With the addition of plants and insects to the next State Wildlife Action Plan from Utah's Division of Wildlife Resources, the Utah Rare Plant Program has been very active in participating in SWAP meetings and tasks in addition to conducting conservation rankings per the NatureServe calculator for hundreds of Utah's rare plants. Since many rankings for plants have not been updated since the 1980's or 1990's, the work flow for each taxon includes taxonomic updates, collection and organization of all available occurrence data, evaluation of past, current and future threats, assessment of long and short-term trends, and gathering of available information on life history traits, as available. All of these individual characteristics can influence the species persistence on the landscape and thus its potential exposure to potential protection under the Endangered Species Act. This ranking process is critical to creating the most accurate and pro-active SGCN plant list for the state wildlife action plan and for our federal partners' respective sensitive species lists to help prevent ESA listings. Additionally, the Utah Rare Plant Program has a highly functional database for which our team is wholly responsible. We ingest new data from our team's efforts, from agency botanists and consultants. We update our FieldMaps app each year to assure it suits all who wish to use it. We have been successful in getting many agency botanists and contractors to use this application that streamlines the ingestion of new data into our database. As with any database, there is a need for regular maintenance as well as improved functionality. Often, entities employ full time database managers for this purpose, however, we have managed to keep the database updated and accurate with just our team members with the help of funding from this program. Our database has become the premier rare plant database for Utah for both federal and state agencies alike. Thirdly, the DWR entered into the Three Milkvetch Conservation Agreement in 2022 and the rare plant team is the only signing partner capable of conducting the majority of the monitoring duties that have been outlined in the agreement. As such, the team intends to commence a study to determine whether drones can be used to monitor Astragalus sabulosus in its habitat. These three tasks are fundamental to ongoing and consistent operations of the Utah Rare Plant Program. Experienced personnel are critical for the program to continue to be the most accurate and comprehensive source of information for Utah's floral heritage.

Task 1- Conservation Ranking of Utah's Rare Flora The process to perform conservation rankings per the NatureServe calculator involves a lengthy work flow that needs to assure all parts of the process are properly and accurately executed. The federal agencies (US Forest Service and the BLM) and NatureServe have each brought forward a lengthy list of species to evaluate to our team since we are most capable of gathering and analyzing all the necessary data for flora in Utah. Our partners are actively using our ranking results and are within the time frame by which to modify their respective sensitive species lists for plants. It is serendipitous as well as advantageous that the federal land agencies and the state can work together on such an important task of prioritizing rare plant conservation for the State of Utah. Prioritization of rare plant conservation is the very core of the Utah Rare Plant Program. Task 2 -- Data and Database curation Behind all conservation rankings, rare plant surveys, monitoring studies, and funding proposals lies all the detailed information held in the Rare Plant Database. After prioritization of plant species for conservation from updated conservation rankings, the rare plant team uses the database to help determine the best approach to generating the needed additional information about this plant. This includes analysis of past survey efforts (survey dates, surveyor names and affiliation, identification confidence, etc), and with this information, an appropriate time frame for a survey area and an effective survey route is then planned. Additionally, on average, between 3,500 to 15,000 observation points are added to the database annually from various sources. The information in the database needs to be consistently accurate and comprehensive, thus first needs appropriate QA/ QC. Moreover, the database is structured to hold additional information that can be updated from running tasks within ArcGIS, from which other analyses can be completed. Task 3 -- Pilot Drone Study for Astragalus sabulosus A new Conservation Agreement adn Strategy (CAS) for three rare milkvetch (Astragalus spp.) in southern Utah was signed in May of 2022. The CAS outlined a need for more information about these species to help determine the stability and persistence of these populations. The CAS team has come to the conclusion that the most effective way to collect this information for one species is perhaps through monitoring with a drone. Thus, a pilot study with a drone is needed. The current rare plant team has 2 certified drone pilots that know the plant and its habitat. This will take at least 3 flights at different elevations and post processing time. The funding for this study is hoped to be shared with the USFWS Section 6 funding. Task 4 --Rare Plant Surveys and Monitoring As priorities for information on rare plant needs shifts due to data collection and analysis efforts, the Utah Rare Plant Team needs to plan for and implement upcoming field work throughout the State of Utah. Many of the target locations are extremely remote that take substantial amount of time to reach with 4WD vehicles, and also a lengthy hike. As such, the team generally car camps for days at a time to be able to most time efficient. Since the data needs for rare plants depends on many different variables that change between and within years, a field season schedule is best if it is somewhat flexible. This also demands the field crew also be flexible.

Since the final SWAP is due in 2025, it is critical that the Utah Rare Plant Program have all the necessary resources to complete all tasks associated with this deadline. Further, in order to move forward with action items laid out in the new Conservation Agreement for the Three milkvetch, a pilot drone study is needed to determine the next steps for monitoring Astragalus sabulosus.

Although the State Wildlife Action Plan is not a management plan, the SWAP lays the foundation for actionable items for partners and DWR itself. Rare and sensitive plants often need to be considered in land management planning and actions of the state, our partner agencies and/or cooperating private partners. Information generated from conservation ranking updates and field surveys will assist these entities in project planning. As an example, the Dixie and Fish Lake National Forests will be revising their forest plans in the near future, which address their respective sensitive species lists. The URPT is poised to assist the USFS with their sensitive plant list that has implications for all project planning.

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Collection permits are often required by the USFWS to verify species identification of federally listed species. Collection permits are mandatory to collect T&E species voucher specimens. Our team has the necessary permits to do this.

Conservation ranking methods are set forward by NatureServe as their 'Core Methodology Training' on their BIOTICS website. Methods for surveys for rare plants are often dictated by how well their respective habitats are known and/or described. Team members must get familiar with the specifics of the geologic substrate that hosts the target plant and be able to recognize it on the ground. Further, since there are so many endemic and rare plants in Utah, the rare plant team must also be able to recognize any con-specific plants (both rare and common) that may be in the same or similar habitats. The pilot drone study will involve flying the same area of land several times to determine what the best elevation is to be able to detect Astragalus sabulosus. A corresponding field survey will take place to determine the efficacy of a drone. A variety of post-processing software will be tried to determine which one works best and is easiest to work with. The DWR has agreed to allow our team to borrow an appropriate drone and work with them with the various post- processing options available.

Monitoring for rare plants often involves a pilot year or two to help decide whether the monitoring method chosen is actually going to work. This will also be the case for the proposed drone monitoring of Astragalus sabulosus. This particular milkvetch named within the Three Milkvetch Conservation Plan is proving to be the most difficult to monitor due to its tendency to grow on steep slopes and its wide variation in its above-ground presence from year to year.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the US Forest Service (USFS), and the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) all contribute to and use the Utah Rare Plant Program's data, data products and monitoring tasks.

Timely management and reporting of field data are necessary for scientifically sound and defensible land use planning decisions. Management of sensitive plants within land use management plans is best informed through the ongoing efforts, administration and management of efforts such as those carried out by the Utah Rare Plant Team.

Some monitoring efforts could uncover some potentially unsustainable browsing or grazing of particular taxa, either from domestic livestock or wildlife. Should this occur, the rare plant will aim to be part of a partnership to reach potential solutions.