Abies Bracteata Revised 2011 1 Abies Bracteata (D. Don) Poit
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Lead Forest: Los Padres National Forest Forest Service Endemic: No Abies bracteata (D. Don) Poit. (bristlecone fir) Known Potential Synonym: Abies venusta (Douglas ex Hook.) K. Koch; Pinus bracteata D. Don; Pinus venusta Douglas ex Hook (Tropicos 2011). Table 1. Legal or Protection Status (CNDDB 2011, CNPS 2011, and Other Sources). Federal Listing Status; State Heritage Rank California Rare Other Lists Listing Status Plant Rank None; None G2/S2.3 1B.3 USFS Sensitive Plant description: Abies bracteata (Pinaceae) (Fig. 1) is a perennial monoecious plant with trunks longer than 55 m and less than 1.3 m wide. The branches are more-or-less drooping, and the bark is thin. The twigs are glabrous, and the buds are 1-2.5 cm long, sharp-pointed, and non- resinous. The leaves are less than 6 cm long, are dark green, faintly grooved on their upper surfaces, and have tips that are sharply spiny. Seed cones are less than 9 cm long with stalks that are under15 mm long. The cones have bracts that are spreading, exserted, and that are 1.5–4.5 cm long with a slender spine at the apex. Taxonomy: Abies bracteata is a fir species and a member of the pine family (Pinaceae). Out of the fir species growing in North America (Griffin and Critchfield 1976), Abies bracteata has the smallest range and is the least abundant. Identification: Many features of A. bracteata can be used to distinguish this species from other conifers, including the sharp-tipped needles, thin bark, club-shaped crown, non-resinous buds, and exserted spine tipped bracts (Gymnosperms Database 2010). Figure 1. Abies bracteata. Photo Credit: © Br. Alfred Brousseau, Saint General distribution: Abies bracteata is endemic to the Santa Lucia Range of Monterey and Mary's College. northern San Luis Obispo Counties (Griffin 1993, CNPS 2011). The species is narrowly distributed in an area about 13 miles wide by 55 miles long on lands mostly managed by Los Padres National Forest (Fig. 2). Distribution in the Planning Area: There are 10 occurrences of A. bracteata on the Los Padres National Forest (Fig. 2). The occurrences are at Cone Peak; between the headwaters of Vicente Creek and the upper part of the west fork of Limekilm Creek; along Spruce Creek Canyon, Cone Peak, Logwood Canyon, Miller Canyon, Arroyo Seco River, Big Creek, growing on the west slopes of the Santa Lucia Mountains; and the ridge north of Church Creek (Table 2). 2 DOD 1 Habitat description: Abies bracteata is known to occur in habitat associations of broadleaf upland forest, chaparral, and lower montane coniferous forest at elevations of 183-1600 meters (CNPS 2011). Stands are generally found along coastal drainages and in relatively inaccessible areas such as on steep north- or east-facing slopes, along ridges, cliff ledges, in canyon bottoms, and on raised stream benches and terraces. Abies bracteata is always found within 13 miles of the seacoast. Associated species: Acer macrophyllum, Alnus rhombifolia, Arbutus menziesii, Calocedrus decurrens, Lithocarpus densiflorus, Pinus coulteri, P. lambertiana, P. ponderosa, Platanus racemosa, Quercus agrifolia, Q. chrysolepis, Q. kelloggi, Q. wislizenii, Sequoia