The Federally Endangered Michigan Monkeyflower

It feels good to be back and posting on a regular schedule again.  While I wouldn't grow accustomed to a post every day or two I can still tell the creative juices and ideas are flowing smoothly through my brain.  About a month ago I spent a week up in northern Michigan and would like to share the story of a very fascinating plant and probably the rarest plant I've ever seen to date.

Leelanau County, Michigan has been my summer vacation spot literally all my life.  A week or two each summer would be spent fishing the lakes for bass and pike; the cold, spring fed streams for trout; swimming in the chilly waters of Lake Michigan searching for petosky stones and soaking in the sun and beauty of northern Michigan.  I'll always cherish my time up there with my parents and brother and look forward to those days renewed each summer.  My footprints in the sand along the beach may be quick to wash away but all the memories made are etched in stone in my brain.

On the southern shores of Big Glen Lake

Over the past few summers I have spent more and more time exploring the fascinating ecosystems and flora this unique area of Michigan has to offer.  I did a two-part series on the the natural history and flora of South Manitou Island that can be found HERE and HERE if interested.  One of my biggest goals this past summer was to observe and photograph the federally endangered Michigan Monkeyflower (Mimulus michiganensis), Michigan's rarest plant.  After some research and phone calls to knowledgeable botanists from the area I was turned onto one of the best places to see this mega rarity.

Spring seep emitting from the hillside

Acidic sphagnum seep on the lake shore

I was told to head to the southern shoreline of Big Glen Lake outside the little village of Glen Arbor.  There I would find a park and picnic area that fortunately preserves one of the only publicly protected populations of the monkeyflower.  I walked down to the lake and begin to wade into the water along the shoreline looking for a series of springs that emitted from the hillside down into Big Glen.  Just a bit down the shore I saw the area open up into a mat of sphagnum, jewelweed (Impatiens spp.) and sedges (mostly Carex flava, one of the favorites!) speckled with hundreds of yellow dots.  Target acquired!

Mimulus michiganensis

Mimulus michiganensis

Ohio only has two native species of Mimulus.  Both the Winged Monkeyflower (M. alatus) and Allegheny Monkeyflower (M. ringens) are widespread across the state and easily told apart by the color of their flowers, length of the peduncle and whether or not the leaves are sessile.  Michigan has an additional four species of Mimulus, including the scarcest of them all which I happened to be staring directly in the face.  Just how rare is this wildflower?  Pretty rare!

Entire distribution of M. michiganensis (courtesy michiganflora.net)

The only plant entirely endemic to Michigan, this monkeyflower can be found in six counties with only 12 known populations still in existance.  It only grows in cold, calcareous springs, streams and seeps in northern White Cedar swamps as well as along the shorelines of lakes where a constant supply of fresh groundwater is present.  Nearly every known population of this plant occurs near or on the shorelines of the Great Lakes.  This unfortunate choice of habitat type has done this plant more harm than good due to mankind's affinity for building their summer homes and resorts on top of this rare ecosystem.  A large majority of the 12 populations grow on private land where management and preservation concerns are up to the landowner, who often times don't understand the little yellow flower that blooms every June and July near their boat and jet ski dock needs every ounce of protection it can get.  Several populations have recently met their fate due to construction and altered hydrology of the site.  Their constant need for cold, flowing spring water makes them very vulnerable to even nearby construction projects that could potentially change this necessity of life.

Mimulus michiganensis

Mimulus michiganensis

It was long treated as a variety to the more western M. glabratus, which barely makes it east of the Mississippi river.  It has recently been given full species status after new genetic research and testing along with DNA sequencing found it to be a separate species only found in this select area of Michigan.  Further research done at Michigan State University suggests this species originated from an ancient hybrid between M. glabratus var. jamesii and M. guttatus; two other Michigan indigenous, yellow-flowered Mimulus'.

Mimulus michiganensis

Mimulus michiganensis

The gorgeous yellow, snapdragon-like flowers bloom come June and July in the leaf axils towards the top of the stem.  Upon closer inspection you can see an irregular scattering of orange/red dots on the three-lobed lower lip.  You can tell this apart from the very similar M. glabratus var. jamesii by it's much smaller oppositely arranged leaves that are also more deltoid in shape while M. glabratus var. jamesii has rounded leaves.  The flowers of the Michigan monkeyflower produce very little viable pollen and thus produce very little seed.  This plant relies almost entirely on its stolons to reproduce vegetatively, creating dense colonies of clones.

Mimulus michiganensis

Mimulus michiganensis

I quickly learned just how careful I had to be when around these plants.  The saturated soil was very mucky and mixed with sand making for a very unstable and soft substrate.  I didn't want to create too many holes or compact the soil so I kept to the channels of water cutting through the population.  It was just so cool to be in one of only a dozen still extant places on Earth to see this plant!  I've seen many, many rare plants to Ohio's soils and a few rare to everywhere's soils but nothing close to this.  The large clonal mat spread amongst the sedges and jewelweed was a large piece of the pie of what's left.  It's plants like these that need our help and respect more than anything.  Many probably look at this and say, "who cares?  It's just one plant that serves no real purpose, I wouldn't miss it".  Maybe they're right, but when you turn your shoulder on one species you start an excuse for the next one and the next.  Before we know it we could be living in a world largely devoid of what Mother Nature deemed proper and necessary to its development and structure.  Hopefully when I return to these shores years from now with my potential future family I hope I can take them to this spot and show them these wonderful yellow beauties.  Tell them of their battle for survival and their continued success as one of the rarest plants in North America.  I won't hold my breath as more and more people want bigger docks with more boats and houses closer to the shore but maybe, just maybe these will hold on for future generations to appreciate.