Date: Thu, 5 Aug 1999 21:41:22 -0600 From: "Christensen" <chrst@srv.net> To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com Message-Id: <aabcdefg2831$foo@default> Subject: Re: couldn't find cps
> from Chris Teichreb:
> while these plants stand out like a sore thumb in cultivation, the
> majority I've seen in the wild blend in extremely well with their
> surroundings. Given their size, you may end up stomping on them before
> you finally realize that they're right below your feet. Once you start
> seeing them, you'll usually see hundreds, if you're lucky!
When I was looking, I remembered reading about some people who had a
hard time finding cps because of the cps size and grasses in the area.
Most of the time, while looking, my face was about one and a half feet
above the ground (and I was wearing my glasses). Carefully, I parted
the grass as I waddled through the much and moss, wearing irrigation
boots. Of course, I only searched strips of ground here and there.
But, if there were any cps, I think I would have found them.
> from Philip Semanchuk:
> some possibilities...
> CPs never colonized in the first place
> (not every suitable niche so doesn't get filled)
> Contamination (herbicides, fertilizer, concentrated
> animal waste are all hard on CPs) wiped out the CPs
> The CPs that were there got poached
> CP habitat requirements were temporarily interrupted and then restored
> (a bog may have been drained for 20 years and then re-flooded, fire was
> suppressed, etc.), but the CPs haven't recolonized
> Combination of all the above.
In my opinion, the niche looked good. But there may be some details about
cp niches that I'm not aware of or I don't understand.
There are dry farms, about 5 miles away. Afaik, dry farms are usually
farms in the hills that aren't given much special treatment. Irrigated
by the rain; I'm not sure about fertilizing; if herbicides or pesticides
are used then the farms are probably sprayed using a crop duster.
Extinction by cows is a possibility, but I didn't see evidence of a
SEVERE cow infestation so I think they would have only reduced the cp
population and made the plants more scarce.
I have doubts they were poached- but that's a possibility. Most of the people
in my area (that I've talked to) only know the VFT is carnivorous and most of
them think it is a tropical plant.
Temporarily interrupted? That's a good possibility. I hadn't gone there before
a week ago, but my brother and my dad had been there months earlier. They were
surprised to see a lot of the ponds were dried up or almost gone. The past few
years, and this year, the Snake River Valley has had an abundance of run-off
water. This year, if the ponds were nearly dry by this time, then what would
they be like in a really dry year? Although the mucky areas were near a creek,
and the creek was probably the result of a spring and some run-off, it isn't
unusual for spings to dry-up, too.
Fire? Hmm, I'm not sure about that one. Brush fires are typical- the haze
often seems like part of our summer weather, but for now the sky is clear.
It may be a long time before a brush fire goes through that area. But if there
was a fire, it would be a good idea to frequently check for cps!
Maybe, someday I'll go to Teakettle Cave and see what I can find.
Thank You!
Chad Christensen from Shelley, ID (between Blackfoot and Idaho Falls)
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