Botrychium pallidum is a small, inconspicuous plant, usually growing to a height of 7 centimetres (2.8 in) or less.[4] It is usually smaller than Botrychium minganense.[2] It has pale leaves that vary from whitish to bluish green; the colour changes to green when moist.[1] Leaves are glaucous and divided into a bladelike trophophore and a fertile sporophore (spore-producing organ).[4]
Distribution
Pale moonwort is found in a variety of habitats both native and disturbed, including former mining sites, burned areas, and open, exposed hillsides. In the state of Colorado, it has been found only in high elevation, subalpine wetlands.[5] After its identification in 1990, it was known from sporadic, small colonies dotted throughout Colorado, Saskatchewan, Michigan, Ontario, and Quebec.[6] By 2006, a new population in Maine was identified by Art Gilman, then president of the New England Botanical Society.[3] A species was reportedly collected in Manitoba in 1959 near Otterburne.[7]
