Stewards & Scholars

CES Co-Directors Collaborate to Study & Save Rare Plant, Swamp Pink (Helonias bullata)

By Juaquin Goodbar

To view this article in its original format with photos, please visit the Microsoft Sway here: CES Co-Directors Collaborate to Study & Save Rare Plant, Swamp Pink

Helonias bullata – also known by its common name, “swamp pink” – is a perennial, evergreen forb (an herbaceous flowering plant that isn’t a grass, rush, or sedge) in the lily family (Liliaceae), with stunningly bright pink flowers that bloom in mid Spring. It’s also a globally rare and federally threatened plant in a monotypic genus (meaning it’s the only species in the genus Helonias). . .

For most of the year, swamp pink appears as an inconspicuous cluster of leaves to the untrained eye. For a brief period of time in mid Spring, however, an otherworldly bouquet of flowers is sent up on a long stalk, dotting the wetland landscape with pink racemes. As its name implies, the plants like their feet wet. The forested wetland habitat is different from the shale soils of the Piedmont region of New Jersey that you may be used to. Helonias bullata requires specific hydrological conditions, and is therefore easily susceptible to disturbance, like most wetland plant species. Unfortunately, populations have been declining throughout its range.

Sitting at the northern end of its current range, New Jersey is home to about 60% of all known occurrences of swamp pink, where populations have been documented and studied for the past 20 years. The NJDEP Natural Heritage Program identifies several major threats to Helonias bullata populations in NJ, including erosion/siltation, human disturbance, herbivory, hydrological changes, exotic invasive species, adjacent agriculture and development. According to recent research from CES Co-Director Dr. Jay Kelly, analyses of past and present data sets found the primary cause of declines appeared to be herbivory by white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), which had not been previously regarded as a significant threat to the species, followed by hydrological changes caused by human development and/or water consumption.

Several basal rosettes of swamp pink leaves sit protected inside the deer exclosure. See if you can spot them!

Typical habitat of Helonias bullata. A deer exclosure fence spans across the landscape.

As part of the continued research, monitoring, and protection of Helonias bullata and surrounding forested wetland habitats, CES has been working on several initiatives. One ongoing project involved installing deer exclusion fencing around a previously unprotected population of swamp pink, followed by maintenance of the fencing, and associated monitoring of Helonias response to document the effects of release from deer browse. Deer exclosures have been installed previously by CES at other swamp pink sites throughout the Pine Barrens, and in central NJ. All of these sites are currently being monitored by collecting data on cover (how much of the area is covered by the plant), browse (evidence of deer eating the plant), max leaf length, and flowers along transects located both inside and outside the exclosures.

Another new project focuses on assessing habitat quality and threats at a specific Helonias site in order to develop a management plan. Most of the rare plant work that CES takes on is led by Co-Director Dr. Jay Kelly, and supported by his team of interns and staff. For this project, fellow CES Co-Director Dr. Emilie Stander lends her expertise in water quality to monitor and assess nutrients levels in and around the Helonias habitat. This includes the installation of ground water level gauges (also simply called “wells”) within the Helonias population and adjacent areas, which was completed earlier this semester. Following the installation of the wells, topographic measurements were collected by CES interns. The topographic data will be integrated with the well data to model groundwater depths across the broader wetland areas at the site.

A water well pokes out of the swamp, outside the deer exclosure.

CES interns collect topographic data.

One of the wells in a drier area, with transect tape running above it for data collection.

A close up of one of the wells.

Water samples will also be collected at the site over the course of the year and analyzed for nutrient concentrations at RVCC’s Water Quality Lab to measure potential nutrient enrichment caused by agriculture and erosion. Analysis and mapping of vegetation composition and structure will be conducted this summer in order to identify associates of Helonias (plant species that grow nearby) and other indicator species that may be useful for determining changes in habitat quality over time and the spatial distribution of existing potential habitat at the site. GPS data and photographic evidence will also be collected on observations of human disturbance and other potential threats to Helonias.

The results of each of these project components will be integrated into a final report identifying the present conditions at the site, threats to Helonias, the extent of potential suitable habitat at the site, and recommendations for future management of the species and its habitat.

Some of the above text appears directly from project proposals written by Dr. Jay Kelly and Dr. Emilie Stander

All other content written by Juaquin Goodbar

Photos courtesy of Juaquin Goodbar, Chris Balajadia, Jess Ray

Photo below by Doug McGrady licensed under CC BY 2.0

A Closer Look at Swamp Pink

By Juaquin Goodbar, Allyson Schmieder & Jessica Ray

Sharing her field photos and descriptions, CES Staff Scientist, Jess Ray, walks us through how this sensitive species is altered by deer herbivory. The beneficial impact of deer exclosures is evident!

"A few healthy Helonias bullata plants at the end of the blooming season growing along a stream side. This picture was taken in early May, at the end of the flowering season. Here, the fruit is starting to form. Helonias bullata has a long flowering stalk called a raceme that is accompanied at the base by one or more basal rosettes of leaves." (Photo Credit: Jessica Ray)

"Example of an unhealthy (left) and a healthy (right) Helonias bullata plant. Notice that both the light green new growth and the previous years leaves have been chewed off on the unhealthy plant, whereas the healthy plant has a full basal rosette of leaves." (Photo Credit: Jessica Ray)

"Notice the hollow flowering stem and fleshy green basal leaves of Helonias bullata chewed off to the base of the plant. This plant will not produce another flowering stem this season, and will only be able to bring in limited energy to the root system due to the leaves that have been eaten. Unfortunately, this is a typical fate of many plants observed outside of the deer exclosure." (Photo Credit: Jessica Ray)