Keys to the Families and Genera of Vascular Plants in Northwestern California
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Humboldt State University Digital Commons @ Humboldt State University Botanical Studies Open Educational Resources and Data 8-2014 Keys to the Families and Genera of Vascular Plants in Northwestern California James P. Smith Jr Humboldt State University, [email protected] John O. Sawyer Jr Humboldt State University Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.humboldt.edu/botany_jps Part of the Botany Commons Recommended Citation Smith, James P. Jr and Sawyer, John O. Jr, "Keys to the Families and Genera of Vascular Plants in Northwestern California" (2014). Botanical Studies. 26. https://digitalcommons.humboldt.edu/botany_jps/26 This Flora of Northwest California-Regional is brought to you for free and open access by the Open Educational Resources and Data at Digital Commons @ Humboldt State University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Botanical Studies by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Humboldt State University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. KEYS TO THE FAMILIES AND GENERA OF VASCULAR PLANTS IN NORTHWESTERN CALIFORNIA BY James P. Smith, Jr. & John O. Sawyer, Jr. Department of Biological Sciences Humboldt State University Arcata, California Ninth Edition — 21 August 2014 T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S Introduction . 1 Section 1: Plants Too Distinctive to Require the Use of a Key . 3 Section 2: Key to Groups . 5 Section 3: Key to the Families of Groups A to K A: Aquatic Plants . 6 B: Ferns and lycophytes . 6 C: Cone-bearing trees and shrubs . 7 D: Plants without chlorophyll . 7 E: Plants with milky or colored sap . 7 F: Flowering plants: perianth rudimentary or absent . 7 G: Flowering plants: flower parts in 3's. 8 H: Flowering plants: perianth in 1 series. 9 I: Flowering plants: Stamens many . 10 J: Flowering plants: petals separate . 11 K: Flowering plants: petals united . 13 Section 4: Key to the Genera of Lycophyte & Fern Families . 15 Section 5: Key to the Genera of Conifer Families. 17 Section 6: Keys to the Genera of Flowering Plant Families. 18 Section 7: Common Names of Families to Scientific Names . 65 I N T R O D U C T I O N With this ninth edition, we continue our efforts at A surprisingly high number of our plants are endemic providing a relatively simple means for the to the region, meaning that they are found here and identification of the vascular plants of northwestern nowhere else. We estimate that 285 taxa in 42 plant California. More field work on our part and that of families are endemic to northwestern California and students at Humboldt State University has allowed us southwestern Oregon (Smith & Sawyer, 1988). The to refine our knowledge of the flora of this part of the area's heterogeneity of topography and parent state. New collections at other herbaria, especially material provides the setting for this richness. those at the California Academy of Science, and the publication of recent monographic and regional studies The Keys and How To Use Them. Our keys are have made the appearance of a new edition timely. termed artificial because they do not necessarily emphasize features of evolutionary importance, nor do Botanical and Geographic Scope. Most of what they have closely related plants appearing next to one follows is a set of dichotomous keys and descriptive another. We believe that the purpose of a flora is to material written especially for the vascular plants of provide a quick and effective means for identifying northwestern California. This botanical designation plants; matters of evolutionary relationship can be refers to those plants commonly called ferns, fern addressed elsewhere. Although a certain minimal level allies, conifers, and flowering plants. Mosses, lichens, of botanical terminology is unavoidable, we have fungi, and algae are not treated. We have included the attempted to avoid the excesses that most of us find families and genera of all native plants, those that so distressing. We have used everyday English have been purposely or accidentally introduced from whenever we can, but there are a number of instances other areas, and those agricultural plants and garden where there is no term in everyday use that will ornamentals that have escaped and now persist in the suffice. We have also constructed alternate pathways wild without assistance. through the keys -- one designed for the experienced field botanist and the other for the novitiate who is For the purposes of this flora, we define northwestern likely to make an understandable and predictable California as including all of Del Norte, Humboldt, error. Mendocino, Trinity, and Lake counties, together with the western half of Siskiyou Co., and the inner Coast The first step in the identification of an unknown plant Ranges of western Shasta, Tehama, Glenn, and Colusa is to place it in a group using the "Preliminary Key” counties. Plants more characteristic of the floor of the that appears on page 5. For those unfamiliar with Sacramento Valley are not treated. This area of about dichotomous keys, a word of explanation is in order. 