National Collection of Imperiled Plants

CPC National Collection Plant Profile

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CPC National Collection Plant Profile

Dalea tentaculoides

Family:	Fabaceae
Common Name:	Gentry's Indigobush
Author:	H.S. Gentry
Growth Habit:	Subshrub
CPC Number:	1356

Distribution
Protection
Conservation
References

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Dalea tentaculoides is Not Sponsored

Primary custodian for this plant in the CPC National Collection of Endangered Plants is:

Desert Botanical Garden

Kathleen C. Rice contributed to this Plant Profile.

Dalea tentaculoides

Dalea tentaculoides is a shrub with numerous stems. The compound leaves have 9-17 leaflets, and the small, pea-like flowers are rose-purple in color. The plant flowers in April, through June, and sometimes again in September-October. It is very similar in appearance to at least three other Daleas growing in the same canyon.

Distribution & Occurrence

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State Range

Arizona

Habitat

Dalea tentaculoides grows in canyons, and is found at elevations ranging from 3600-4400 ft., associated with Oak-juniper woodland (Barneby 1977). Because it grows along flood plains along streams, plants are subject to being 'scoured out' by seasonal flooding.

Distribution

The species is found in several locations in Santa Cruz and Pima Counties in Arizona (USFWS 1980). Two populations are found on the Tohono O'odam Reservation. Of several sites that were listed on the Coronado National Forest, only one population has been relocated.

Number Left

Known to occur in only a few sites, one of which is Sycamore Canyon, Arizona, near Nogales. Less than 12 individuals were observed during the last site visit, but up to 3 dozen have been reportedly seen in that canyon (USFWS 1998).

Protection

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Global Rank:	G1	6/2/2003	Guide to Global Ranks
Federal Status:	RT	1/19/1996	Guide to Federal Status
Recovery Plan:	No

State/Area Protection

	State/Area	Rank	Status	Date
	Arizona	S1		2/20/1987

Conservation, Ecology & Research

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Ecological Relationships

Population numbers fluctuate with the velocity of flow of spring snowmelt runoff (Malusa et al. 1992)..

Threats

Major threats include seasonal flooding, limited range, habitat degradation due to grazing by livestock, consumption by livestock, and trampling by people and livestock (Toolin 1982, 1986, Gori et al. 1992).

Current Research Summary

Sixty seeds of Dalea tentaculoides are currently held in the seed vault at Desert Botanical Garden. Additional seeds need to be collected before baseline germination tests can be conducted. The resulting plants need to be grown to maturity, producing flowering material that can be used to make herbarium specimens for further taxonomic evaluation of the validity of the species. Additionally, seed and herbarium specimen collections of all the Daleas growing with D. tentaculoides should be made for the same reason. Desert Botanical Garden will retain plants resulting from germination tests for production of seed in cultivation.

Current Management Summary

Plants are being annually surveyed by Nature Conservancy staff (Falk and Warren 1994).

Research Management Needs

Exploration for other populations in nearby canyons is needed. A quantitative assessment of reproductive potential would assist land managers as to the degree of aggressiveness needed to conserve the species. Accompanying studies would include molecular analysis, pollination biology, seed germination, and seed viability tests.

Ex Situ Needs

Seeds need to be collected to augment the seedbank at DBG, since the existence of current plants is precarious.

References

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Electronic Sources

(2000). Center for Plant Conservation's National Living Collection--Profiles. Desert Botanical Garden. http://www.dbg.org/Collections/cpc.html. Accessed: 2002.

(2002). Threatened and Endangered Species in Pima County; Priority Vulnerable Species in Pima County. The On-line Sonoran Desert Educational Center. http://www.co.pima.az.us/cmo/sdcp/sdcp2/fsheets/index.html. Accessed: 2002.

Arizona Game and Fish Department. (1999). Plant Abstracts. Compiled and edited by the Heritage Data Management System, Arizona Game and Fish Department, Phoenix, AZ. http://www.gf.state.az.us/frames/fishwild/hdms_site/Abstracts/Plants/abstracts%20-%20plants.htm. Accessed: 2002.

Journal Articles

USFWS. 1998. Notice of Reclassification of Four Candidate Taxa: Pediocactus paradinei (Kaibab Plains Cactus), Castilleja elongata (Tall Paintbrush), Dalea tentaculoides (Gentry�s Indigobush), and Astragalus oophorus var. clokeyanus (Clokey�s Eggvetch). Federal Register. 63, 63

Reports

2001. Draft Report: Priority Vulnerable Species in Pima County, Arizona, as part of the Sonoran Desert Conservation Plan. Pima County, Arizona: Board of Supervisors.

Fonseca, J.; Scalero, D. 1999. Determining Valuable Species within Pima County, AZ: a discussion paper for the Sonoran desert conservation plan. Tuscon, AZ: Pima County Flood Control District.

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This profile was updated on 3/4/2010