Botanical research in the state of Colorado has identified 12 plant species that
are listed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) as threatened or endangered
(USFWS 1993a); and an additional 388 plant species considered to be of special concern
by the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the USFWS,
and/or the Colorado Natural Heritage Program (CNHP 1996).
The Colorado Rare Plant Field Guide has been produced through the efforts of the
Colorado Rare Plant Technical Committee, a committee representing government and
private interests, and concerned with protecting Colorado's flora. The Committee
anticipates that a field guide to Colorado's rarest plants will facilitate the collection
of botanical data, be indispensable to the establishment of conservation priorities,
and enable informed land management decisions.