Question: Hi, I found this plant a couple of years ago while hiking a trail in 'French Town Road Park' in …
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Question
Hi, I found this plant a couple of years ago while hiking a trail in 'French Town Road Park' in RI. I looked it up on the internet and the closest I could find is Woodland Pinedrops (Pterospora andromedea Nutt.) but those look like 'hairy pine sap". When I looked it up on this site the photos don't look like the one I have found. I wanted to share it on this site but I don't want to list it wrong. Maybe you could help. Art Sirois
Answer
Dear Art, you have found Conopholis americana (American squaw-root), a parasitic plant found in the Orobanchaceae. It is a native rare plant in RI. To my knowledge, there are about 8 extant populations known in RI and this discovery of yours needs to be cross-referenced with known populations to see if it is a previously unknown population. Great find and thank you for posting it here. If you are able to contact me at "ahaines[at]newenglandwild.org", I can help you learn if this represents a new population. Best wishes.
