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Plant Profile

White Birds-in-a-nest (Macbridea alba)

The white flowers, clustered at the top of the stalk, that give this species its common name of white birds-in-a-nest. Photo Credit: © Billy B. Boothe
  • Global Rank: G2 - Imperiled
  • Legal Status: Federally Threatened
  • Family: Lamiaceae
  • State: FL
  • Nature Serve ID: 136197
  • Lifeform: Forb/herb
  • Date Inducted in National Collection: 02/09/1992
Description:

Macbridea alba, or white birds-in-a-nest, is quite conspicuous and unmistakable when in flower from May to July. The brilliant white flowers are clustered at the top of the plant in a short spike with bracts. These flowers give the plant its common name, as they look a bit like bird heads in a nest. Each flower has a green calyx about 0.5 inches long and the corolla is two-lipped, the upper lip hood-like. The flowers are borne atop the usually single-stemmed, odorless perennial herb with fleshy rhizomes (USFWS 1992). The plant grows to about 1 - 1.5 feet tall with erect, square stems. The 2 - 4 inch leaves are opposite on another in 6 -8 pairs. The leaves are thick and usually rough-hairy, widest above the middle, have rounded tips and are dotted with glands. The leaf stalks have narrow wings. (FNAI 2000)

Where is White Birds-in-a-nest (Macbridea alba) located in the wild?

Habitat:

White birds-in-a-nest is restricted to the Gulf coastal lowlands near the mouth of the Apalachicola River in the Florida Panhandle. This area provides the grassy habitat on poorly drained, infertile soils that is required by Macbridea alba. The wettest sites occupied by these plants are grassy seepage bogs on gentle slopes at the edge of forested or shrubby wetlands. The plants are also found in savanna, or less permanently wet sites. White birds-in-a-nest also occurs in dryer, mesic flatwoods sites with longleaf pine and runner oaks (USFWS 1992).White birds-in-a-nest shares much the same habitat with two other Florida endangered species: Scutellaria floridana (Florida skullcap) and Stachydeoma graveolens (mock pennyroyal) (FNAI 2000).

Distribution:

White birds-in-a-nest is endemic to the Florida Panhandle, and occurs in Bay, Gulf, Franklin, and Liberty Counties. This species has declined severely outside the Apalachicola National Forest (USFWS

States & Provinces:

White Birds-in-a-nest can be found in Florida

Which CPC Partners conserve White Birds-in-a-nest (Macbridea alba)?

  • Atlanta Botanical Garden

    Not Sponsored
    Conservation Actions
    Assigned 12/10/24
    • CPC's Plant Sponsorship Program provides long term stewardship of rare plants in our National Collection. We are so grateful for all our donors who have made the Plant Sponsorship Program so successful. We are in the process of acknowledging all our wonderful plant sponsorship donors on our website. This is a work in progress and will be updated regularly.

    Conservation Actions

    Kelly Coles
    • 11/18/2024
      • Seed Collection Living Collection

    In July 2024, the Atlanta Botanical Garden Gulf Coast team visited several populations and subpopulations of Macbridea alba at the St. Joseph Bay State Buffer Preserve and Box-R Wildlife Management Area. Overall, declines in the number of reproductive individuals present at these sites were observed between 2022-2024. Seven sites had the following numbers of reproductive individuals across these three years: 

    Site   

    2022

    2023

    2024

    1

    70

    80

    48

    2

    30

    <20

    <10

    3

    <30

    not recorded

    23

    4

    260

    140

    not recorded

    5

    90

    not recorded

    26

    6

    not recorded

    60

    30

    7

    30

    not recorded

    0

     

    Collections from two populations at Box-R Wildlife Management Area occurred in October 2024. Although only 10% of available seeds were collected, 20% of fruits were bagged prior to collection to protect them from herbivory. Thirty reproductive individuals were observed at one site, and seeds were collected from 3 of these. The same site had produced 60 reproductive individuals in 2023. 23 reproductive plants were found at another site, and seeds were collected from two of these. Approximately 30 reproductive individuals had been observed at this site in 2022.

