Thursday, December 5, 2013

USFWS again fails to list California endangered plants

The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service published a revised list of Candidate Plants under the Federal Endangered Species Act on November 22, 2013.  Six California endemic plants remain formal Candidates (including their number of documented occurrences):

               Family                  Taxon                                                 Occurrences
               Brassicaceae         Rorippa subumbellata                                  29          
                                         Streptanthus bracteatus                                 8
               Liliaceae               Calochortus persistens                               5
               Nyctaginaceae       Abronia alpina                                             1
               Pinaceae               Pinus albicaulis                                       >10,000?

None of these six are particularly endangered: Pinus albicaulis shows no direct evidence of decline in the Sierra (unlike in the northern Rocky Mountains, suggesting genetics).  Rorippa subumbellata, endemic to the beaches of Lake Tahoe, now trampled and stranded, is uncommon but not critical.  Streptanthus bracteatus is a rare serpentine endemic, but has not declined in recent times.  Calochortus persistens is very rare, but is the subject of active USFS management, recently formalized in a signed directive.  Perhaps of the 6 candidates, only Abronia alpina might be considered threatened.

The USFWS revised Candidate List also removed two California plants from Candidate status: Hazardia orcuttii (Asteraceae) with ca. 15 extant occurrences, and Phacelia stellaris (Hydrophyllaceae) also with about 15 extant occurrences.

What the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service failed to do in revision of the list of Candidate Plants is to in any way advance to candidacy the nearly 100 California endemic plants that are biologically endangered or threatened BUT WHICH ENJOY NO LISTING STATUS.


The list below are those CA endemics with three or fewer known occurrences, and which are not State Listed.  Some of these are not now in danger of extinction, as they occur in remote areas, and hence ought to be listed as Threatened (N is the number of extant occurrences).  

California harbors more endangered plants than the remainder of the coterminous United States combined (absent Florida and Hawaii, and excluding tropical Pacific protectorates).   

USFWS - do triage, get with the program, list these plants.  


