Last updated: September 2, 2021
Article
Bumpkin Island Plants
In a two-year project funded by the Island Alliance to study the vegetation of the Boston Harbor Islands National Park Area, 32 islands were surveyed and inventoried for vascular plant species. Field surveys began on 9 June 2001 and ended on 30 September 2002.
Below is the data collected for Bumpkin Island.
Data Notes:
* = introduced species
(v) = voucher specimen
(p) = photograph
Due to formatting restrictions, species scientific names are not italicized in the data table.
* = introduced species
(v) = voucher specimen
(p) = photograph
Due to formatting restrictions, species scientific names are not italicized in the data table.
| Species_Scientific_Name | Species_Common_Name | Family | Date_Observed | Habitat |
|---|
Notes on Habitats and Flora
Shrub thickets dominated by staghorn sumac (Rhus typhina) are the island’s most widespread community. Old fields, pathways, roadsides, and disturbed grounds adjacent to picnic and camping sites and old buildings constitute the rest of the island’s upland habitats. Beach strand habitat (the upper edge of the high tide line, where there is typically a distinctive plant association) occurs around most of the island’s perimeter.
The single seabeach dock (Rumex pallidus) plant found on the island grows in the upper edge of the beach strand at the base of a moist slope on the north/northwest side of the island. This robust plant has been documented here by the Massachusetts Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program (MNHESP) since 1982. Seabeach dock was first observed on Bumpkin Island in 1883. There are no immediate threats to this single plant, but the population’s miniscule size make it vulnerable to extirpation by human or natural factors. Monitors should check this plant annually. Plants associated with seabeach dock here include: Chenopodium album, Epilobium hirstum, Impatiens capensis, and Rumex crispus.
Several species noted by previous observers (Island Alliance 2001, Levering 1978, McLaughlin 1994) were not seen in 2001. Paper birch (Betula papyrifera), wild blue lettuce (Lactuca canadensis), blue spruce (Picea pungens), pear (Pyrus communis), saltmarsh sea-blite (Suaeda maritima), and yew (Taxus sp.) are among the species missed in the 2001 field season. These plants will be searched in 2002. Bumpkin Island merits one more day of botanical surveys.