Santa Barbara Island liveforever | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Order: | Saxifragales |
Family: | Crassulaceae |
Genus: | Dudleya |
Species: | D. traskiae |
Binomial name | |
Dudleya traskiae | |
Natural range of Dudleya traskiae | |
Synonyms [1] | |
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Dudleya traskiae (originally spelled Dudleya traskae [1] [2] ) is a rare succulent plant known by the common name Santa Barbara Island liveforever. This Dudleya is endemic to Santa Barbara Island, one of the Channel Islands of California, where it grows on rocky bluffs. The plant has a basal rosette of flat, spade-shaped fleshy leaves up to 15 centimeters long, which are pale green to yellowish. It erects tall stems bearing dense, rounded inflorescences of many bright yellow flowers.
Dudleya traskiae is a perennial succulent herb with foliage leaves in a basal rosette. The plants are evergreen, with a branched primary stem (caudex) and are composed of one to several hundred rosettes. The branching of the stem is dichotomous. The rosette leaves number 25–35, are strap-shaped - oblanceolate to subacuminate and are 4–15 cm long and 1–4 cm wide. Leaves may be green or glaucous with a waxy covering. The flowering stems are axillary and flowering is indeterminate in paniculate or cymose clusters. The petals (5) are bright yellow, often with red veins, fused below and curving outward in the upper half. Stamens (10) are borne on the corolla tube. The fruit is composed of 5 carpels that are spreading in age, 7–8 mm long. Seeds are many and minute, narrow and pointed. Dudleya traskiae is tetraploid with a chromosome number of 34. [3] Flowering most commonly occurs from May–July, [3] although flowering may begin as early as mid-February. [4]
The first photographs and specimens of this plant were collected by Blanche Trask. Most of Trask's work was destroyed in the 1906 San Francisco Fire, and many of her remaining work was destroyed in a 1915 fire at her herbarium on Santa Catalina. [5] This species was originally placed into the genus Stylophyllum during Nathaniel Lord Britton and Joseph Nelson Rose's revision of North American Crassulaceae. [1]
W.L. Jepson and Philip A. Munz both synonymized it with nearby species. In 1935, Munz placed it with Stylophyllum albidum (Dudleya virens ssp. virens) and S. insulare (Dudleya virens ssp. insularis) in Echeveria albida. In 1936, Jepson regarded it as a synonym of Echeveria viscida var. insularis (Dudleya virens ssp. insularis). [1]
Subsequent taxonomic work by Reid Moran would place Stylophyllum as a subgenus of Dudleya. Moran disagreed with Jepson and Munz's reduction of the species as a synonym, regarding it as "very distinct." Henceforth, Stylophyllum traskae became Dudleya traskae. [1]
The plant is named after Blanche Trask, who took the first photographs and collections of the plant. [1] The original spelling traskae is corrected according to the rules of the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants as of 2011 [update] , article 60. [6]
The genus Dudleya is primarily Californian, though it also extends north into southern Oregon, east to central Arizona and southern Nevada, and south to the tip of Baja California, Mexico. Dudleya taxa occur on each of the eight Channel Islands. Dudleya traskiae is known only from Santa Barbara Island, California. [4]
There are ten occurrences on this 652-acre island. [7]
All of the known sites supporting Dudleya traskiae are in rocky areas on the steep slopes of the island's perimeter or on outcrops within shallow canyons where vegetation is low-growing. With the exception of a small population on the far western portion of the island, [8] all locations, historic as well as present day (as of 1989) occur on the eastern, southeastern and southwestern slopes of the island. No Dudleya traskiae plants presently occur on the northern and north-western sides of the island although they do occur elsewhere on north-facing slopes. The habitat of Dudleya traskiae has been described as a maritime cactus scrub, and by Holland (1986) [9] as southern coastal bluff scrub. This assemblage of plants, characterized by cholla ( Cylindropuntia prolifera ), prickly pear ( O. oricola and O. littoralis ), boxthorn ( Lycium californicum ), Santa Barbara Island buckwheat ( Eriogonum giganteum ssp. compactum) and annual forbs and grasses, is restricted to the perimeter of the island and south-facing slopes of the canyons. [10]
This plant is federally listed as an endangered species of the United States.
It and other native flora were heavily impacted in the 19th century by the presence of hordes of feral goats. The goats were followed by other introduced species, including cats, sheep, New Zealand red rabbits, and Belgian hares. [7]
By 1984 the total number of D. traskiae on the island was about 534. By 2004 the total number was estimated to be around 852. About 80 plants were cultivated and planted in appropriate habitat. [7]
Dudleya traskiae is slow to increase its population due to several factors. Some plants produce few seeds, and some produce few seeds that are viable. Seeds produced are sometimes taken and consumed by deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus ssp. exilis). On the other hand, when the mice cache the seeds, they may aid in its difficult seed dispersal. Seedlings that successfully emerge are consumed by the mice and by the larvae of owlet moths. Others perished in drought. [7]
Other threats include damage from the activity of nesting brown pelicans, erosion, and introduced plant species. [7]
Conservation efforts include keeping people away from sensitive habitat, performing research, and planting more individuals in the habitat. All the introduced herbivores, including the particularly destructive rabbits and hares, have been removed from the island. [7]
Dudleya virens, the green liveforever or bright green dudleya, is an uncommon species of perennial, succulent plant in the family Crassulaceae, native to several coastal southern California and Baja California locations.
