve?searchname=liatris+cylindrace A NYNHP Conservation Guide - Slender Blazing-star (Liatris cylindracea) 4
Google Images http://images.google.com/images?q=liatris+cylindracea Flora of North America http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=242416761 References Fernald, M. L. 1950. Gray's manual of botany. 8th edition. Corrected printing (1970). D. Van Nostrand Company, New York. 1632 pp. Gleason, Henry A. and A. Cronquist. 1991. Manual of Vascular Plants of Northeastern United States and Adjacent Canada. The New York Botanical Garden, Bronx, New York. 910 pp. Holmgren, Noel. 1998. The Illustrated Companion to Gleason and Cronquist's Manual. Illustrations of the Vascular Plants of Northeastern United States and Adjacent Canada. The New York Botanical Garden, Bronx, New York. Keys, Jr.,J.; Carpenter, C.; Hooks, S.; Koenig, F.; McNab, W.H.; Russell, W.;Smith, M.L. 1995. Ecological units of the eastern United States - first approximation (cd-rom), Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service. GIS coverage in ARCINFO format, selected imagery, and map unit tables. Mitchell, Richard S. and Gordon C. Tucker. 1997. Revised Checklist of New York State Plants. Contributions to a Flora of New York State. Checklist IV. Bulletin No. 490. New York State Museum. Albany, NY. 400 pp. NatureServe. 2005. NatureServe Central Databases. Arlington, Virginia. USA Nesom, G. L. 2006. Liatris Gaertner ex Schreber Pages 512-535 in: Flora of North America Editorial Committee. 2006c. Flora of North America North of Mexico. Vol. 21. Magnoliophyta: Asteridae, part 8: Asteraceae, part 3. Oxford Univ. Press, New York. xxii + 616 pp. Voss, E.G. 1996. Michigan Flora. Part III. Dicots (Pyrolaceae-Compositae). Cranbrook Institute of Science Bulletin 61 and Univ. Michigan Herbarium. Ann Arbor, Michigan. 622 pp. Weldy, T. and D. Werier. 2010. New York flora atlas. [S.M. Landry, K.N. Campbell, and L.D. Mabe (original application development), Florida Center for Community Design and Research http://www.fccdr.usf.edu/. University of South Florida http://www.usf.edu/]. New York Flora Association http://wwws.nyflora.org/, Albany, New York New York Natural Heritage Program 625 Broadway, 5th Floor, Albany, NY 12233-4757 Phone: (518) 402-8935 acris@nynhp.org This project is made possible with funding from: - New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Hudson River Estuary Program - Division of Lands & Forests, Department of Environmental Conservation - New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation Information for this guide was last updated on Aug 24, 2017 This guide was authored by Stephen M. Young, Elizabeth Spencer, Richard M. Ring. NYNHP Conservation Guide - Slender Blazing-star (Liatris cylindracea) 5