sempervirens, and Umbellularia californica. Occurrence status and population trends: There are 18 documented Figure 2. Distribution of Abies bracteata (bristlecone fir) in occurrences of A. bracteata (CNDDB 2011). The number of California. Occurrences are shown by numbered red points. individuals observed in occurrences does not appear to be extremely National Forest lands are shaded in green. low, although many sites have not been recently observed, so population trends are difficult to discern at this time due to limited information. Abies bracteata Revised 2011 1 Lead Forest: Los Padres National Forest Forest Service Endemic: No Threats or other information: Abies bracteata is threatened by military operations at Ft. Hunter Liggett (EO05). Non-native plants are the primary threat to A. bracteata (CNPS 2011). The rhizomatous shrub French broom (Genista monspessulana) is particularly invasive, directly competes with seedlings of Santa Lucia fir, and is difficult to eradicate once established (Stephenson and Calcarone 1999). Because A. bracteata primarily grows in areas designated as Wilderness or in areas that are largely inaccessible to humans, and because livestock/fuels management rarely occurs in occupied habitat, Forest Service management activities have little or no impact on A. bracteata. This species has long been recognized as a species at risk due to its narrow distribution and susceptibility to cone parasites. Many of the seeds produced by A. bracteata are destroyed through predation by a seed chalcid wasp (genus Megastigmus). It is not known if seed predation is limiting recruitment of new trees into current stands. Based on physical characteristics of the sites A. bracteata occupies (i.e., rocky areas with low fuel loads), it is generally regarded as fire-intolerant; the Wild Cattle fire damaged a stand of A. bracteata in 1996, killing several trees (Painter 2004) and several stands were damaged or destroyed in the Basin fire of 2008 (Lloyd Simpson, per. obs.). Some mature stands, however, have survived wildland fires (Stephenson and Calcarone 1999). Talley (1974) examined the fire history of the species and determined that there were no differences between past and present fire intensities within stands, despite changing fire regimes in California. Table 2. Occurrences of Abies bracteata. The EO numbers correspond with the labeled locations in Figure 2. (PVT=private, LPNF=Los Padres National Forest, DOD=Department of Defense, DPR=Department of Parks and Recreation, FHL=Fort Hunter Liggett, PBSSP=Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park, MO=military operations; UNK=unknown). Land EO County Quad Date (M/D/Y) Location Elev (ft) Threats General Comments Manager "ONE GROUP OF ~100 ARROYO DE LA CRUZ, LARGE TREES MAY DOWNSTREAM FROM ACTUALLY BE LESS THAN 1 SLO San Simeon UNK MARMOLEJO FLAT. PVT 600 1500' IN ELEVATION". TRIBUTARY TO ESTRADA CREEK, 2.0 ~70 TREES IN 1968 AND MILES E OF SAN 1969. PER HAVLIK, SITE Burnett 6/18/ CARPOFORO CREEK, MAY HAVE BEEN 2 SLO Peak 1969 SANTA LUCIA RANGE. UNK 1200 DISCOVERED IN 1930 SPRUCE CREEK PER HAVLIK, 2004, ~100 CANYON, ABOUT 1.5 TREES WITH MANY SMALL MILES E OF ITS ONES COMING UP; SITE Burro 6/15/ JUNCTION WTIH SHOWS NO EVIDENCE OF 3 Monterey Mountain 1969 SALMON CREEK. LPNF 1500 FIRE FOR MANY YEARS. SAN CARPOFORO CREEK, JUST BELOW THE CONFLUENCE OF UNK NUMBER OF PLANTS Burro WAGNER CREEK AND IN 1912 AND 1969. ~50-60 4 Monterey Mountain 9/2/1968 DAVIS CANYON. UNK 1200 PLANTS IN 1968. SAN MIGUEL CREEK (CANADA DE LOS POTRANCHOS), ABOUT PART OF SITE BURNED IN 4.2 AIR MILES SE OF 1996, KILLING A FEW Cape San 4/27/ CHALK PEAK, AND 4.0 Military TREES. LESS THAN 100 5 Monterey Martin 1997 MILES E OF HWY 1. FHL 2400 operations PLANTS IN 1997. 1971 COLLECTION BY BROWN "ARROYO SECO ROAD AT HEADWATERS OF ARROYO SECO CREEK". NEAR SANTA LUCIA ONE SMALL TREE SEEN BY CAMP, ARROYO SECO BROWN IN 1971. UNK 8/18/ RIVER, SANTA LUCIA NUMBER OF PLANTS IN 6 Monterey Cone Peak 1927 MOUNTAINS. LPNF 2200 1927 AND 1973. 1927 COLLECTION BY UPPER ARROYO SECO, HOWELL AND 1930 9/10/ SANTA LUCIA COLLECTION BY MASON 7 Monterey Cone Peak 1934 MOUNTAINS. LPNF 2250 UNK NUMBER OF PLANTS SEVERAL COLLECTIONS, FROM THE N-SIDE, E-SIDE, NEAR ROAD, AND SUMMIT 4/23/ CONE PEAK, SANTA OF CONE PEAK. ONE TREE 8 Monterey Cone Peak 1982 LUCIA MOUNTAINS. LPNF 3600 IN 1959, 1961 AND 1982. UPPER REACHES OF BIG CREEK, W SLOPES 8/13/ OF THE SANTA LUCIA UNK NUMBER OF PLANTS 9 Monterey Lopez Point 1903 MOUNTAINS. LPNF 2800 IN 1903. ~650' UPSTREAM FROM Tassajara 6/27/ ZIGZAG UNKNUMBER OF PLANTS 10 Monterey Hot Springs 1974 CAMPGROUND, AND LPNF 2600 IN 1974. Abies bracteata Revised 2011 2 Lead Forest: Los Padres National Forest Forest Service Endemic: No Land EO County Quad Date (M/D/Y) Location Elev (ft) Threats General Comments Manager 1300' DOWNSTREAM FROM CONFLUENCE W/ CAMP CREEK. PER STEWART, 1942, "LARGE GROVE OF TREES GROWING ALONG LOGWOOD CANYON, STREAM, W/ ABUNDANT Partington ABOUT 6.0 MILES SE SEEDLINGS". UNKNUMBER 11 Monterey Ridge 9/9/1969 OF PFEIFFER LPNF 2000 OF PLANTS IN 1969. Sycamore 6/19/ TWIN PEAKS, SANTA UNK NUMBER OF PLANTS 12 Monterey Flat 1901 LUCIA MOUNTAINS. UNK 3985 IN 1901. NEAR SUMMIT ABOVE JAMESBURG ON TASSAJARA ROAD, LOCATION VAGUE. 0.25 MILE FROM ANASTASIA CANYON ~1.0 BRUCE RANCH, MILE E OF TASSAJARA Chews 6/26/ BRANCH OF ROAD N OF BRUCE RANCH. 13 Monterey Ridge 1915 ANASTASIA CANYON. UNK 2800 UNK NUMBER OF PLANTS. 1.25 MI. DOWN MILLER CANYON FROM CHINESE (CHINA) Chews CAMP, SANTA LUCIA 14 Monterey Ridge 06/1969 MOUNTAINS. LPNF 1000 UNK NUMBER OF PLANTS. 2.0 MILES W OF CHINA CAMP, JUST BELOW TRAIL ALONG RIDGE Chews 7/21/ N OF CHURCH CREEK, UNK NUMBER OF PLANTS 15 Monterey Ridge 1957 SANTA LUCIA RANGE. LPNF 4000 IN 1941 AND 1957. Pfeiffer UNKNUMBER OF PLANTS 16 Monterey Point 9/6/1926 BIG SUR. PBSSP 300 IN 1926. BETWEEN HEADWATERS OF ONLY INFORMATION VICENTE CREEK AND REFERENCE TO THE UPPER PART OF COLLECTION IN CA OCC. 11/9/ THE W FORK OF DATABASE. UNK NUMBER 17 Monterey Lopez Point 1980 LIMEKILM CREEK. LPNF 2500 OF PLANTS NEAR COAST RIDGE RD, 0.1 MILE W OF BASKET SPRINGS, AND 1.7 MILES NNE OF 18 Monterey Alder Peak 4/5/1996 ALDER PEAK FHL 3200 Literature Cited: California Native Plant Society (CNPS). 2011. Online Inventory of Rare and Endangered Plants Sacramento, CA: California Native Plant Society. Available at: http://northcoastcnps.org/cgi-bin/inv/inventory.cgi California Natural Diversity Database (CNDDB).