Mono and Southeastern Great Basin

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Mono and Southeastern Great Basin 3 •. .,• .{ • ,l<. • --• - • • •• 4:"."".. • 116 •,. California’s Botanical Landscapes - 3 chapter five Mono and Southeastern Great Basin The eastern fringe of California slices The crest of the Sierra Nevada defines Above: The crest of the Sierra off a thin strand at the edge of a vast the western hydrologic edge of the Great Nevada defines the western edge of interior biome, the Great Basin. Often Basin, within which waters drain into the Great Basin in central eastern California. The Mono Basin, characterized as an immense and homo­ interior basins. The entirety of the Sierra with its crown jewel Mono Lake, geneous sagebrush (Artemisia sp.) sea, Nevada was built by similar geologic exemplifies the character of the this region in fact encompasses great forces that created the Great Basin. The California part of this province, topographic, geologic, climatic, and vege­ narrative for vegetation in this chapter with expansive cold-adapted tative diversity, haunting in expansiveness starts with the lower montane (~2,500 m sagebrush steppe intermixed with hardy forbs and grasses. of landscape, surprising in richness of at the latitude of Mono Lake) and basin Robert Wick hidden canyons and wetlands. Long lines bottom environments of the eastern Opposite: A winter evening of basin and range draw the eye outward Sierra Nevada, and goes on to embrace along Hot Creek, with rubber to where land meets sky; wave after wave the entire elevation gradients from basin rabbitbrush and sagebrush of mountain ranges pounding the sage to summits of the mountain ranges east­ spread over rolling hills of the surf. If only a slice, California is fortunate ward to the California-Nevada state Long Valley Caldera. to have what it does of this Great Basin. line. Their names sing of romance Jeff Bisbee Mono and Southeastern Great Basin 117 The great height of the Sierra and adventure: Sweetwater, Bodie, The dominant climate of the Nevada (background) creates Glass, White, Inyo, Grapevine, Coso, California Great Basin is cool and dry a rainshadow effect on lands to Panamint, Amargosa, Argus, Last (annual precipitation ranges from 52 cm the east, leaving the Great Basin Chance, Funeral. Even the most recent­ in northern uplands to 11 cm in south­ much drier than the California floristic province. Both the basin ly named range of the Great Basin, the ern basins), although low basins bor­ floors, such as the Owens Valley Zunamed Mountains (east of Ebbetts dering the Mojave province in the south south of Bishop, and the higher Pass), evokes mystery. Summits extend are warmer and drier. Farther interior slopes, such as the White and from 1,800 m in the smaller ranges to in the Great Basin, continental climates Inyo Mountains, maintain an 4,342 m atop White Mountain Peak in drive very cold winters and hot summers; arid character, and support dry-adapted plants such as the White Mountains, California’s third the California borderlands are mostly cottontop cactus (Echinocactus highest mountain. Basin bottom eleva­ buffered from these extremes. Despite polycephalus). tions generally run higher in the north semi-aridity, the region’s climate is domi­ Robert Wick (above 1,800 m), with southern basins nantly influenced by winter storm tracks averaging about 1000 m. California’s and high pressure originating from the oldest and most important land-sur­ Pacific Ocean and then moving eastward vey reference, the Mt. Diablo Baseline over the Sierra Nevada. Orographic (~38° N), runs through the Mono Basin, effects catalyze waves of precipitation on dividing the region into north and south the west slopes, contrasting with progres­ parts. Taken together, the landscape of sively stronger rain-shadows in the lee of this chapter, hereafter referred to as the mountain crests. The impressive height California Great Basin, includes nearly and location of the Sierra Nevada— 1.9 million ha (4.7 million ac) or 4.6% of as the first major range downwind California’s land area. from Pacific storms—capture and 118 California’s Botanical Landscapes hold precipitation in deep snowpacks. Precipitation declines down the moun­ tains and farther east (e.g., 70 cm annu­ ally at Tioga Pass, 35 cm in the western Mono Basin, and 13 cm in the eastern Mono Basin). Snow falls on the high peaks of the adjacent California Great Basin ranges, but in far lesser amounts than on the Sierra Nevada, leaving the lee mountains to be among the driest in the Great Basin for their latitudes. Secondary climatic influences vary with geography and season. A common winter pattern is the Great Basin High that develops over cold central Nevada. This