Journal of the Oklahoma Native PlantSociety, Volume 3, Number 1, December 2003 Oklahoma Native Plant Record 19 Volume 3, Number 1, December 2003 Additions to Black Mesa Flora Study Patricia Folley Bebb Herbarium University of Oklahoma Many changes have taken place in far western Oklahoma since Jim McPherson’s untimely death in 1994. Then the mesa lobe containing the highest point in Oklahoma and its surrounding slopes was owned and managed by the Oklahoma Chapter of the Nature Conservancy, but it soon became part of Black Mesa State Park. Private lands still separate the two portions of the Park, but they are now connected by a public road. Since that time and during the course of several weekend outings with the Oklahoma Academy of Science and the Oklahoma Native Plant Society, I have been adding to McPherson’s list, as many plant species as could be found in bloom or fruit. These species are not already listed by McPherson as present in the mesa area. Voucher specimens are housed in the Robert Bebb Herbarium (OKL) at the University of Oklahoma. Most visitors to Black Mesa camp in the original park area near Lake Etling. In this list plants collected at that site are noted as “park”. Plants found along the roads leading to the Mesa or to the outlying canyons are noted as “roadside”. A few plants were found only at privately owned, Tessequite Canyon, one of the many side canyons leading down from the Mesa. Those are identified with the name “Tessequite”. “Mesa” denotes plants from Black Mesa or its slopes. McPherson’s collections were solely from the Mesa. Through the years Black Mesa State Park has been studied by several botanists, including C.M. Rogers and U.T. Waterfall, as well as McPherson. It is hoped that their work, along with this list will serve as a basis for the initiation of future explorations in that geographic region. The approximate GPS location of Black Mesa State Park is between latitudes 36.833 and 36.861 and longitudes 102.862 and 102.900 The elevation of the mesa ranges from 4960 ft (1512 m) to 4973 ft (1516 m). It is now contained within Black Mesa State Park which contains approximately 349 acres of land. REFERENCES Correll, D.S. and M.C. Johnston. 1970. Manual of the vascular plants of Texas, Renner, TX: Texas Research Foundation. Taylor, J.R. and C.E.S. Taylor. 1991. An annotated list of the ferns, fern allies, gymnosperms and flowering plants of Oklahoma. [Published by the authors at Southeastern Oklahoma State University]. Tyrl, R.J., Susan Barber, Paul Buck, Wayne Elisens, James Estes, Patricia Folley, Lawrence Magrath, Constance Taylor, and Rahmona Thompson. The flora of Oklahoma. The Flora of Oklahoma Editorial Board. Forthcoming. USDA-NRCS 2003. The PLANTS database. (http://plants.usda.gov/plants.) Folley, P.A. https://doi.org/10.22488/okstate.17.100019 20 Oklahoma Native Plant Record Volume 3, Number 1, December 2003 Additional Plant List for Black Mesa 2003 COMMON NAME SITE STATUS longhorn milkweed park native nodding tickseed park introduced fetid marigold park native Wright’s cudweed park native rayed palafoxia roadside native paperflower park native groundsel mesa native prairie ironweed park native bindweed heliotrope park native many-flowered puccoon park native wallflower park native hedgehog cactus mesa native brittle prickly pear park native white-spine prickly pear park native brownspine prickly pear park native cardinal flower park native Rocky Mountain beeplant park native James' clammyweed park native nailwort roadside native 4-wing saltbush park native FAMILY/SPECIES Family Asclepiadaceae Asclepias macrotis Family Asteraceae Bidens cernua Dyssodia papposa Gnaphalium wrightii Palafoxia sphacelata Psilostrophe villosa Senecio flaccidus Vernonia fasciculata Family Boraginaceae Heliotropium convolvulaceum Lithospermum multiflorum Family Brassicaceae Erysimum asperum Family Cactaceae Echinocereus viridiflora Opuntia fragilis Opuntia macrorhiza Opuntia phaeacantha Family Campanulaceae Lobelia cardinalis Family Capparidaceae Cleome serrulata Polanisia jamesii Family Caryophyllaceae Paronychia sessiliflora Family Chenopodiaceae Atriplex canescens Chenopodium leptophyllum Folley, P. A. narrowleaf goosefoot park native Oklahoma Native Plant Record 21 Volume 3, Number 1, December 2003 Folley, P.A. Kochia scoparia tumbleweed roadside introduced Family Cyperaceae Carex brevior sedge park native Cyperus globulosus park native Scirpus acutus hardstem bulrush park native Scirpus atrovirens darkgreen bulrush park native Family Dryopteridaceae Cystopteris fragilis brittle fern park native Family Fabaceae Astragalus ceramicus painted milkvetch park native Colutea arborescens roadside introduced Dalea tenuifolia slimleaf prairie clover park native Family Fagaceae Quercus mohriana shin oak Tessequite native Family Lamiaceae Teucrium laciniatum cutleaf germander park native Family Liliaceae Nolina texana beargrass Tessequite native Yucca harrimaniae New Mexico yucca park native Family Loasaceae Mentzelia oligosperma stickleaf park native Family Nyctaginaceae Mirabilis albida white 4 o'clock park native Mirabilis nyctaginea wild 4 o'clock park native Family Onagraceae Gaura villosa wooly gaura roadside native Oenothera engelmannii Engelmann’s eve. primrose roadside native Oenothera latifolia mountain eve. primrose park native Family Poaceae Andropogon virginicus sand sedge park native Chloris virgata park native Distichlis spicata saltgrass park native Oklahoma Native Plant Record Volume 3, Number 1, December 2003 22 marsh muhly park native Switchgrass park native rabbit-foot grass park native prickleaf gilia base of mesa native no common name park & mesa native water knotweed park native tall dock park native small-flowered buttercup lake native western wood-rose park native wafer ash mesa native water speedwell park introduced cutleaf verbena park native Muhlenbergia racemosa Panicum virgatum Polypogon monspeliensis Family Polemoniaceae Gilia rigidula Family Polygonaceae Eriogonum tenellum Polygonum amphibium Rumex altissimus Family Ranunculaceae Ranunculus abortivus Family Rosaceae Rosa woodsii Family Rutaceae Ptelia trifoliata Family Scrophulariaceae Veronica anagalis-aquatica Family Verbenaceae Glandularia bipinnatifida Family Vitaceae Vitis acerifolia Folley, P.A. no common name park native