A Floristic Inventory of Six Tracts of the Ozark Plateau National Wildlife Refuge, Adair County, Oklahoma

Abstract

Five hundred sixty taxa in 102 families were encountered in a five-year floristic in-ventory of the Eagle Pass, Sally Bull Hollow, Workman Mountain, Gittin Down Mountain, Varmint, and Liver tracts of the Ozark Plateau National Wildlife Refuge and the adjoining Ozark Plateau Wildlife Management Area, which encompass 1262.6 ha in Adair County, Oklahoma (USFWS, 2013a). One hundred thirty-three species were new records for Adair County (Hoa- gland et al. 2004). Native species constituted 91.2 % of the species and the largest families were Asteraceae, Fabaceae and Poaceae, together making up 33.1% of the total taxa. Six known inva- sive species—Lespedeza cuneata, Lonicera japonica, Sorghum halepense, Microstegium vimi- neum, Albizia julibrissin, and Nasturtium officinale—were encountered, but at the time of the surveys they did not appear to be flourishing nor establishing large colonies or stands. Species federally or state listed as endangered or threatened were not found. Thirty-two species of con- cern and tracked by the Oklahoma Natural Heritage Inventory (OHNI 2014) were encountered. Fourteen types of habitats, 15 associations, and one alliance were observed. ©2014 Oklahoma Academy of Science