44 



2. CURRENT SITES: Two collections of this species were made in ^ 

 Montana in recent years. Only one plant was observed when 



it was found in Choteau County and that plant was collected. 



The McCone County collection site of "few" plants could not 

 be relocated and may be extirpated. This same area had been 

 searched intensively in 1981, the year after it was 

 originally collected by Prodgers, and not found. The 

 investigator considered it to be possibly extirpated 

 (Lichvar 1981) . 



The search is somewhat complicated in that there is question 

 on which of two reserviors it occurred. Both were 

 extensively searched. It was also complicated by 1993 

 weather patterns. The landowner noted that severe drought 

 conditions prevailed through spring of 1993, and that 

 extraordinary June rainfall brought stock pond water levels 

 above the normal peak. It is possible that this shoreline 

 species does not consistently flower under such conditions. 

 Considering that the original population consisted of only a 

 few plants, it is likely that it was only an accidental waif 

 at the site originally. Note: The site is used as brood 

 habitat by mallards, and waterfowl have been implicated in 

 dispersing the species beyond its known range into the 

 Northwest Territories (Rollins 1993). 



3. HISTORICAL SITES: The three historical collections of this 

 species are on the Missouri and Yellowstone Rivers. This 

 species occupies early successional habitat so the 

 historical populations are expected to have shifted if they 

 still persist. The location information for all three 

 historical collections is vague. 



4. UNVERIFIED/UNDOCUMENTED REPORTS: Some of the Wyoming sites 

 are within two miles of the Montana state line on the Big 

 Horn River, but there it has never been found on that river 

 in Montana (Figure 11) . Note: This species was not 

 included in the only sensitive plant species survey 

 conducted in the Big Horn Canyon Recreation area in Montana 

 (Knight et al. 1987) . 



5. AREAS SURVEYED BUT SPECIES NOT LOCATED: Access restrictions 

 through private lands prevented survey of the small parcel 

 of BLM land on the free-flowing segment of the Missouri 

 River in northern McCone County. The camping visits to Fort 

 Peck Reservior did not turn up this species, and limited 

 survey of BLM stock ponds in the study area did not turn it 

 up. Most of its potential habitat along rivers and 

 reserviors was not on BLM land, and therefore beyond the 

 scope of this project. Potential habitat for this species _^ 

 may still persist on the free-flowing Missouri River, along ^^ 

 it largest reserviors (Fort Peck Reservior; possibly Canyon 



