The Utah Rare Plant Guide ("URPG") was initially based upon and intended to be an update of the 1991
publication entitled Utah Endangered, Threatened and Sensitive Plant Field Guide by
Atwood et al ("blue book"). The blue book was printed in a 9" x 7.75" 3-ring binder format with the
idea of providing future updates and corrections. There were however no printed updates that
were ever issued. The purpose of this section is therefore to provide some comments and
historical background information to some updates that might have been made and/or to point out
some of the relatively few errors contained in that pioneering guide.
One of the species included in the blue book that had no pictures was Astragalus barnebyi
(currently recognized instead by some authors as A. desperatus var. conspectus). While
A. barnebyi is still rare, it currently is not listed in the URPG. The link below
contains the information as presented in the blue book but in the format of the URPG accompanied by
pictures taken on April 22, 2006 (special thanks to Walt Fertig for his identification and field assistance).
The specific epithet in Draba pectinipila was misspelled as "pectiniphila." Further, D. pectinipila in fact
does not occur in Utah; the taxon referred to in the blue book was Draba oligosperma var. juniperina (Dorn) S. Welsh
or, Draba juniperina Dorn.
The closeup of Eriogonum batemanii var. ostlundii contained in the blue book was in fact not that
taxon. E. batemanii var. ostlundii has white and not yellow flowers. Joel Tuhy noted this shortly after
the original publication of the URPG and provided a replacement picture for the URPG.
While no pictures of Eriogonum soredium were included in the blue book, refer to the picture of
Lepidium osterli in the blue book; the lower right hand corner appears to show at least in part, E. soredium.
The pictures included in the blue book for Pediomelum epipsilum were actually those of
P. aromaticum var. barnebyi. In the URPG that switch was made and new
pictures provided for P. epipsilum.
References to the genus Schoenocrambe in the blue book were incorrectly indicated as "Schoencrambe."
With reference to Sclerocactus pubispinus var. pubispinus as published in the blue book,
cactus expert Dorde Woodruff in an August 2005 communication notes that "S. spinosior is not more abundant
than S. pubispinus" yet S. spinosior was not included in the blue book. She further indicated
that including a picture of a plant with pink flowers for S. pubispinus in the blue book was misleading because
"it would only have pink flowers if it were a hybrid with S. spinosior" and she recommends that if
re-added to the guide, a picture of a plant with yellow flowers would be more appropriate for S. pubispinus.
