Botrychium pinnatum H. St. John
northwestern moonwort (northern moonwort)
Ophioglossaceae (Adder's-tongue family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
northwestern moonwort (northern moonwort)
Ophioglossaceae (Adder's-tongue family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
Species Information
General:
Deciduous perennial, 3-15 cm tall.
Trophophores:
Broadly triangular or egg-shaped, unstalked or short stalked, 1- to 2-pinnate, up to 8 cm long; pinnae to 8 pairs, approximate or overlapping, with entire or slightly lobed margins and rounded tips, the lowest similar in size.
Sporophores:
2-pinnate, about 2 times length of trophophores.
Notes:
The only North American collections of Botrychium boreale Milde have been recently collected in Kootenay National Park, SE BC (W.H. Wagner, pers. comm.). It is difficult to separate from B. pinnatum, but the lowermost pinnae have shallow, narrow sinuses (they are wide and deep in B. pinnatum).
Illustration
If more than one illustration is available for a species (e.g., separate illustrations were provided for two subspecies) then links to the separate images will be provided below. Note that individual subspecies or varietal illustrations are not always available.
Illustration Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia
Ecology
Ecological Framework for Botrychium pinnatum
The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)
The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)
| Site Information |
Value / Class |
||
|
Avg |
Min |
Max |
|
| Elevation
(metres) |
702 | 15 | 2075 |
| Slope
Gradient (%) |
37 | 0 | 90 |
|
Aspect (degrees) |
80 | 50 | 359 |
| Soil
Moisture Regime (SMR) [0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic; 8 - hydric] |
3 | 0 | 7 |
| Modal
Nutrient Regime
Class |
A | ||
| #
of field plots species was recorded in: |
27 | ||
| Modal
BEC Zone Class |
CWH | ||
|
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in |
AT(2), BAFA(1), BWBS(1), CMA(1), CWH(12), ESSF(4), ICH(2), MH(3) | ||
|
Source:
Klinkenberg 2013
|
|||
Habitat and Range
Mesic to moist stream banks, meadows and heath in the montane and subalpine zones; infrequent throughout BC; N to AK, YT and NT and S to CO, AZ and CA.Status Information
Synonyms
Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Botrychium boreale subsp. obtusilobum (Rupr.) R.T. Clausen
Botrychium boreale var. obtusilobum (Rupr.) Broun