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Botrychium minqanense also reproduces 

 vegetatively by underground gemmae that are 

 formed in stem tissue (Farrar and Johnson- 

 Groh 1990) . The gemmae are sporophytic tissue 

 which may contain a mycorrhizal fungus. The 

 gemmae develop into a mature sporophyte. This 

 is an unusual method of reproduction in ferns 

 and is currently known only from four species 

 of Botrychium . Not all Botrychium minqanense 

 plants produce gemmae (Farrar and Johnson- 

 Groh 1990) and it is not known if Montana 

 plants do or not. 



b. SPORE DISPERSAL AND BIOLOGY: The spores of 



Botrychium minqanense are probably dispersed 

 by wind currents but no information is 

 available on the biology of spore germination 

 or of the gametophyte. 



G. POPULATION ECOLOGY 



1. BIOLOGICAL INTERACTIONS 



a. COMPETITION: No direct information is 

 available on the competitive characteristics 



I of Botrychium minqanense . However, the plant 



* appears to occupy shaded microsites within 



the wide range of habitats reported for it. 

 Even in herbaceous meadows, given its short 

 stature, it likely is well shaded. Thus, it 

 appears tolerant of low light intensities. 



b. HERBIVORY: No herbivory has been observed in 

 Montana populations of Botrychium minqanense . 



c. MUTUALISM: Mycorrhizal fungi are apparently 

 ubiquitous in both the sporophytes and 

 gametophytes of most Botrychium species 

 including Botrychium minqanense (Berch and 

 Kendrick 1982, Farrar and Johnson-Groh 1990, 

 Lellinger 1985) . Most species of this genus 

 are notoriously difficult, if not impossible, 

 to grow in cultivation and this may be 

 related to the mycorrhizal relationship. 



2 . ABIOTIC INTERACTIONS 



FLOOD: Botrychium minqanense in the Ninemile 

 Valley sites occurs in moist creek bottoms in 

 microsites that are close to stream channels, 

 Ik especially in small, seasonally-flooded channels 



^ and just below the high water mark. These sites 



