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Growing On A Scar: Genetic Variation Of Achillea Millefolium Near Meeker, Colorado, Ace Spitzer

Ursidae: The Undergraduate Research Journal at the University of Northern Colorado

Mining operations deposit high concentrations of heavy metals such as lead, cadmium, arsenic, and vanadium into the topsoil of an ecosystem. These toxic metals can affect plant health and behavior, causing local extinction and shifts in ecosystem dynamics. However, genetic analyses of some plants growing on toxic soil conditions indicate higher genetic diversity than would be expected in that environment. Determining the effects of soil pollution on plants is important to determine a species’ utility in conservation and restoration. This investigation compared the genetic diversity of western yarrow (Achillea millefolium, Asteraceae), growing near a mine with vanadium and …