    During collection, many empty capsules were observed. Those that did produce seeds produced a small number. The average number of seeds per flower decreased from ~10 to ~5 from 2022 to 2023. Seeds collected in 2024 were sent to ABG's Atlanta-based conservation horticulture team for propagation rather than to the seed bank since this species' seeds are not orthodox. Individuals grown will be added to an existing living collection for safeguarding, and these individuals will be available for future reintroductions or augmentations.

    A morphological observation made during site visits was that some stems were extremely pubescent while others were smooth. 

    • 10/06/2020
      • Propagation Research

    A graduate student at Clemson University studied the seed production and germination of this species (Madsen 1999).

    • 10/06/2020
      • Reproductive Research

    Jim Hanula, an entomologist with the U.S. Forest Service, has studied the pollination of this species (Hanula 2002).

    Nature Serve Biotics
    • 05/02/2017

    Endemic to small area of Florida Panhandle. Decreases in the quality and extent of appropriate habitat within this species' very limited range, and recent surveys within its range, suggest that the species is declining. The plants cannot withstand modern intensive forestry practices such as clear-cutting, chopping and tilling of the substrate, dense plantings of pine, and the subsequent exclusion of fire. Thirty-three occurrences have been verified since 1989, but some of these are sub-occurrences which are clustered into larger occurrences. Most of the occurrences are within the Apalachicola National Forest in Florida, but some are on nearby state conservation lands.

    S.K. Maddox
    • 01/01/2010

    Destruction of habitat. Suppression of fire and loss of open habitat. Development of cattle pastures. Silvicultural practices of the forest products industry and the Forest Service. Use of chemical herbicides on power line rights-of-way. (USFWS

    S.K. Maddox
    • 01/01/2010

    The most vigorous populations have been found in the Apalachicola National Forest, with the largest numbers of individuals of this species. The Florida Natural Areas Inventory survey shows the Forest as having 41 of the 63 known occurrences of this plant (USFWS 1992).

    S.K. Maddox
    • 01/01/2010

    Jim Hanula, an entomologist with the U.S. Forest Service, has studied the pollination of this species (Hanula 2002). A graduate student at Clemson University studied the seed production and germination of this species (Madsen 1999).

    S.K. Maddox
    • 01/01/2010

    US Forest Service has been monitoring Macbridea alba. Prescribed fire. (USFWS 1992)

    S.K. Maddox
    • 01/01/2010

    Study the effects of growing season burns for the species. Utilize bush hogging or mowing to maintain power line rights-of-way, rather than using herbicides. (USFWS 1992)

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    Nomenclature
    Taxon Macbridea alba
    Authority Chapman
    Family Lamiaceae
    CPC Number 2760
    ITIS 32558
    USDA MAAL7
    Duration Perennial
    Common Names white birds-in-a-nest
    Associated Scientific Names Macbridea alba
    Distribution White birds-in-a-nest is endemic to the Florida Panhandle, and occurs in Bay, Gulf, Franklin, and Liberty Counties. This species has declined severely outside the Apalachicola National Forest (USFWS
    State Rank
    State State Rank
    Florida S2
    Ecological Relationships

    Photos

    The white flowers, clustered at the top of the stalk, that give this species its common name of white birds-in-a-nest. Photo Credit: © Billy B. Boothe

    Macbridea alba maturing seedheads; flowering; and vivipary on seedhead. This species is known to exhibit germination occurring directly on seedheads, and this was observed by ABG during seed collections.

    Photo Credit: Willow Mar (seedheads), Cami Adams (flowering), Ashton Holliday-Goulart (vivipary)
    Videos
    Reproductive Ecology of a Rare Florida Endemic Mint, Macbridea alba
    Habitat Suitability Models as a Conservation Tool for a Rare Mint, Macbridea alba
    Pollinators
    Common Name Name in Text Association Type Source InteractionID
    Bees
    Bumble bees Bombus Confirmed Pollinator Link
    Bumble bees Bombus Confirmed Pollinator Link

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