| Stephanomeria malheurensis | |
|---|---|
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Asterids |
| Order: | Asterales |
| Family: | Asteraceae |
| Tribe: | Cichorieae |
| Genus: | Stephanomeria |
| Species: | S. malheurensis |
| Binomial name | |
| Stephanomeria malheurensis Gottlieb |
|
The Malheur wirelettuce (Stephanomeria malheurensis) is a plant of the Asteraceae family.
This plant species, designated as "endangered with critical habitat" by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) in 1982, is native to only one small region in Harney County, Oregon, USA. A related species, Stephanomeria exigua or Small wirelettuce, grows in the same region as Malheur wirelettuce. It is believed that the Malheur species is derived from S. exigua. The species is an annual and is susceptible to invasive species of plants such as Cheatgrass. During the 1980s, an invasion of the highly aggressive, non-native Cheatgrass led to dwindling numbers of S. malheurensis with some years recording no occurrences of the plant. According to the USFWS, beginning in 1987 an effort was made to re-introduce S. malheurensis with 1,000 specimens being transplanted from the Berry Botanic Garden. Of these, only 412 survived and one wild plant was found. To this day, the numbers of wild S. malheurensis remain very low as the plant remains at risk from Cheatgrass.[1]