Prepared by the late Jane M. Bowles

Showy Goldenrod – Boreal population is a member of the Asteraceae (Sunflower family). It is a perennial plant with lance-shaped, pale green leaves with long stalks growing in a group at the base of the plant. At flowering time the stem elongates up to 80 cm. The inflorescence consists of many small, bright yellow compound flower heads containing a number of tiny flowers. The branches of the inflorescence are more or less erect, not curving downwards like those of other large goldenrods. Flowering begins in August to early September. Seeds are yellowish brown achenes about 1.5 to 2 mm long with a spreading tuft of hairs, about 2 to 3 mm long, at one end.

Showy Goldenrod – Boreal population is known to occur at one site in Canada, on Dufresne Island, near Kenora, Ontario. It is listed as Threatened in Canada because it occurs in a single small population that consists of only about 1,000 individuals. Such geographically restricted and small populations are potentially subject to negative chance events. There are no known current or immediate threats to its survival. A proposal to develop the site was halted after the population was discovered.

The recovery goal for Showy Goldenrod – Boreal population is to maintain the existing population as well as any newly discovered populations, and protect the habitat within the area of occupancy and the contiguous areas of the same habitat. Protection and recovery objectives are to:

  • protect and manage the habitat at known sites in Ontario;
  • design and implement a standardized long-term monitoring program to determine the quality of the site, health of the population and population trends;
  • address key knowledge gaps relating to habitat requirements, demographics, breeding biology and minimum viable population size; and
  • examine the necessity and feasibility of increasing the viability of Showy Goldenrod – Boreal population in Ontario by introducing the plant to new sites with similar habitat, and/or establishing ex situ population(s) in cultivation.

Highlights of recommended recovery actions include ensuring that the property remains as Crown Land; preventing incompatible use of the site such as all-terrain vehicle (ATV) trails and boat landings; designing and implementing long term monitoring protocols for population and habitat; conducting research to fill knowledge gaps; and determining the need for and feasibility of establishing additional populations.

It is recommended that areas on the south shore of Dufresne Island that support open Oak-Pine woodland and have current occurrences of Showy Goldenrod – Boreal population, plus contiguous areas with similar habitat, be considered in the development of a habitat regulation.