Download sagebrush and UV handout

“The better the plant is at indicating ecological condition or
palatability, the more one should learn to identify that
plant.”
~ Melvin S. Morris, professor of range management, University of
Montana (deceased)
Sagebrush and UV-light Fluorescence
Did you know that some sagebrush is fluorescent in UV light? A chemical called coumarin that is
found in 12 different species of sagebrush makes this happen. Place a couple leaves in a vial of
water, shake, turn off the lights, and shine a UV light on the water/sagebrush mix. You will see
a bluish white glow. In species such as early sagebrush and subalpine big sagebrush the glow is
intense. In others, such as three tip and Wyoming three tip sagebrush, the glow is light.
The table below shows sagebrush species that have UV fluorescence (from Rosentreter, 2004):
Sag
ebr
ush
and
Pal
ata
bilit
y to
Sag
e
Gro
use
With
a
few
exce
ption
s,
the stronger the fluorescent glow of sagebrush, the more palatable it is to sage grouse.
Palatability is described as follows:
Palatability is defined as “plant characteristics or conditions that stimulate a selective
response in animals” (Heady 1964). Webster defines the word “palatable” as pleasing to
the taste. (Rosentreter, 2004).
Some sagebrush is more palatable-or preferred as a food choice-to sage grouse than others.
The table below shows palatability of sagebrush species (from Rosentreter, 2004):