Find Mountaintop Thistle
Following up on our thistle hunt from July, this month we ask you to locate one specific thistle – mountaintop thistle (Cirsium scopulorum). Mountaintop thistle of course occurs on mountain peaks throughout Colorado. It is easily identified – just look for a tall, prickly plant above treeline, with flowers embedded in a dense covering of white, woolly hairs. There are two floral color forms present – purple and yellow.
Unfortunately, misconceptions that all thistles are invasive leads to unwarranted pulling of these majestic plants. However, they are important components of the landscape – you may even see a pika running around with this thistle stuffed in its mouth!
The new Head Curator of Natural History Collections at Denver Botanic Gardens, Jennifer Ackerfield, is passionate about thistles. Help Jennifer document the distribution of the two color forms of mountaintop thistle by photographing as many plants as possible in the month of August. Post your findings to iNaturalist so they will be automatically added to the Denver EcoFlora Project.
Cirsium scopulorum, purple form:
Cirsium scopulorum, yellow form:
WHAT IS AN ECOQUEST?
EcoQuests, part of the Denver EcoFlora project, challenge citizens to become citizen scientists and observe, study, and conserve the native plants of the City via iNaturalist, an easy-to-use mobile app.
HOW DO I GET STARTED?
HOW DO I PARTICIPATE GIVEN COVID-19?
As a participant, it is up to you how much or how little you take part. Please stay close to home and maintain a social distance of 6 ft. from people. Wear a cloth mask in public areas. Respect closures and avoid places of high use. Do only what feels safe for you and your family and is in accordance with your local regulations.
WHAT IS THE GOAL?
The EcoFlora project is designed to meaningfully connect citizens with biodiversity, and to assemble novel observations and data on the metro area’s flora to better inform policy decisions and conservation strategies.
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