Family Scientific Name N CNPS S G
Alliaceae Allium marvinii   2 1B.1 S1 G1
Apiaceae Lomatium shevockii   2 1B.3 S2 G2
Asteraceae Ancistrocarphus keilii   2 1B.1 S1 G1
Asteraceae Baccharis plummerae ssp. glabrata 3 1B.2 S2 T2
Asteraceae Deinandra bacigalupii   3 1B.2 S1 G1
Asteraceae Dieteria canescens var. ziegleri 2 1B.2 S1 T1
Asteraceae Erigeron calvus   1 1B.1 S1 G1
Asteraceae Erigeron serpentinus   3 1B.3 S2 G2
Asteraceae Harmonia guggolziorum   2 1B.1 S1 G1
Asteraceae Helianthus inexpectatus   1 1B.1 S1 G1
Asteraceae Heterotheca monarchensis   3 1B.3 S2 G1
Asteraceae Malacothrix foliosa ssp. crispifolia 2 1B.2 S1 T1
Asteraceae Malacothrix foliosa ssp. philbrickii 3 1B.2 S1 T1
Asteraceae Malacothrix junakii   2 1B.1 S1 G1
Boraginaceae Cryptantha excavata   3 1B.3 S2 G2
Boraginaceae Cryptantha incana   3 1B.3 S1 G1
Boraginaceae Phacelia cookei   3 1B.1 S1 G1
Brassicaceae Boechera hirshbergiae   2 1B.2 S1 G1
Brassicaceae Boechera peirsonii   3 1B.2 S1 G1
Brassicaceae Boechera rubicundula   1 1B.1 S1 G1
Brassicaceae Boechera shevockii   1 1B.1 S1 G1
Brassicaceae Boechera ultraalsa   1 1B.1 S1 G1
Brassicaceae Boechera yorkii   3 1B.3 S1 G1
Brassicaceae Caulanthus amplexicaulis var. barbarae 3 1B.1 S1 T1
Brassicaceae Smelowskia ovalis   3 1B.2 S1 G1
Brassicaceae Streptanthus glandulosus ssp. hoffmanii 2 1B.3 SH TH
Brassicaceae Streptanthus oblanceolatus   2 1B.2 S1 G1
Brassicaceae Streptanthus vernalis   1 1B.2 S1 G1
Brassicaceae Tropidocarpum californicum   2 1B.1 S1 G1
Cactaceae Cylindropuntia munzii   2 1B.3 S1 G3
Cactaceae Echinocereus engelmannii var. howei 3 1B.1 S1 T1
Campanulaceae Nemacladus calcaratus   3 1B.2 S1 G1
Caryophyllaceae Minuartia decumbens   2 1B.2 S1 G1
Convolvulaceae Calystegia collina ssp. tridactylosa 3 1B.2 S1 T1
Convolvulaceae Cuscuta jepsonii   1 1B.2 SH GH
Crassulaceae Dudleya blochmaniae ssp. insularis 1 1B.1 S1 T1
Crassulaceae Dudleya cymosa ssp. costatifolia 2 1B.2 S2 T2
Crassulaceae Dudleya cymosa ssp. crebrifolia 1 1B.2 S1 T1
Crassulaceae Dudleya gnoma   1 1B.1 S1 G1
Cupressaceae Hesperocyparis macrocarpa   2 1B.2 S1 G1
Cyperaceae Eleocharis torticulmis   2 1B.3 S1 G1
Ericaceae Arctostaphylos crustacea ssp. eastwoodiana 3 1B.1 S2? T2?
Ericaceae Arctostaphylos gabilanensis   2 1B.2 S1 G1
Ericaceae Arctostaphylos mendocinoensis 1 1B.2 S1 T1
Ericaceae Arctostaphylos osoensis   2 1B.2 S1 G1
Ericaceae Arctostaphylos tomentosa ssp. daciticola 1 1B.1 S1 T1
Fabaceae Acmispon argyraeus var. notitius 3 1B.3 S2 T2
Fabaceae Astragalus ravenii   3 1B.3 S2 G2
Fabaceae Lathyrus biflorus   1 1B.1 S1 G1
Fabaceae Lupinus constancei   2 1B.2 S1 G1
Iridaceae Iris hartwegii ssp. columbiana 2 1B.2 S2 T2
Juncaceae Juncus digitatus   3 1B.1 S1 G1
Lamiaceae Lepechinia rossii   3 1B.2 S1 G1
Lamiaceae Monardella australis ssp. jokerstii 3 1B.1 S1 T1
Lamiaceae Monardella boydii   3 1B.2 S2 G2
Lamiaceae Monardella undulata ssp. arguelloensis 1 1B.1 S1 T1
Liliaceae Calochortus syntrophus   2 1B.1 S1 G1
Liliaceae Erythronium taylorii   1 1B.2 S1 G1
Liliaceae Fritillaria biflora var. ineziana 2 1B.1 S1 T1
Malvaceae Sidalcea hickmanii ssp. napensis 2 1B.1 S1 T1
Malvaceae Sidalcea hickmanii ssp. pillsburiensis 1 1B.2 S1 T1
Onagraceae Clarkia concinna ssp. raichei 1 1B.1 S1 T1
Onagraceae Clarkia tembloriensis ssp. calientensis 3 1B.1 S1 T1
Orchidaceae Piperia elegans ssp. decurtata 2 1B.1 S1 T1
Orobanchaceae Castilleja ambigua var. meadii 3 1B.1 S1 T1
Papaveraceae Platystemon californicus var. ciliatus 1 1B.2 S1 T1
Pinaceae Pinus torreyana ssp. insularis 2 1B.2 S1 T1
Pinaceae Pinus torreyana ssp. torreyana 3 1B.2 S1 T1
Plantaginaceae Penstemon tracyi   3 1B.3 S1 G1
Poaceae Agrostis lacuna-vernalis   3 1B.1 S1 G1
Poaceae Puccinellia howellii   1 1B.1 S1 G1
Polemoniaceae Gilia yorkii   1 1B.2 S1 G1
Polemoniaceae Navarretia gowenii   3 1B.1 S1 G1
Polemoniaceae Navarretia myersii ssp. deminuta 1 1B.1 S1 T1
Polygonaceae Eriogonum kennedyi var. pinicola 3 1B.1 S1 T1
Polygonaceae Eriogonum luteolum var. saltuarium 3 1B.2 S1 T1
Polygonaceae Eriogonum microthecum var. lacus-ursi 1 1B.1 S1 T1
Polygonaceae Eriogonum nudum var. psychicola 1 1B.1 S1 T1
Polygonaceae Eriogonum ovalifolium var. monarchense 1 1B.3 S1 T1
Polygonaceae Eriogonum spectabile   2 1B.2 S1 G1
Polygonaceae Eriogonum umbellatum var. lautum 2 1B.1 S1 T1
Polygonaceae Eriogonum wrightii var. olanchense 2 1B.3 S2 T2
Rhamnaceae Ceanothus foliosus var. vineatus 3 1B.1 S1? T1
Rosaceae Drymocallis cuneifolia var. cuneifolia 3 1B.1 S1 T1
Rosaceae Horkelia daucifolia var. indicta 3 1B.1 S1 T1
Rosaceae Ivesia longibracteata   1 1B.3 S1 G1
Rosaceae Petrophytum caespitosum ssp. acuminatum 3 1B.3 S2 T2
Rubiaceae Galium hypotrichium ssp. tomentellum 1 1B.3 S1 T1
Themidaceae Brodiaea matsonii   2 1B.1 S1 G1