BC Conservation Data Centre: Species Summary
Masonhalea richardsonii
arctic tumbleweed
| Scientific Name: | Masonhalea richardsonii (Hook.) Karnef. | ||||||||||
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| English Name: | arctic tumbleweed | ||||||||||
| Classification / Taxonomy | |||||||||||
| Scientific Name - Concept Reference: | Esslinger, T.L. and R.S. Egan. 1995. A sixth checklist of the lichen-forming, lichenicolous, and allied fungi of the continental United States and Canada. The Bryologist 98(4): 467-549. | ||||||||||
| Classification Level: | Species | ||||||||||
| Species Group: | Lichen | ||||||||||
| Species Code: | MASORIC | ||||||||||
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| Conservation Status / Legal Designation | |||||||||||
| Global Status: | G5 (Jun 2013) | ||||||||||
| Provincial Status: | S4 (Apr 2025) | ||||||||||
| BC List: | Yellow | ||||||||||
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| Global Habitat Comments: | Hummocky tundra or alpine, with mosses; but not in microsites where Sphagnum occurs. Must be moderately well-drained with many depressions; this species is not attached, is wind-blown, gathering in the depressions. | ||||||||||
| Provincial Phenology: (1st half of month/ 2nd half of month) |
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| Elevation (m) (min / max): | Provincial: | ||||||||||
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| Distribution | |||||||||||
| Endemic: | N | ||||||||||
| Global Range Comment: | Known from North American Arctic, Thomson states that it is known from Siberia. | ||||||||||
| Disjunct, more common elsewhere: | N | ||||||||||
| Peripheral, major distribution elsewhere: | N | ||||||||||
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| No references available | |||||||||||
Please visit the website Conservation Status Ranks for definitions of the data fields used in this summary report.
Suggested Citation:
B.C. Conservation Data Centre. Species Summary: Masonhalea richardsonii. B.C. Minist. of Environment. Available: https://a100.gov.bc.ca/pub/eswp/ (accessed Jun 5, 2026).