Search Wildlife
≡
(Tap or click to view all images.)
Photo by Bill Gray; Becky Yaeger; Buddy Smith
Frank smith's violet
Viola frank-smithii
NatureServe conservation status
Global (G-rank): G1
State (S-rank): S2
External links
Species range
Estimate from download of data from Utah Rare Plant Database on Nov 16th 2021.
Geocat 58 observations: Extent of Occurrence: 106.082 km2.
Endemic to limestone and dolomite outcrops, in humid, shady places, at 1620 to 1790 m, in the Logan Canyon drainage of the Bear River Range, Cache Co.(Welsh et al. 2015).
Threats or limiting factors
The main threats are from fire, rock climbing, invasive species and drought. These plants all grow on north facing cliffs, mostly growing in cracks of the rocks. Fire may represent the most significant threat to individual occurrences by removing shading of the cliff-base habitat by Douglas-fir forest (USFS species index, accessed 2025). Some occurrences may be threatened by recreational rock-climbing activity (USFS species index, accessed 2025; Utah Rare Plant Database, 2021). The USU Logan Canyon Climbing Management Plan for the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest, Logan Ranger District (2017) specifically addressed management in relation to climbing and increasing public awareness as well as outreach to climbing community has greatly reduced the threat to this species in regards to climbing. At least one occurrence was impacted by invasive plant species (Utah Rare Plant Database, 2021). The Utah Division of Water Resources reports that Utah is now in "extreme" or "exceptional" drought which is likely impacting this species in similar ways as it is other perennial forbs in Utah. Many rare plant species are being impacted by climate change and drought (Wrobleski, 2023). Augmentation of mountain goats to the area may also be a future threat, as the plant likes the same habitat that the goats will most likely be climbing, so it is important to gather baseline information prior to any scheduled release (Wheeler and Gibbons, 2024).
