Conservation Agreement and Strategy for Graham's Beardtongue (Penstemon grahamii) and White River beardtongue (P. scariosus var. albifluvis) : 2016 Annual Report

A multi-agency Utah conservation team is working to protect two species of penstemon found in the Uinta Basin, Graham's and White River beardtongue. The team includes representatives from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), Utah Public Lands Policy Coordination Office, U.S. Bureau of Land Management, School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration (SITLA), Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, Uintah County, and Rio Blanco County, Colorado. The team will implement multiple conservation measures required by a July 2014 conservation agreement signed by the parties. Protections given to the two plant species under the agreement were determined by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to preclude the need for the USFWS to list Graham's and White River beardtongue penstemon as ‘threatened' under the federal Endangered Species Act. Both species are endemic to the Uinta Basin. SITLA and Uintah County have imposed regulatory limits on state trust and private lands within conservation areas established by the agreement to ensure protection of the plants.