Introductory
SPECIES: Delphinium bicolor | Low Larkspur 



ABBREVIATION : 
DELBIC

SYNONYMS : 
NO-ENTRY


SCS PLANT CODE : 
   DEBI


COMMON NAMES : 
   low larkspur
   little larkspur
   montane larkspur


TAXONOMY : 
The currently accepted scientific name of low larkspur is Delphinium
bicolor Nutt.  It is in the family Ranunculaceae [5,8,9,10,12].  There
are no recognized subspecies, varieties, or forms.


LIFE FORM : 
Forb

FEDERAL LEGAL STATUS : 
No special status

OTHER STATUS : 
NO-ENTRY


COMPILED BY AND DATE : 
Robin F. Matthews, October 1993


LAST REVISED BY AND DATE : 
NO-ENTRY


AUTHORSHIP AND CITATION : 
Matthews, Robin F. 1993. Delphinium bicolor. In: Remainder of Citation

DISTRIBUTION AND OCCURRENCE
SPECIES: Delphinium bicolor | Low Larkspur 



GENERAL DISTRIBUTION : 
Low larkspur is distributed from Alberta and Saskatchewan south through
northeastern Washington, Idaho, Montana, western North Dakota, western
South Dakota, western Nebraska, and Wyoming [8,9,10,12].


ECOSYSTEMS : 
   FRES20  Douglas-fir
   FRES21  Ponderosa pine
   FRES23  Fir - spruce
   FRES29  Sagebrush
   FRES34  Chaparral - mountain shrub
   FRES35  Pinyon - juniper
   FRES36  Mountain grasslands
   FRES37  Mountain meadows
   FRES38  Plains grasslands
   FRES44  Alpine


STATES : 
     ID  MT  NE  ND  SD  WA  WY  AB  SK


ADMINISTRATIVE UNITS : 
     BIHO  BICA  DETO  GLAC  GRTE  YELL


BLM PHYSIOGRAPHIC REGIONS : 
    5  Columbia Plateau
    8  Northern Rocky Mountains
    9  Middle Rocky Mountains
   10  Wyoming Basin
   13  Rocky Mountain Piedmont
   15  Black Hills Uplift
   16  Upper Missouri Basin and Broken Lands


KUCHLER PLANT ASSOCIATIONS : 
   K011  Western ponderosa forest
   K012  Douglas-fir forest
   K015  Western spruce - fir forest
   K016  Eastern ponderosa forest
   K017  Black Hills pine forest
   K023  Juniper - pinyon woodland
   K024  Juniper steppe woodland
   K037  Mountain-mahogany - oak scrub
   K052  Alpine meadows and barren
   K055  Sagebrush steppe
   K056  Wheatgrass - needlegrass shrubsteppe
   K063  Foothills prairie
   K064  Grama - needlegrass - wheatgrass
   K066  Wheatgrass - needlegrass


SAF COVER TYPES : 
   206  Engelmann spruce - subalpine fir
   210  Interior Douglas-fir
   220  Rocky Mountain juniper
   237  Interior ponderosa pine


SRM (RANGELAND) COVER TYPES : 
NO-ENTRY


HABITAT TYPES AND PLANT COMMUNITIES : 
NO-ENTRY

VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Delphinium bicolor | Low Larkspur 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
Low larkspur is utilized by elk, mule deer, white-tailed deer, pronghorn,
upland game birds, small nongame birds, and small mammals [4].  

Low larkspur is very poisonous to cattle [12].


PALATABILITY : 
The palatibility of low larkspur is rated fair for sheep and poor to
fair for cattle and horses [4].


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
Low larkspur is poor in protein and energy value [4].


COVER VALUE : 
Low larkspur provides fair cover for small nongame birds and small
mammals [4].


VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
NO-ENTRY


OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
Larkspur species are cultivated as ornamentals [3].  Crushed larkspurs
were used by Native Americans for controlling lice and other insects [17].