55,000 square kilometers (21,000 square miles) A dichotomous key is a device for the identification of corresponds roughly to the North Coast subdivision of unknowns -- plants, animals, soils, minerals, etc. It the California Floristic Province, as defined by Stebbins consists of a series of couplets, paired and contrasting and Major (1965). It is region of great botanical, statements (leads) that describe one or more features ecological, and geological complexity -- in many ways, of the plant. The paired statements are numbered. At our state's least known and most challenging area. each step in the key, you must make a choice as to which one of the statements best fits the unknown Geology. Our area includes the Northern California plant that you are attempting to identify. Consider the Coast Range and Klamath Mountains geological following example: provinces. The Northern California Coast Range extends from Oregon as a narrow band of low coastal 1. Leaves alternate; stamens 6 or 8 . 2 mountains. The province widens south of the Klamath 1. Leaves opposite; stamens 4 . 3 province to include the highlands of Mendocino County and surrounding lowlands. The Klamath Mountains The leads of a couplet are parallel because they province is adjacent to the northern Coast Ranges and address the same features, leaf position and stamen includes the Marble, Salmon, Scott, Scott Bar, number in this example. The statements are Siskiyou, and Trinity ranges, the Trinity Alps, and the contrasting, in that the two halves of the couplet are Yollo Bollys. Both provinces are characterized by mutually exclusive -- the unknown plant will fit under steep, rugged terrain. Abrupt changes in aspect, only one of the choices. Each statement in a slope, soil properties, and localized disturbance dichotomous key will end in the name of a taxon regimes enhance the area's botanical diversity. (group, family, genus, etc.) or in a number directing you to a subsequent dichotomy. Climate. The climate of northwestern California is generally mild, with wet winters and dry summers. Average annual precipitation at coastal and low- elevation mountain locations ranges from 650 to 2000 mm. High summer and winter temperatures are typically near 38 and -7 EC, respectively. Diversity and Endemism. The flora of California is rich in species, one of the richest in the world. About 6502 taxa (species, subspecies, and varieties) are indigenous to the state; another 1099 have been accidentally or purposely introduced and become naturalized (Baldwin et al. 2012) Northwestern California shares in that abundance and diversity. We estimate that 154 families, 909 genera, and 3735 taxa occur in our region (Smith 2014). -1- Once you have arrived at the family of an unknown dismemberment of Liliaceae into numerous ill-defined flowering plant, turn next to Sections 4, 5, or 6 as and conflicting segregate families. appropriate. The families are arranged alphabetically. A Request. Our goal is to provide users with varying Certain conventions appear in these keys. When you degrees of knowledge of botanical terminology with a find a generic name in parentheses after a family means for the rapid and accurate identification of the name, it indicates that we are referring to that genus higher plants in our region. Any suggestions for only. In a number of instances, a genus is represented improvement are most welcome, as are corrections. If in our region by a single species. If so, we tell you by we have missed any families or genera, we are most citing the full name. The generic name or scientific anxious to know that fact, as well. name of the plant is followed by a common name, in those instances where one enjoys some popularity. Acknowledgments. It is a pleasure to acknowledge Many plants do not have "real" common names and the contributions made through the years by a we have chosen not to invent ones for them. number of individuals. We thank Marc Baker, James Belsher, Linda Barker, Ken Berg, Jane Cole, Joseph We have added a new feature in this edition – Plants DiTomaso, Thomas Duebendorfer, Katie Grenier, Too Distinctive to Require Keying. It is our attempt to Jennifer Whipple Hutchinson, Michael Mesler, and permit the quick identification of plants that are so Thomas Nelson. Lincoln Constance, Lawrence Heckard, unusual that it would seem a shame to have to run and Alan Smith of the University of California, them through a traditional dichotomous key. Berkeley made invaluable criticisms and suggestions. We also thank the curators and staffs of the California Family Names and Concepts. We have elected to Academy of Sciences Herbarium, the Dudley use the more traditional and equally correct names for Herbarium, the Jepson Herbarium, and the University six families (Compositae, Cruciferae, Gramineae, of California, Davis.