CPC National Collection Plant Profile
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CPC National Collection Plant Profile
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Castilleja grisea
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Castilleja grisea is Not Sponsored |
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Primary
custodian for this plant in the CPC National Collection of Endangered
Plants is: |
| Castilleja grisea | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Plants in the genus Castilleja are generally referred to as paintbrushes, with vibrant flowers resembling paintbrushes themselves, these plants are often considered among the most beautiful of the United States' wildflowers. The San Clemente Island paintbrush is endemic to the Channel Island of San Clemente and is in danger of becoming extinct. This species was discovered in 1894, but not officially recognized as a new species and named as such until 1939. This yellow-flowering paintbrush was quite common on the cliffs of San Clemente Island until 1963, when Peter Raven noted that the species was only occasionally found along the coast of the island and only rarely in the canyonsides there. In 1977, this species became one of the first ever to be listed as Federally Endangered. By 1978, a frequent visitor to the island stated that during the course of several trips he had been able to locate only three plants, all of them in inaccessible areas on the canyon walls of the island. (Mohlenbrock 1983) What caused this rapid decline? The decline of the San Clemente Island paintbrush coincides with the introduction of feral goats to the island. The only plants that were capable of surviving the hooves and teeth of these goats were those that even the most agile goat couldn't reach--those on extreme cliff faces.
State Range
Distribution
Number Left
State/Area Protection
Ecological Relationships
Threats
Current Research Summary
Current Management Summary
Research Management Needs
Ex Situ Needs
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References |
Abrams, L.; Ferris, R.S. 1944. Illustrated Flora of the Pacific States: Washington, Oregon, and California. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press. |
Mohlenbrock, R.H. 1983. Where have all the wildflowers gone? A region-by-region guide to threatened or endangered U.S. wildflowers. New York: Macmillan Publishing Co. Inc. 239p. |
Munz, P.A.; Keck, D.D. 1959. A California flora. Berkeley, CA: Univ. California Press. 1681p. |
Smith, J.P.; Berg, K. 1988. California native plant society's inventory of rare and endangered vascular plants of California. Sacramento: California Native Plant Society. 168p. |
Kartesz, J.T. 1999. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the U.S., Canada, and Greenland. In: Kartesz, J.T.; Meacham, C.A., editors. Synthesis of the North American Flora, Version 1.0. North Carolina Botanical Garden. Chapel Hill, NC. |
CDFG. (2002). California's Plants and Animals, Threatened and Endangered Plants. List and Species Accounts. California Department of Fish and Game, Habitat Conservation Planning Branch. http://www.dfg.ca.gov/hcpb/species/t_e_spp/teplant/teplanta.shtml. Accessed: 2002. |
USFWS. 1977. Ecosystem Preservation: Seven of San Clemente Island's Endemic Animals, Plants Listed. Endangered Species Technical Bulletin. 2, 9: 4-5. |
USFWS. 1977. Endangered Listing of Seven California Channel Island Animals and Plants. Federal Register. 42, 155: 40682-40685. |
Sanguamphai. 1989. 1988 Annual Report on the Status of California's State Listed Threatened and Endangered Plants and Animals. State of California, Department of Fish and Game. |
| This profile was updated on 3/4/2010 |