Tonto Basin Agave (Agave delamateri)

Global Rank: G2 - Imperiled
Legal Status: N/A
Family: Asparagaceae
State: AZ
Nature Serve ID: 144129
Lifeform: Subshrub, Shrub, Forb/herb
Categories of Interest: Cacti/Succulents
Date Inducted in National Collection:

Description:

Not Available

Where is Tonto Basin Agave (Agave delamateri) located in the wild?

Habitat:

Open hilly slopes in desert scrub, rarely in chaparral or juniper-grassland, usually near pre-Columbian agricultural and settlement features. 700-1550m

Distribution:

Endemic to the state of Arizona, this agave is known only from Gila, Maricopa and Yavapai counties.

States & Provinces:

Tonto Basin Agave can be found in Arizona

Which CPC Partners conserve Tonto Basin Agave (Agave delamateri)?

Desert Botanical Garden

Not Sponsored

Assigned 06/09/17

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

Nature Serve Biotics

05/02/2017

Agave delamateri?is known only from in and around archaeological sites in the Tonto Basin and Verde Valley in the Sonoran Desert in Arizona. ?It was cultivated during pre-Columbian times when various traits were selected for by the people managing the crop which lead to divergence from its closest wild ancestor (Parker et al. 2007). Referred to as a 'cultigen' this species is only from approximately 90 clones, does not reproduce sexually and has lower genetic diversity compared to other?Agaves. ?It is threatened by urban sprawl, creation of reservoirs, recreation activities and a fungus transported by the snout agave weevil.