OSU ecologists study Calif. superbloom
For decades, blossoms have been sparse in California’s barren deserts. But heavy rainfall over the winter helped cover the drought-ridden landscape with the lushest blanket of blooming spring wildflowers in recent memory.
And Ohio State University ecologists didn’t pass up the chance to document the floral phenomena.
“This was, if not a oncein-a-lifetime opportunity, a once-in-a-career opportunity,” said ecologist Ryan McCarthy.
For more than 30 years,
OSU scientists have surveyed and recorded every cactus, plant and shrub in two research sites near Cottonwood Spring in Joshua Tree National Park.
In a year, the sites experience anywhere from less than an inch of rain to more than a foot. Most desert species have adapted to the variable climate; some seeds lie dormant for decades, waiting for a wet season.
This year, the job of tallying up desert five-spots, Arizona lupines and Fremont’s pincushions was so fantastic that OSU scientists made two trips.
“There are species there that have not been seen in 20 years,” said ecologist Natasha Woods. “This is our first chance to see how the community was affected by the drought.”
During California’s worst drought in a century, many of the woody shrubs that dominate the desert landscape died.
Because climate change is expected to bring more severe, frequent and long-lasting dry spells in the region, McCarthy and Woods are exploring how drought-induced changes to the landscape will affect the wildflowers that depend on shrubs for shelter and soil nutrients.
“It’s a natural experiment. We’re seeing the impact of climate change on this iconic American landscape,” McCarthy said. “The desert has changed dramatically. This is a harbinger of what the future will look like.”
Ohio, on the other hand, puts on a dependable display of spring ephemerals, he said.
“We have a very similar amount of rainfall every year,” McCarthy said. “The fact that we see the same wildflowers bloom in the forest every year is a result of our very stable climate.”
McCarthy and Woods are racing to publish their data, and they are eager to see what forms of life will emerge on the unpredictable landscape next year.
There is still time for professional and amateur naturalists to hop on a plane and catch the superbloom in northern California — but not for much longer.
“The ultimate products of this bloom will have to wait in the soil for the next rainy season,” McCarthy said. “It could be next year, it could be in a decade; it could be 20 or 30 years from now that this happens again.”