The slender moonwort once existed in most western states and in parts of Canada but now is limited to five small areas in Oregon, Colorado and Montana. These populations range from two plants to 53 plants. The species can live in a variety of habitats such as meadows with tall grass, beneath trees in wooded areas and on limestone cliff shelves at higher elevations. The species is threatened by fire suppression, livestock grazing, mining, urban development, timber harvest, road building and various types of recreation. Remaining populations of the slender moonwort are so small that a natural disaster such as fire or drought also could destroy them.
Data are now available for Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Wyoming.
Data for Montana will be available soon, with other western states to follow. The BLM's geographic information helps guide decisions in the public and private sectors on commercial zoning, water conservation, property tax assessment, applying for mineral leases and wildlife management. The GCDB is a geographic grid prepared from land survey and geodetic horizontal control records that graphically portrays the Public Land Survey System. The program computes geographic coordinates on a township basis, collecting data from townships, sections, section subdivisions, and special surveys such as those of tracts or mineral surveys. GCDB data provides a framework for Geographic Information Systems, allowing users to view the information spatially.