Seed from 2 locations stored at The Berry Botanic Garden.

Occurs at scattered sites in the Coast Ranges of northwestern Oregon and southwestern Washington. Known from eight or nine occurrences, six in Oregon (in two counties) and two or three in Washington (in two counties). At least two of these occurrences receive some protection and monitoring. Populations tend to have a limited number of individuals due to this species' restricted habitat. Populations exist in high elevation areas and also in lower elevation riverside sites. At the riverside sites, some threats exist due to logging and grazing upstream, which contributes to flooding and erosion that negatively impacts populations. Overall trends in these populations have proved difficult to detect, however, due to year-to-year variability in river behavior and consequent population size.

Heavy flooding along river sites (Raven 1995a). Logging and cattle grazing upstream contribute to rainwater and debris run-off that can scour the habitat when water levels rise (Raven 1995b). Trampling (Raven 1996).

As of 1996: 8 populations (Raven 1996). 6 in Oregon with unknown numbers. 2 in Washington with 15 and 100 individuals respectively (WNHP 2000)

A six-year monitoring study (1991-1996) found yearly population changes, with an initial decrease in plant numbers during a flood year followed by an increase as the population recovered (Raven 1996). However, the final two years of monitoring revealed that the population was significantly declining. Heavy flooding and site disturbance occurred in 1996 and the 1996 population size was one-quarter the size of the 1994 population. The long-term trend is unclear (Raven 1996). Once pollinated, frigid shooting star fruits require several months to reach full maturity. Germination trials at The Berry Botanic Garden. Seeds were subjected to four treatments: 1) direct placement into a germination chamber set at a constant 68F (20C), 2) direct placement into a chamber with alternating temperatures (50F/68F, or 10C/20C), 3) eight weeks of cold stratification followed by placement in the 20C chamber and 4) eight weeks of cold stratification followed by placement in the alternating temperature chamber. Seeds that were cold stratified and then placed in the alternating temperature chamber germinated at a rate of 40%. No other seeds germinated. Further research should be done to further examine germination requirements for this species (Berry Botanic Garden File).

6 year monitoring study of population by the Salem BLM and Berry Botanic Garden (Raven 1996). Seed from 2 locations stored at The Berry Botanic Garden. Listed as Threatened by the State of Washington. One site in Oregon is located on land designated as an Adaptive Management Area (AMA) managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). In 2001, Willamette Industries, a large timber corporation, donated 387 acres to the Nature Conservancy of Oregon, on which one population of D. austrofrigidum is found. Management activities will include inventory, monitoring, and ecological studies of the many sensitive species found on the preserve (TNC 2001).

Genetic studies to determine relative frequencies of asexual and sexual reproduction (Raven 1995a) Yearly censusing to detect changes in population sizes and consistent monitoring of plant size (Raven 1996). Research reproductive biology to determine to determine the typical range of reproductive output and what factors contribute to low sexual reproduction (Raven 1995b). Populations in Washington and those occurring on ridges have not been studied.

Collect and store seeds from populations across the species' range. Determine optimum germination requirements. Determine propagation and reintroduction protocols.