ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT PROFILE

PROTECTION STATUS: Endangered

YEAR LISTED: 2002

CRITICAL HABITAT: 5,840 acres designated in 2010

RECOVERY PLAN: Draft 2006

RANGE: The Agate Desert in southwestern Oregon’s Jackson County

THREATS: Industrial, commercial, and residential development; road and power-line construction and maintenance; hydrologic alteration; livestock grazing; agricultural conversion; weed competition; mowing; and roadside spraying

POPULATION TREND: Because the meadowfoam is an annual plant — germinating, growing, blossoming, and setting seed all in a few months time — large fluctuations in year-to-year plant numbers are typical and make population trends difficult to determine. However, biologists know that a number of consecutive drought years could possibly eliminate some populations of this meadowfoam, and with global warming looming, this puts the plant in additional jeopardy. As of 2002, the large-flowered woolly meadowfoam was believed to live in only about 15 sites in Jackson County. While some populations have shown local increases in abundance, the plant’s overall range has declined by roughly 50 percent to date.