Endangered
Description
The White Prairie Gentian is a flowering plant that can reach 90 centimetres tall. It has up to a dozen stems and large, oval-shaped, yellowish-green leaves. Creamy white flowers appear in dense clusters at the top of the stem and in the upper leaf axils (where the leaves join the stem). In the fall, the seedpod splits in two to release hundreds of tiny seeds which are dispersed by the wind.
Action we are taking:
Range
In Canada, the White Prairie Gentian is currently found only in southwestern Ontario on lands of the Walpole Island First Nation. In 2000, fewer than 50 of these plants were found on Walpole Island. White Prairie Gentian was originally discovered at the turn of the 20th century in Northumberland County, east of Toronto and in Essex County, but these populations no longer exist.
Habitat
In Ontario, the White Prairie Gentian grows in open and sunny oak-hickory savannah, a rare type of habitat with grassland prairie growing between scattered mature trees. The habitat requires a regular fire regime (the pattern that fire follows in a particular ecosystem) to prevent encroachment by trees and shrubs.
Threats
The main threat to White Prairie Gentian is habitat alteration due to human activities, such as ATV use and development. Natural succession, which is the gradual takeover of an area by trees and shrubs, creates shady conditions and is another factor contributing to habitat loss for this sun-loving plant. The suppression of wild fires adds to a loss of suitable habitat, as fire is essential to maintaining a healthy prairie and savannah ecosystem by limiting natural succession.
Protection
White Prairie Gentian is protected under Ontario’s Endangered Species Act and the federal Species at Risk Act.
What You Can Do to Help the White Prairie Gentian
- The Ministry of Natural Resources tracks species at risk such as the White Prairie Gentian. You can use a handy online form to report your sightings to the Natural Heritage Information Centre. Photographs with specific locations or mapping coordinates are always helpful. nhic.mnr.gov.on.ca
- Report any illegal activity related to plants and wildlife to 1-877-TIPS-MNR (847-7667).
- White Prairie Gentian and many other species at risk depend on healthy grassland prairies, a very rare habitat in Ontario. Learn more about these habitats, the species that depend on them, and what you can do to help at www.tallgrassontario.org.
- Pollinators, such as bees, are in steep decline across the globe and they play a key role in the survival of many of Ontario’s rare plants. For information on how you can help scientists monitor pollinator populations in Ontario visit: www.seeds.ca/proj/poll.
- Volunteer with your local nature club or provincial park to participate in surveys or stewardship work focused on species at risk.
- Private land owners have a very important role to play in species at risk recovery. You may be eligible for stewardship programs that support the protection and recovery of species at risk and their habitats.
Did you know?
Bumblebees are one of the few insects that are strong enough to open the White Prairie Gentian’s flowers and pollinate them.
Did you know?
Fire plays a very important role in maintaining open prairie habitat where the White Prairie Gentian lives. Fire stimulates the growth of these hardy prairie flowers and naturally removes trees and shrubs that would otherwise overtake this unique habitat.
Did you know?
Tallgrass prairie provides habitat for White Prairie Gentian and more than 500 other plants, many birds, mammals, reptiles, butterflies and other insects.
Did you know?
The root of the White Prairie Gentian has been used by Aboriginal people as a medicinal tea.
Contact your local ministry office
Often the best source of local information on species at risk is your nearest ministry office. Call with your questions or concerns.
