The Wenatchee Mountains checker-mallow (Sidalcea oregana var. calva) is a perennial flower that is a variant of the Oregon checker-mallow found only in Washington’s Wenatchee Mountains. It’s pollinators are bumblebees, bees, and beetles (Giblin, D.E. & B.S. Legler, 2003+-b).

“Where flowers bloom, so does hope.”

–Lady Bird Johnson

Description

The flowers, similar to the Nelson’s checker-mallow, have five light-pink to deep pink petals that are wide and notched at the end (obovate and notched). They are arranged in cone-like shapes (raceme), though unlike the Nelson’s checker-mallow, the cones are much shorter. The leaves are arranged alternatively, they are star shaped (like maple leaves, called palmate leaves) and they vary from being shallowly to deeply lobed, with rounded teeth on the leaf’s edge. The plant varies from being smooth to hairy on the lower part of the plant, and having fine star-shaped hairs on the upper part of the plant (Giblin, D.E. & B.S. Legler, 2003+-a).

Habitat

This is a Washington endemic plant, located only Chelan County where it grows in wetlands and moist meadows and blooms during the summer months (U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife, n.d.).

Status

The Wenatchee Mountains checker-mallow is considered endangered within Washington. It’s population is annually counted for monitoring purposes (U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife, 2022).

***** Status References: WA State: WA-DNR North America: NatureServe Global: IUCN Red List *****

Threats

Threats to the Wenatchee Mountains checker-mallow include habitation loss, degradation, and fragmentation, competition with native and nonnative plants, and weevil seed predation. It should be noted that because the population is small and grows in specific locations, that random events could cause possible extirpation as well (U.S. Forest Service, n.d.-b).

According to the United States Forest Service, the Wenatchee Mountains checker-mallow were listed as endangered in 1999 and in 2001 critical habitat was established for the species (U.S. Forest Service, n.d.-a).

Nature Art

Cover art credit: A Wenatchee Mountains checker-mallow (Thomas, 2005)

References

Click here to view the references used for this post

Giblin, D.E. & B.S. Legler (eds.). 2003+-a. Sidalcea oregana. In: WTU Image Collection Web Site: Vascular Plants, MacroFungi, & Lichenized Fungi of Washington State. University of Washington Herbarium. Accessed 04 Aug 2024. https://burkeherbarium.org/imagecollection/

NatureServe Explorer. (n.d.). Sidalcea oregana. NatureServe. Retrieved July 21, 2024, from https://explorer.natureserve.org/Taxon/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.1256742/Sidalcea_oregana

Smith, I. (2024). Wenatchee Mountains Checker-mallow Botanical Illustration. [photograph of painting]. Shared with permission.

Thomas, T. (2004), US Fish and Wildlife. A Wenatchee Mountain Checker-mallow [photograph]. Public Domain. Retrieved July 20, 2024, from https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wenatchee_Mountain_Checker-mallow.jpg

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. (2022). Monitoring the Endangered Wenatchee Mountains Checkermallow [Video]. Retrieved August 5, 2024, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNlBuepbvIw [0.52.]

U.S. Forest Service. (n.d.-a). Sidalcea oregana ssp. calva. USDA Forest Service. Retrieved August 5, 2024, from https://www.fs.usda.gov/wildflowers/Rare_Plants/profiles/TEP/sidalcea_oregana_calva/index.shtml

U.S. Forest Service. (n.d.-b). Recovery of the Wenatchee Mountains checker-mallow. USDA Forest Service. Retrieved August 5, 2024, from https://www.fs.usda.gov/wildflowers/Rare_Plants/conservation/success/checker-mallow_recovery.shtml

Washington State Department of Natural Resources. (n.d.-a). Natural Heritage Program field guide. Retrieved July 21, 2024, from https://www.dnr.wa.gov/NHPfieldguide

Washington State Department of Natural Resources. (n.d.-b). Sidalcea oregana (Oregon checker-mallow). Retrieved July 21, 2024, from https://www.dnr.wa.gov/publications/amp_nh_siorc2.pdf

Wenatchee Mountains Checker-Mallow (sidalcea oregana var. Calva): U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. FWS.gov. (n.d.). Retrieved August 5, 2024, from https://www.fws.gov/species/wenatchee-mountains-checker-mallow-sidalcea-oregana-var-calva