A story from the NPCA web site by Jenell Talley: Roses may be the flowers of choice for the love-smitten come birthdays and holidays, but the rare western prairie fringed orchid has drawn its own high level of interest from scientists, botanists, and biologists concerned for the future of this unusual plant.
A loss of the tallgrass prairie habitat that the orchid favors has caused a 60 percent drop in the flower’s population over the last few decades. Listed as threatened since 1989, the orchid is found at Pipestone National Monument in Minnesota and is present throughout the tallgrass prairie region: Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, Kansas, Nebraska, Missouri, and Manitoba, Canada. The larger populations are found in North Dakota, Minnesota, and Manitoba.
Read the full story, "Little Orchid on the Prairie", by Jenell Talley on the NPCA web site.
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