Great Basin Flora: Botanizing on Steens and Hart Mountains
July 19 – 21, 2019 – Cheryl Beyer, M.S. and Janel Johnson, M.S will lead this field course to investigate the endemics, Sierra relics and Great Basin native plants found at Steens and Hart Mountains’ floristic “junctions.” We will observe the rejuvenation of species related to grazing recovery efforts at Hart Mountain and explore Steens endemics.
Rising out of southeastern Oregon’s Alvord Desert, the basalt fault block Steens Mountain is a unique floristic island shaped by glaciation and Great Basin plate “rumpling.” Its plant communities rapidly shift from juniper and sagebrush to aspen/riparian to high alpine glacial valleys and lakes near the summit at 9733 ft.
Students will have time to key out plants in a lab session (especially helpful for identifying eriogonum varieties) in addition to Saturday and Sunday trips in the field.
Sponsored by The Siskiyou Field Institute http://www.thesfi.org
Cheryl Beyer has a B.S. degree in Botany and an M.S. degree in Natural Resource Conservation. Cheryl’s expertise includes vascular plants, bryophytes, lichens, and fungi.
Janel Johnson, M.S. has a Bachelor’s degree in botany from Oregon State University. Janel is currently employed at the Nevada Natural Heritage Program and has served as president of the Nevada Native Plant Society since 2011 and she and her husband Reese are co-editors of the Eriogonum Society newsletter.