Dudleya, commonly known as liveforevers is a genus of rosette-forming succulent plants in the stonecrop family, Crassulaceae, consisting of about 68 taxa in southwestern North America and Guadalupe Island. The species come in many forms, some large and evergreen, others geophytic and deciduous. Yet, despite their dramatic variations in appearance, most species readily hybridize. The flowers of Dudleya have parts numbered in fives, with the petals arranged in tubular, star-shaped, and bell-shaped forms and, when fruiting, are filled with tiny, ovoid-crescent-shaped seeds.
Dudleya abramsiisubsp. setchellii, known by common name as the Santa Clara Valley dudleya or Santa Clara Valley liveforever, is a member of the Dudleya genus of succulent perennials, members of the family Crassulaceae. The Santa Clara Valley dudleya, endemic to the Santa Clara Valley region in the southern San Francisco Bay Area, was listed on 3 February 1995, as an endangered species. It is considered to be a subspecies of Dudleya abramsii, but its taxonomic status is still unclear. Its closest relative is Dudleya cymosa subsp. paniculata, which is a morphologically similar sister taxon.
Dudleya cymosa is a species complex of evergreen and deciduous succulent plants in the family Crassulaceae known by the common name: canyon liveforever. It is a loosely defined polyphyletic species with a diverse number of subspecies, varying highly in morphology, distribution, and habitat.
Dudleya caespitosa is a succulent plant known by several common names, including sea lettuce, sand lettuce, and coast dudleya. It is endemic to California, where it grows along the coastline in the southern half of the state. Taxonomically, this species is a highly variable complex of polymorphic and polyploid plants, closely related to numerous neighboring species such as Dudleya farinosa, Dudleya greenei and Dudleya palmeri. It is delimited from neighboring species on an arbitrary basis of distribution and chromosome number, and may not be immediately separable from the other species it approaches.
Dudleya candelabrum is a species of succulent plant known by the common names candleholder liveforever or candleholder dudleya. Endemic to California, this species grows wild only on the northern Channel Islands, where it is found in open rocky places and north-facing slopes. It is characterized by thin, spade-shaped green leaves and an inflorescence covered in long, reflexed bracts, with pale yellow flowers. It has been threatened by poachers shipping plants to South Korea.
Dudleya edulis is a species of perennial succulent plant known by the common names fingertips, lady fingers, mission lettuce and the San Diego dudleya. The common name denotes the finger-like shape of the leaves, while the specific epithet edulis refers to the use of the young scapes as food by the Kumeyaay. It is native to Southern California and northern Baja California, and grows on rocky hillsides, cliffs, and bare rock.
Dudleya farinosa is a species of succulent plant in the family Crassulaceae known by several common names, including bluff lettuce, powdery liveforever, and powdery dudleya. A coastal plant of northern California and southern Oregon, it is typically found on ocean bluffs just directly above the reach of the waves, and sometimes inland. Its appearance is characterized by lotus-like rosettes of beveled leaves, and in summer the plant erects a tall pink to red peduncle densely covered in bracts, topped with branches of pale yellow flowers. The green or white rosettes of this plant can be seen covering stretches of rocky coast and nearby islets.
Dudleya pulverulenta is a species of perennial succulent plant known by the common names chalk lettuce, chalk dudleya, and chalk liveforever. It is one of the largest Dudleya, with a silvery, waxy rosette that may greatly contrast with its habitat. It is also regarded as one of the most distinctive members of the Dudleya, with the most advanced inflorescence in the genus, consisting of pendant, hummingbird pollinated flowers, the longest corolla, and the highest nectar output, along with the largest range of all the Dudleya, over 1,000 kilometres (620 mi), being found from southern Monterey County in California to the Sierra de San Borja in southern Baja California.
Dudleya stolonifera is a succulent plant known by the common name Laguna Beach liveforever or Laguna Beach dudleya. This is a rare plant which is endemic to the coastline of Orange County, California. It is known from only about six populations in the vicinity of Laguna Beach, totaling about 30,000 individuals. It is federally listed as a threatened species of the United States.
