69 



HABITAT: Townsendia fiuttallii is most common on limestone outcrops with sparse bunchgrass cover 

 {Agropyron spi cat urn/ cushion plant h.t.), as found in western and southeastern portions of the Study 

 Area, where it is limited to limestone outcrops (Appendix D-30). It was found mainly on limestone but 

 extended onto alluvium and conglomerate bedrock substrates in the Sage Creek Study Area (Lesica and 

 Vanderhorst 1995). The specimen label for the Granite County material indicated that it was not 

 restricted to a given soil substrate. In Montana, its elevation ranges from 4200 ft. in Granite County to 

 8200 ft. in the Tendoy Mountains. 



Associated species in the Study Area include: 



Agropyron spicatwn 

 Arenaria kingii 

 Artemisia frigida 

 Artemisia tridentata vaseyana 

 Draba oligosperma 

 Erigeron compositus 

 Eritrichium howardii 

 Haplopappus acaulis 

 Lesquerella alpina 

 Phlox hoodii 



In the Sage Creek Study Area, the species occupied similar habitat in addition to sagebrush grasslands 

 {Artemisia tridentata vaseyana/Festuca idahoensis) and grasslands {Agropyron smithii) of alluvial fans 

 at 6,500-7,400 ft. Common associated species include Poa secimda, Oxytropis lagopus, Eriogonum 

 mancum, Phlox hoodii, Artemisia frigida, Cymopterus bipinnatus, Antennaria microphylla, Astragalus 

 miser, and Penstemon aridus (Lesica and Vanderhorst 1995). In the Tendoy Mountains, it was collected 

 on a high rocky knob with Lomatium cons, Polemonium pulcherrimum, Phlox hoodii, Oxytropis 

 lagopus, and Saxifraga rhomboidea (Vanderhorst and Lesica 1994). 



POPULATION INFORMATION: Townsendia nuttallii tlowers very early and is low and 

 inconspicuous. It is sparsely distributed but occurs over large areas of widespread habitat. Thus, 

 population size is difficult to estimate. For example, in the Hemieberry Ridge area, it was found in four 

 adjoining sections spanning a 6100-7000 ft. elevation. None of the populations had more than 3 plants, 

 and they occupied only a fraction of what appeared to be suitable habitat. The plants observed may 

 represent outliers from a core population that was not found. Alternately, the plants may represent 

 widely-spaced subpopulations that make up a landscape megapopulation with an inherently sparse, 

 sporadic pattern of distribution. 



There is only one record of this species being called "fairly common" in Montana, although numbers 

 were not estimated. The other records with quantitative estimates ranged from 1-50. The small size of 

 most populations and the species' relatively limited global distribution are the basis for retaining Nuttall 

 Townsend-daisy on the watch list as a vulnerable species of limited distribution, despite the number of 

 populations and the extent of potential habitat. 



