Gina DiCicco
Kincaid’s Lupine
Lupinus sulphureus ssp. Kincaidii
The Kincaid’s Lupine grows in the Pacific region of the US. Its critical habitat is in Benton, Douglas, Lane, Polk, and Yamhill Counties, Oregon, as well as Lewis County, Washington. It is most often found in grasslands, but can also be seen on steep, rocky, south-facing mountainsides.
This fair flower faces a number of threats. It has lost habitat as its prairie land has been developed for agricultural cultivation and increased urbanization. Additionally, (and in part due to this development) the prairies are no longer being maintained as they once were. If left alone, prairies will reforest. Most commonly, they are maintained by fires, which we no longer allow to burn. Because of this, we are losing our prairies. As trees return, they are beginning to shade out some of the native prairie vegetation, including the Kincaid’s Lupine. Lastly, invasive species, such as Himalayan Blackberry (rubus discolor), are crowding out these and many other native plants.
As a result of these factors, the population of Kincaid’s Lupine is in decline. It is currently found in 57 sites, totaling only 395 acres. These small, fragmented populations are at great risk. It is hard to count the remaining numbers of these flowers due to their rhizomatous pattern of vegetative growth, which makes it difficult to distinguish individual plants.
The recovery plan for Kincaid’s Lupine is to maintain the prairies through land disturbance practices of prescribed burning and mowing. This will be accompanied by planned environmental restoration to promote native species, detailed monitoring of the populations of Kincaid’s Lupine, and seed banking. An initiative to recover the Kincaid’s Lupine as well as two species closely associated with it (the Willamette Daisy and the Fender’s blue butterfly) is expected to cost $25-53 million over the next 20 years.
Sources:
Prairie Species of Western Oregon and Southwestern Washington. Oregon Fish & Wildlife Office. July 27, 2009. <http://www.fws.gov/oregonfwo/Species/PrairieSpecies/
Recovery Outline for Lupinus sulphureus ssp. Kincaidii (Kincaid’s lupine). U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. March, 2006 <http://www.fws.gov/pacific/ecoservices/endangered/recovery/
documents/LUSUKIRecoveryOutlineMarch2006.pdf
Species Fact Sheet: Kincaid's lupine, Lupinus sulphureus ssp. Kincaidii. Oregon Fish & Wildlife Office. Sept. 22, 2008. <http://www.fws.gov/oregonfwo/Species/Data/KincaidsLupine/