Kincaid’s lupine – State Wildlife Action Plan

Photo Credit: Oregon Department of Agriculture

Kincaid’s lupine is a perennial arising from a branched crown, usually with numerous unbranched stems (30) 40-80 (100) cm tall, with whitish or brownish stiff to silky pubescence. Basal leaves are usually persistent until after flowering, with petioles (2) 3-5 times the length of the blades; upper cauline leaves have petioles sometimes shorter than the blades. Leaflets typically number 7-12, are narrowly oblanceolate, usually somewhat acute, 2.5-5 cm long, often remaining somewhat folded, and usually glabrous above and sparsely to copiously hairy beneath. Inflorescences are slender, the flowers numerous and arranged in interrupted whorls. Flowers are fragrant and range in color from bluish or purple to yellowish or creamy white, quickly turning orangebrown with age. The banner is distinctively ruffled (markedly concave on the lateral faces), glabrous, and only somewhat reflexed from the glabrous keel. Pods are 3-4 cm long, with 1-6 pinkish-brown to black seeds.

Overview

Species Common Name Kincaid's lupine
Species Scientific Name Lupinus oreganus
Federal Listing Status Threatened
State Listing Status Threatened

Ecoregions

Klamath Mountains

The Klamath Mountains ecoregion covers much of southwestern Oregon, including the Klamath Mountains, Siskiyou Mountains, the interior valleys and foothills between these and the Cascade Range, and the Rogue and Umpqua river valleys. Several popular and scenic rivers run through the ecoregion, including the Umpqua, Rogue, Illinois, and Applegate rivers. Historically, this ecoregion is known …

West Cascades

The West Cascades ecoregion extends from east of the Cascade Mountains summit to the foothills of the Willamette, Umpqua, and Rogue Valleys, and spans the entire length of the state of Oregon. It is largely dominated by conifer forests, moving into alpine parklands and dwarf shrubs at higher elevations.

Willamette Valley

The Willamette Valley ecoregion is bounded on the west by the Coast Range and on the east by the Cascade Range. This long mostly level alluvial plain has some scattered areas of low basalt, and contrasts with productive farmland and large urban areas. It has the fastest-growing human population in the state resulting in challenges due to land-use changes.

Special needs

Kincaid’s lupine occurs in seasonally-wet native prairie remnants and ecotones between grassland and forest.

Limiting factors

Habitat loss due to agricultural and urban development is a major threat to Kincaid’s lupine. Invasive plants, elimination of disturbance regimes (e.g., flooding, fire), and road construction and maintenance adversely affect remnant prairie habitat. Inbreeding depression in small populations is a further risk factor.

Data gaps

Determine causes for low seed production at higher-elevation sites. Investigate potential polyploidy. Describe pollinator associations and status.

Conservation actions

Restore prairie habitat using site-appropriate tools (e.g., burning, mechanical removal of encroaching vegetation). Develop seed production fields for each recovery zone. Conduct long-term demographic monitoring. Conduct surveys of potential habitat to locate new populations. Limit impacts from road construction/maintenance at occupied sites. Coordinate recovery efforts with those for Fender’s blue butterfly.

Key reference or plan

A Critical Habitat Designation for Kincaid’s lupine was issued by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 2006. A U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Recovery Plan for prairie species of western Oregon and southwestern Washington (https://ecos.fws.gov/docs/recovery_plan/100629.pdf) was released in 2010 and addresses conservation needs of Kincaid’s lupine. A U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 5-Year Review for Kincaid’s lupine summarizing conservation issues was released in 2019 (https://ecosphere-documents-production-public.s3.amazonaws.com/sams/public_docs/species_nonpublish/2743.pdf).