| Abstract | | We investigated the reproductive ecology of Burke’s Goldfields (Lasthenia burkei), Sonoma Sunshine (Blennosperma bakeri), and Sebastopol Meadowofoam (Limnanthes vinculans) - three state and federally listed endangered annual plants with remnant populations occuring in both natural and constructed vernal pool ecosystems predominantly located on the Santa Rosa Plain. Understanding the reproductive ecology, or the interplay between plants, pollinators, and seed production and storage will help manage these species and establish matrices for evaluating the health of endangered annual plants.
In the first year of a multi-year study, we visited three extant populations of each species, or nine vernal pools - both natural and constructed seasonal wetlands. At each pool we:
1) Installed pollinator exclusion devices to determine if the endangered annual plants are self-incompatible and require insect pollinators to set seed; and
2) Collected seeds from individual inflorescences to determine seed set for each of the three species.
We also conducted a pilot study of the soil seed bank to quantify the seeds stored in the soil.
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