Spring in Photos: Wildflower Season in Southwest Montana

 

Record-breaking snowpack across the Western states brought a burst of water to drought-stricken landscapes in the spring of 2023. While on assignment in southwest Montana in May and June, the IWJV team documented the spectacular profusion of wildflowers brought on by this spring’s hydrating snowmelt. Click each photo below to enjoy the rainbow of biodiversity that blooms at the headwaters of the Missouri River in Montana.

Magical things happen when we can keep water in our landscapes. The IWJV offers our partners wet meadow and riparian restoration science and technical support across western rangelands, helping keep water in soils for the benefit of ecosystems, biodiversity, wildlife, and communities. Learn more here.

 

Click each photo to view.

Scroll over for more information.

Silvery lupine (Lupinus argenteus) blooms in sagebrush upland.

A diverse field of native flowers including Sagebrush bluebell (Mertensia oblongifolia), buttercups (Ranunculus spp.), and biscuitroot (Lomatium spp.).

A pink Paintbrush flower (Castilleja spp.) blooms in a southwest Montana sagebrush steppe.

A Shooting star flower (Primula spp.).

IWJV communications specialist Emily Downing documenting wildflower abundance in southwest Montana in spring of 2023.

A diverse field of native flowers including Prairie smoke (Geum triflorum), Few-flowered shooting star (Primula pulchellum), Sagebrush bluebell (Mertensia oblongifolia), and biscuitroot (Lomatium spp.).

Paintbrush flower (Castilleja spp.) blooms in a southwest Montana sagebrush steppe. Many colors of paintbrush, including this unusual cream color, occur due to genetic variation even within the same population, leading to dazzling arrays of color across fields and hillsides.

Silvery lupine (Lupinus argenteus) blooming in healthy sagebrush upland. While lupines, from the Latin “lupus” or “wolf,” were once thought to “wolfishly” rob soil of nutrients, they in fact improve soil quality by nitrogen-fixing, like many other members of the pea family.

American bistort (Polygonum bistortoides) thrives in wet meadows. A member of the knotweed and buckwheat family, it was historically an important food plant for Western Tribal communities.

Paintbrush flower (Castilleja spp.) blooms in a southwest Montana sagebrush steppe. Many colors of paintbrush, including this unusual cream color, occur due to genetic variation even within the same population, leading to dazzling arrays of color across fields and hillsides.

Silvery lupine (Lupinus argenteus) is typically blue or purple, but unusually occurs in wild pink or white variations. Additionally, individual flowers have a central white spot that turns magenta once pollinated, reducing their visibility to bees.

Spiny phlox (Phlox hoodii) grows in thin, rocky lithosol or “skeletal soil” typical of sagebrush steppe.

Silvery lupine (Lupinus argenteus) is typically blue or purple, but unusually occurs in wild pink or white variations. Additionally, individual flowers have a central white spot that turns magenta once pollinated, reducing their visibility to bees.

A pink Paintbrush flower (Castilleja spp.) blooms in a southwest Montana sagebrush steppe. While this photo was taken in an especially wet springtime, paintbrush is a hemiparasitic plant that can sip water from neighboring plants, making it especially hearty even in times of drought.

A hillside dotted with sagebrush and Paintbrush flower (Castilleja spp.) overlooks a wet meadow in the distance. Many colors of paintbrush occur due to genetic variation even within the same population, leading to dazzling arrays of color across fields and hillsides.

A mat of Alpine forget-me-not (Eritrichium nanum) in southwest Montana sagebrush.

Megan McGrath