Dudleya brevifolia, is a rare succulent plant known by the common name short-leaved liveforever, short-leaved dudleya or rarely the Del Mar Hasseanthus. It is an edaphic endemic that only grows on Lindavista formation marine terraces, on surfaces with ironstone nodules. The leaves are deciduous, and disappear after the inflorescence develops. The small white flowers are star-shaped with a yellow center. After flowering, any above ground trace of the plant will disappear, and it survives under the earth with a starch-rich subterranean caudex. Dudleya brevifolia is only found on coastal mesas along a small strip of coast in San Diego County, California.
Dudleya greenei is a perennial species of succulent plant known by the common names Greene's liveforever, or Greene's dudleya. It is endemic to the Channel Islands of California, where it grows along the cliffs of four of the eight islands. It is a highly variable plant, presenting with multiple forms and varying levels of ploidy. Taxonomically, this species is an insular segregate of Dudleya caespitosa, and was placed as a stopgap taxon by Reid Moran in his 1951 thesis on the genus. It is characterized by white or green leaf rosettes, loomed over by inflorescences bearing pale yellow to white flowers. It is a member of the subgenus Dudleya, as it cannot be propagated from leaf cuttings, does not grow from a corm, and has tight petals.
Dudleya abramsii is a species complex of succulent plants native to California and parts of Baja California. There are numerous subspecies, some critically endangered, with varying habits and lifestyles, but most often characterized by a smaller size, yellow flowers, and an affinity for rocky habitats. The subspecies may be polyphyletic.
Dudleya gnoma is a rare species of succulent plant in the stonecrop family known by the common names munchkin liveforever and munchkin dudleya. It is characterized by its diminutive stature, small yellow flowers, and distinctive white rosettes. It is endemic to the eastern portion of Santa Rosa Island, one of the Channel Islands of California, where it is known from one population at the type locality, containing three colonies of plants.
Dudleya anomala is a rare species of succulent plant in the family Crassulaceae commonly known as the Todos Santos liveforever. With a dense, cushion-forming habit, this leaf succulent is characterized by elongated stems, slightly sticky leaves, and bell-shaped flowers with white, spreading petals. This species is native to Baja California, Mexico, and is found primarily on islands and one coastal locality.
Dudleya saxosa subsp. collomiae, known by the common name Gila County liveforever, is a subspecies of perennial succulent plant within the genus Dudleya native to central Arizona. It is characterized by showy bright-yellow flowers on an upright inflorescence colored pink, red or orange. The leaves are green or covered in a white, powdery wax. This species is found growing in rocky slopes, canyons, and crevices, and often on Sonoran Desert sky islands.
Dudleya cochimiana, commonly known as the Cochimíliveforever, is a species of succulent plant in the family Crassulaceae endemic to Cedros Island, a large island off of the coast of Baja California, Mexico. It is a rosette-forming leaf succulent characterized by broad, green to white leaves, and flowers with white to pink petals. It can be found on rocky slopes and canyons along the island.
Dudleya cymosasubsp. pumila, most commonly known as the low canyon dudleya, chalky canyon dudleya or California live-forever, is a species of perennial succulent plant. It has diamond to spoon shaped leaves, sometimes coated with a fine white powder, and in May through July, bright red, orange or yellow flowers adorn the short inflorescence. A leaf succulent primarily found growing in rocky cliffs and slopes, it is endemic to California, and grows in the Transverse Ranges and South Coast Ranges, with some outlying populations. A variable plant, in some localities it is difficult to distinguish from other plants in the genus.
Dudleya saxosasubsp. aloides is a species of perennial succulent plant in the family Crassulaceae known by the common names desert dudleya or desert savior. It is a rosette-forming species widely distributed throughout the Peninsular Ranges and desert mountains of California in the United States. It is characterized by bright-yellow or greenish-yellow flowers, and can be found in shaded crevices and slopes. Plants in western half of the range may grade into Dudleya lanceolata.
Dudleya virens subsp. extima is a subspecies of succulent plant in the family Crassulaceae commonly known as the Guadalupe green liveforever. It is a rosette-forming leaf succulent, with both green and white waxy foliage. It has white flowers with spreading petals that bloom from May to June. It is a somewhat small plant, continuing a southward trend of decreasing size relative to other Dudleya virens subspecies. This plant is endemic to Guadalupe Island in the eastern Pacific Ocean, which is 241 kilometers off of the Baja California coast. It is very rare, with this plant only surviving on sheer cliff faces and canyons, out of the reach of the former feral goat population rampant on the island. It closely resembles a miniature version of Dudleya virens subsp. virens, but it may be more nearly related to the local Dudleya guadalupensis.
Parts of this article, including relevant citations, are copied directly from Clark, R. A. and W. L Halvorson. (1989). Status of the endangered and rare plants on Santa Barbara Island Channel Islands National Park Endangered Plant Program, Natural Heritage Division, California Department of Fish and Game, a public domain resource: Archived 2008-04-14 at the Wayback Machine