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
Low larkspur is toxic to cattle and causes some losses in the spring and
early summer.  However, it dries rapidly and senesces after seed set.
It is, therefore, probably safe to graze after seed set [3,14,17,18].

Low larkspur is less toxic and more palatable to sheep than cattle.  It
is considered fairly good forage for sheep [3,18].

Low larkspur increases in response to grazing [20].
 

BOTANICAL AND ECOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS
SPECIES: Delphinium bicolor | Low Larkspur 



GENERAL BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS : 
Low larkspur is a native, perennial forb with an extensively branched
fibrous to slightly fleshy root system.  Stems are usually solitary and
are 4 to 16 inches (10-40 cm) tall.  Fruits are many-seeded follicles.
Seeds are irregularly winged and about 0.08 inches (0.2 cm) long
[8,9,10,12].


RAUNKIAER LIFE FORM : 
   Geophyte


REGENERATION PROCESSES : 
Low larkspur mainly reproduces by seed [17].  It is pollinated by bees,
and probably self-pollinates as well [1].  Low larkspur may reproduce
vegetatively [4].


SITE CHARACTERISTICS : 
Low larkspur is found on sites ranging from open woods and grasslands to
subalpine scree [5,9,10,12].  It appears early in the spring, often at
the edges of receding snowbanks [3,18].  Low larkspur will grow in
fairly dry to moist conditions [3,4,18].  It grows best in rich, black,
sandy loams or clay loams and in soils of limestone or granitic origin
[3,4].  It is found on gentle to steep slopes.  Low larkspur is found at
elevations of 4,600 to 11,600 feet (1,400-3,500 m) in Wyoming and 3,000
to 10,500 feet (900-3,200 m) in Montana [4].
 


SUCCESSIONAL STATUS : 
Facultative Seral Species

Low larkspur prefers sites with full sun exposure [18].  It colonizes
recently disturbed sites [4] and is often found on gravel banks and
along roadcuts [8].  On alpine tundra sites of the Beartooth Plateau,
Montana, low larkspur is associated with natural ground disturbance,
such as areas of rodent activity [1].


SEASONAL DEVELOPMENT : 
Low larkspur begins growth as soon as snow melts in the spring.  It
flowers from June to July [17].

FIRE ECOLOGY
SPECIES: Delphinium bicolor | Low Larkspur 



FIRE ECOLOGY OR ADAPTATIONS : 
Information on adaptations of low larkspur for survival following fire
is not available in the literature.  Larkspur species seeds may survive
in the soil seedbank [18].  If low larkspur reproduces vegetatively [4],
it may sprout after fire.
 


POSTFIRE REGENERATION STRATEGY : 
   Secondary colonizer - off-site seed
   Ground residual colonizer (on-site, initial community)

FIRE EFFECTS
SPECIES: Delphinium bicolor | Low Larkspur 



IMMEDIATE FIRE EFFECT ON PLANT : 
Low larkspur is probably killed by most fires.


DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF FIRE EFFECT : 
NO-ENTRY


PLANT RESPONSE TO FIRE : 
Information regarding the response of low larkspur following fire is
lacking in available literature.  Low larkspur was present in postfire
years 1 and 3 following an August wildfire in ponderosa pine (Pinus
ponderosa) stands in Idaho [13].


DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF PLANT RESPONSE : 
NO-ENTRY


FIRE MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
NO-ENTRY

REFERENCES
SPECIES: Delphinium bicolor | Low Larkspur 



REFERENCES : 

 .  Bauer, Paul J. 1983. Bumblebee pollination relationships on the
       Beartooth Plateau tundra of southern Montana. American Journal of
       Botany. 70(1): 134-144.  [12962]

 .  Bernard, Stephen R.; Brown, Kenneth F. 1977. Distribution of mammals,
       reptiles, and amphibians by BLM physiographic regions and A.W. Kuchler's
       associations for the eleven western states. Tech. Note 301. Denver, CO:
       U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management. 169 p. 
       [434]

