Plants Living on Gypsum: Beyond the Specialist Model

Species Distribution Modeling for Conservation of Rare, Edaphic Endemic Plants in White River Valley, Nevada

“…Plants that grow on gypsum soil (gypsophytes) comprise a diversity of rare species in arid and semiarid regions around the world (Meyer 1986;Meyer and García-Moya 1989;Palacio et al 2007) and within the Great Basin. Gypsophiles (plant species obligate to gypsum soils) and gypsovags (plant species that occur both on and off of gypsum) have been studied in the nearby Mojave Desert (Meyer 1986;Drohan and Merkler 2009), in Mexico (Meyer and García-Moya 1989;Pueyo and Alados 2007), as well as in Spain (Escudero et al 1999;Palacio et al 2007) but not, to our knowledge, within the Great Basin.…”

Floral similarity and vegetative divergence in a new species of Bletia (Orchidaceae) from Mexico

“…However, B. parkinsonii is one of the most widespread Mexican species of Bletia and is not restricted to gypsum, but it grows in a variety of soil conditions, both on volcanic and limestone or gypsum substrates (i.e. it is a 'gypsovag'; see Palacio et al 2007;Escudero et al 2015). Gypsum soils have stressful physical and chemical properties for plants, including a hard surface crust that could limit plant establishment, mechanical instability, an excess of S, and Ca/Mg imbalances, among others (Parsons 1976;Palacio et al 2007;Escudero et al 2015).…”

Does gypsum influence seed germination?

“…Subsequently, Romao and Escudero (2005) suggested that, at least for Helianthemum squamatum, there is an intermediate strategy: it primarily refuges because it can penetrate gypsum crusts at the emergence stage, but it has also evolved adaptive strategies to perform better in such soils. Recently, Palacio et al (2007), studying leaf chemical composition, suggested that regionally dominant gypsophiles (such as Gypsophila struthium, Lepidium subulatum, Helianthemum squamatum, and Ononis tridentata) might fit the 'specialist' model, being specifically adapted to gypsum, whereas both gypsovags and narrow-gypsophile endemics might fit the 'refuge' model, being stress-tolerant species that find refuge on gypsum soils to escape competition. This statement agrees with our results on germination: while we found positive effects of gypsum on regionally dominant gypsophiles (specifically Gypsophila struthium, Lepidium subulatum, and Helianthemum squamatum), we found negative or neutral effects of gypsum solution on narrowgypsophile endemics (Coris hispanica and Teucrium turredanum Losa & Rivas Goday, respectively).…”