Some species of Trillium are endangered, threatened, or vulnerable to extinction. Some Trillium sp. are endangered, threatened, or vulnerable to extinction in some regions of their native habitat, but not across the entire range. Other species have stable populations and are not under threat.
Reasons some members are threatened include invasive plants, destruction of native habitat, herbivory, and picking by humans. The seasonal dicot has little photosynthetic area and is found in full shade on the forest floor. Picking, or removal, of the scape (above-ground portion of the plant) removes the photosynthetically active bracts (what looks like leaves) which deprives the rhizome (underground portion of plant) of photosynthates (sugars). Storage of photosynthates over the growing season allows the plant to survive dormancy until the next season. Providing it survives, a picked trillium may take multiple years to recover.
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