 .  Dayton, William A. 1960. Notes on western range forbs: Equisetaceae
       through Fumariaceae. Agric. Handb. 161. Washington, DC: U.S. Department
       of Agriculture, Forest Service. 254 p.  [767]

 .  Dittberner, Phillip L.; Olson, Michael R. 1983. The plant information
       network (PIN) data base: Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, Utah, and
       Wyoming. FWS/OBS-83/86. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of the Interior,
       Fish and Wildlife Service. 786 p.  [806]

 .  Dorn, Robert D. 1988. Vascular plants of Wyoming. Cheyenne, WY: Mountain
       West Publishing. 340 p.  [6129]

 .  Eyre, F. H., ed. 1980. Forest cover types of the United States and
       Canada. Washington, DC: Society of American Foresters. 148 p.  [905]

 .  Garrison, George A.; Bjugstad, Ardell J.; Duncan, Don A.; [and others].
       1977. Vegetation and environmental features of forest and range
       ecosystems. Agric. Handb. 475. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of
       Agriculture, Forest Service. 68 p.  [998]

 .  Great Plains Flora Association. 1986. Flora of the Great Plains.
       Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas. 1392 p.  [1603]

 .  Hitchcock, C. Leo; Cronquist, Arthur. 1964. Vascular plants of the
       Pacific Northwest. Part 2: Salicaceae to Saxifragaceae. Seattle, WA:
       University of Washington Press. 597 p.  [1166]

.  Hitchcock, C. Leo; Cronquist, Arthur. 1973. Flora of the Pacific
       Northwest. Seattle, WA: University of Washington Press. 730 p.  [1168]

.  Kuchler, A. W. 1964. Manual to accompany the map of potential vegetation
       of the conterminous United States. Special Publication No. 36. New York:
       American Geographical Society. 77 p.  [1384]

.  Lackschewitz, Klaus. 1991. Vascular plants of west-central
       Montana--identification guidebook. Gen. Tech. Rep. INT-227. Ogden, UT:
       U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Intermountain Research
       Station. 648 p.  [13798]

.  Merrill, Evelyn H.; Mayland, Henry F.; Peek, James M. 1980. Effects of a
       fall wildfire on herbacious vegetation on xeric sites in the
       Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness, Idaho. Journal of Range Management. 33(5):
       363-367.  [1642]

.  Ralphs, M.H.; Olsen, J.D.; Pfister, J.A.; Manners, G.D. 1988.
       Plant-animal interactions in larkspur poisoning in cattle. Journal of
       Animal Science. 66(9): 2334-2342.  [6634]

.  Raunkiaer, C. 1934. The life forms of plants and statistical plant
       geography. Oxford: Clarendon Press. 632 p.  [2843]

.  Stickney, Peter F. 1989. Seral origin of species originating in northern
       Rocky Mountain forests. Unpublished draft on file at: U.S. Department of
       Agriculture, Forest Service, Intermountain Research Station, Fire
       Sciences Laboratory, Missoula, MT; RWU 4403 files. 7 p.  [20090]

.  Stubbendieck, J.; Hatch, Stephan L.; Hirsch, Kathie J. 1986. North
       American range plants. 3rd ed. Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska
       Press. 465 p.  [2270]

.  U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service. 1937. Range plant
       handbook. Washington, DC. 532 p.  [2387]

.  U.S. Department of Agriculture, Soil Conservation Service. 1982.
       National list of scientific plant names. Vol. 1. List of plant names.
       SCS-TP-159. Washington, DC. 416 p.  [11573]

.  Wambolt, Carl. 1981. Montana range plants: Common and scientific names.
       Bulletin 355. Bozeman, MT: Montana State University, Cooperative
       Extension Service. 27 p.  [2450]

Related categories for Species: Delphinium bicolor | Low Larkspur