Summits' Endemics Coloring Page

This is a rare lily that grows on serpentine soils (unusual soils with many heavy metals, plants have to be specialized to grow on them). This little flower only grows in Southwestern Oregon, and is threatened by human activities. It's mostly white, with a deep pinky-purple  or green center.  

Try to say "fritillary" three times fast! This pretty red flower with yellow checkers is also in the lily family. It has very pale leaves, and pinkish stems. The plant is about 2 feet tall, and flowers in the late spring. It was discovered by a teenager in 1942. This fritillary lives in little patches in the Rogue Valley and the surrounding foothills of the Siskiyou Mountains, crossing south into California/West in wilderness areas. There are estimated to be only 1200 of these plants in total! Because there are so few, Gentner's Fritillary is federally listed as Endangered. 

These small brown mammals have pointy teeth and are carnivores! This shrew mainly eats insects, even jumping in the air to catch wasps. They have brown hair, and red tipped teeth, but are very small, their body is only a few inches long and they weight about as much as a pencil. Pacific Shrews live in dense forests, often near water.  They live along the coast, from near Adiantum (Eugene) to northern California (Principality of the Mists)

Tachina are a large group of flies, so the one that lives only in Oregon has relatives all over the world. It's a small, yellow and black fly, sturdy and bristly, with with three jointed antenae. There are likely many new species to be discovered within these groups of rarely studied animals. Flies may not be as pretty as flowers or butterflies, but they are an important part of ecosystems, they have lots of jobs. These flies are important pollinators as adults, and can be organic pest control before that. 

This fruiting shrub is closely related to currents. The bushes grow up to six feet tall, and are covered in thorns that can be up to half an inch long. The flowers are two colors: the top set of petals are flexed back, they are purple-red, while the petals that hang toward the ground are bright yellow. The fruits are dark red when ripe. The gooseberries are less than an inch long, and covered in spines.  The common name of this plant is a reference to one of  Indigenous people who live in the Klamath-Siskiyou ecoregion where it lives. The Hoopa people didn't have extensive contact with colonizers until the gold rush in the middle of the 19th century, and many of their cultural traditions remain intact. To learn more, follow this link: 

https://www.kimaw.org/community/page/our-culture

These rare salamanders are small and a dark chocolate brown as adults, with little white spots. They only live right along the border between the Summits and the West, in rocky outcrops. They only come out when it's raining, and are protected because they are so rare. They were first discovered one year before the SCA started. 

This plant eats bugs! They have a small opening under the "hood" (a specialized leaf) and once inside, the see-through outside of the plant confuses insects so they can't find their way out. The plant then digests the insects and uses that protein to build their bodies. They live in cold, shallow, flowing springs and bogs. Cobra lilies can tolerate the metals and toxins in serpentine soils and rocks. They have a unique flower that may be pollinated by miner bees. There are patches of these unique plants along the Summits (Oregon) coast and some scattered inland populations in both An Tir and the West (Northern California). 

This is a very rare and beautiful tree with twigs that drape down. It can grow to be over 130 feet tall, and is only found in the Siskiyou Mountains, above 5000 feet. It grows very slowly. When they are young, it has bright purple cones. Weeping Spruce is one of 36 species of conifers in the Klamath-Siskiyou region, the most of any temperate forest in the world. 

This is a gorgeous succulent plant that only grows along the Rogue River. It's rose gold and pale green, with the puffy leaves distinct to succulents (a way for it to store water in very dry areas). Each plant is a rosette (cluster of leaves), and is tiny, only about 3 inches across. Rogue River Stonecrop blooms from May to early July. 

The Klamath-Siskiyou region is made up of very old rocks.  For many millions of years, these rugged mountains were shoved between continents, had bubbles of lava slowly cool and rise to the surface, and been a haven for ancient plants and animals to survive. Kalmiopsis is one of those survivors, decended directly from the ancestors of rhodedendrons, but unique from them. It has gorgeous dark pink flowers in clusters, they have five petals that are joined together, the whole flower is only about an inch across. The whole plant is a foot tall, and grows only in Josephine County, Oregon (Summits). The Kalmiopsis Wildnerness (established in 1964) is named after this plant.   

https://kalmiopsiswild.org/kalmiopsis-wilderness/

Like most buttercups, this is a bright yellow flower with leaves that are sharply lobed. The flowers have five petals with red stripes on the backs. The whole plant is small, the leaves only about two inches across. Southern Oregon Buttercups grow on the valley floor near the city of Medford (northern part of the Barony of Glyn Dwfn). There are many reasons that there are so many unique plants in the Klamath-Siskiyou mountains. One of the reasons is that serpentine soils, common in the Klamath-Siskiyous, have many heavy metals and toxins. Another reason is the steep mountains with rivers that have cut deep canyons. The very dry ridgelines separate plants than need lots of water, and lead to plants like this only living in one valley. 

Most oaks are big trees that lose their leaves in the fall, but Deer Oak is an evergreen shrub. It's height ranges from 3 to 10 feet tall, but it is bushy, not a single-stalked tree. The leaves are also not lobed like most other oaks, but rather simple leaves with sawtooth edges. The acorns are over an inch long. It only lives in the Klamath-Siskiyou region, generally as underbrush in forests. 

Fender's Blue are small, only about an inch across. The males are a pale, powdery blue, while females are light brown, both have white wing edges with a dark line. These small butterflies were thought to be extinct for about 50 years, but were rediscovered. They are still considered a threatened species. The eggs of Fender's Blue Butterflies are very tiny, about a quart of the size of a grain of rice. Their caterpillars only eat the leaves of Kincaid's Lupin. Fender's Blue Butterflies only live in prairies in the Willamette Valley. 

The Western Lily grows in boggy areas along the southern coast of the Summits, and into the Mists (California). The plant can get up to 6 feet tall. The leaves grow out from the stalk like the spokes of a wheel. The bright red flowers are about three inches long, with dark brown spots and a yellow center. The Western Lily are mostly pollinated by hummingbirds, which is probably why it produces more nectar than any other American lily. Though they are easily grown in gardens, lilies are very toxic to cats, and not recommended for those who have pets. Because it requires wet soil to live, and only has a small range, these lilies are considered to be threatened, and are protected. This means you can't pick them if you find them in the forest, please leave them to make more seeds. 

This rare plant lives in similar areas to the Cobra Lily (see above). It grows in cold and flowing shallow water with serpentine rocks. The range of this plant is only about 12 miles long,  on gentile slopes in the Illinois River Valley (southern Oregon, Summits). The flowers have six petals, three inside and three outside. The flowers can be either be creamy white or purple, sometimes with a green line down the back.  Large-flowered Rush Lily flower from May to July, and then disperse via seeds, though they do store energy for flowering in a bulb under ground. Given how small their range is and the very specific small areas they grow in, this species is considered to be threatened. They are a very rare plant.  

The Umpqua Chub is a small, pale gold and silver fish which only grows to be about 3 inches long. They live in shallow parts of the Umpqua River drainage, and eat tiny bugs. Umpqua Chub are closely related to minnows. The dark line along the side of their body is a row of pressure sensitive organs that lets them sense water currents, rocks, and the movements of other animals to their side. 

 This very small flower, less than a half-inch across, is called "rough" because the leaves and stems are very hairy. The flowers are mostly white with a yellow center, with five petals, and each one produces four seeds called "nutlets".  Rough Popcornflowers live in seasonal wetlands in the Umpqua River basin, near the Shire of Briaroak.  They are considered threatened, especially by human activities, but are easily grown in a  greenhouse, so they are estimated to have been much helped by the efforts to preserve them.