The Amargosa niterwort (Nitrophila mohavensis) grows exclusively in alkali wetlands in the Amargosa River Basin of Nevada & California. Just a couple of inches tall at most, growing in scattered clumps in salt crust, the niterwort thrives in some of the most extreme environments on Earth. Summer temperatures within its range regularly exceed 115°F and average precipitation is 3.5 inches. It has populations at Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge in Nevada and nearby Carson Slough in California; as well as down the Amargosa River about 35 miles in the town of Tecopa, California. It is listed as endangered under both the federal and California Endangered Species Acts. Its groundwater-dependent habitat is threatened by overexploitation of groundwater resources for agriculture and mining, as well as by climate change.
by tenacious-toad
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