''Tanacetum huronense'', also known as Lake Huron tansy, is a type of

wildflower A wildflower (or wild flower) is a flower that grows in the wild, rather than being intentionally seeded or planted. The term implies that the plant is neither a hybrid nor a selected cultivar that is any different from the native plant, eve ...

most commonly found on

sand dunes A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, flat ...

around the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes spanning the Canada–United States border. The five lakes are Lake Superior, Superior, Lake Michigan, Michigan, Lake Huron, H ...

. Lake Huron tansy currently requires conservation measures in some regions.

Region

Lake Huron tansy is most commonly found around the northern coasts of

Lake Michigan Lake Michigan ( ) is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is the second-largest of the Great Lakes by volume () and depth () after Lake Superior and the third-largest by surface area (), after Lake Superior and Lake Huron. To the ...

and

Lake Huron Lake Huron ( ) is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is shared on the north and east by the Canadian province of Ontario and on the south and west by the U.S. state of Michigan. The name of the lake is derived from early French ex ...

as well as the southeast coast of

Lake Superior Lake Superior is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface areaThe Caspian Sea is the largest lake, but is saline, not freshwater. Lake Michigan–Huron has a larger combined surface area than Superior, but is normally considered tw ...

, but has also been found in Maine and from Alaska across Canada. This plant lives in the sandy soil of the sand dunes and beaches of these regions. The Lake Huron tansy requires sun as well as dry sandy soil to thrive. However, this species can also handle waves when water levels are higher.

Plant structure

Lake Huron tansy grows approximate 12” tall from 1-3 stems. If any part of the plant is crushed a very distinct odor is released, similar to the common garden tansy. Lake Huron tansy typically blooms during the months of late June through early August. The flower is a yellow “daisy type” flower, composed of many smaller flowers. The flower head is made up of disk flowers and ray flowers fill in around the outer rim of the head. The flowers are typically 13-19mm in diameter. The leaves are visually lacy and hairy. The structure of the leaves are

bipinnately compound The following terms are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (that is, the leaf blade or 'lamina' is undivided) or compound (that is, the leaf blade is divided into two or more leaflets) ...

between 23 and 26 cm long and 3 to 9 cm wide.

Conservation

Tanacetum huronense is currently being monitored by various states and countries. It is currently a

threatened species A threatened species is any species (including animals, plants and fungi) which is vulnerable to extinction in the near future. Species that are threatened are sometimes characterised by the population dynamics measure of ''critical depensatio ...

in Michigan and

endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching, inv ...

in Wisconsin. In addition, Lake Huron tansy is a special concern species in some Canadian provinces. According to the Wisconsin DNR, this species has a very high priority for conservation due to very few natural occurrences. In Michigan, Lake Huron tansy is threatened by invasive species such as

spotted knapweed ''Centaurea stoebe'', the spotted knapweed or panicled knapweed, is a species of ''Centaurea'' native to eastern Europe, although it has spread to North America, where it is considered an invasive species. It forms a tumbleweed, helping to incre ...

and baby’s breath. In addition, this species is threatened by

habitat destruction Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss or habitat reduction) occurs when a natural habitat is no longer able to support its native species. The organisms once living there have either moved elsewhere, or are dead, leading to a decrease ...

and disturbances from humans.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q3514916 Tanacetum