blocks and diverts Pacific storm tracks northward, leaving the California Great Basin dry, clear, and cold for long periods. In summer, the southern California Great Basin often receives monsoon influence from the Gulf, and convectional forces deliver an artillery of thunderstorms to the uplands through­ out the region. Both result in minor amounts of summer precipitation in the mountains. Occasionally, summer storms stall over the high slopes, driving impres­ sive flash floods down mountain canyons. These environmental forces also shape the region’s vegetation. As elsewhere in California, gradients of climate create repeating changes in vegetation across the California Great Basin. Elevation is commonly associated with changes in climate and vegetation—temperatures being on average colder with increas­ ing altitude. This is not always the case, effects. The degrees of latitude (> 4) Top: Summer convectional storms however, as inversions and other types spanned by the California Great Basin blow up frequently in the California of cold-air drainage—that is, where weave a tapestry of vegetation diversity Great Basin province, delivering welcome rainbursts during the temperatures decrease as elevations from north to south. Northern commu­ otherwise long, dry summers, yet decline—are common. In depressions, nities align more with cold shrub- and also igniting fires in the woodlands valley bottoms, and basins, plant commu­ forest types, while southern communi­ and sagebrush steppe. nities must be able to tolerate super-cold ties border warm deserts and support dry Julie M. Evens temperatures that occasionally develop. scrublands. Finally, changes in substrate Above: Big sagebrush in the Latitude and longitude also correspond create their own repeating patterns of snow- covered Mono Basin. to gradients in climate and vegetation vegetation. In many basins, for instance, Connie Millar response across the region, especially gradual changes in sediment size and in regard to rain shadow and eastward salinity (often the legacy of ancient Mono and Southeastern Great Basin 119 chain is isolated from the Sierra Nevada by the broad, low, and deep Owens Valley, so it reflects a more interior character. Smaller ranges in the south, such as Coso, Last Chance, Funeral, and Grapevine, have vegetation affini­ ties with southern Nevada and Mojave Above: The Racetrack in Death terminal lakes) can create concentric communities. Valley National Park is one of the rings of vegetation. Elsewhere, exposures old lake beds, or playas, occupying of substrates that impose nutrient defi­ Alpine Herbaceous isolated basins of the Great Basin. ciencies and toxicities to plants, such as Communities Todd Keeler-Wolf dolomites and hydrothermally altered Alpine communities—those that Top right: Royal penstemon (Penstemon speciosus) here on soils, define vegetation mosaics that can occur above climatic treeline—clothe Freel Peak in the Carson Range, have extremely abrupt boundaries. those mountains of the California Great joins other showy plants that The California Great Basin abuts Basin that rise above 3,300 m in the north provide a riot of color to the the Sierra Nevada flank at mid-low and above 3,475 m in the south. These alpine zone of the California montane elevations along a broad north- cold, arid environments are dominated Great Basin. south zone. As described in the Sierra primarily by herbaceous species, includ­ Opposite, top: The botanically Nevada chapter, bands of elevational­ ing many bunch grasses and sedges, diverse Sweetwater Mountains, north of Bridgeport, contain a ly-adapted vegetation rise in altitude although some hardy shrubs dot the suite of endemic plants, as well as latitude decreases, making the landscape, especially in sheltered loca­ as species hailing from the Sierra boundary of the Sierra Nevada and tions. Given the harshness of the envi­ Nevada to the west and Great California Great Basin regions higher in ronment, alpine species are specifically Basin provinces to the east. The the south than north. In the north, the adapted to these conditions and many former reflects upland connections among the ranges, which function smaller ranges east of the Sierra, such occur only in these elevations. Species as biogeographic corridors. as the Sweetwater, Zunamed, Bodie that are widespread across elevational Opposite, center: Pacific alpine Hills, and Glass Mountains, do not gradients and creep into the alpine zone gold dances and shimmers on show strong latitudinal effect, but reflect are discussed later. Topography, snow the high slopes of Ferris Canyon east-west rain shadows compounded by accumulation pattern, and soil depth, in the Sweetwater Mountains. biogeographic connections that their impose a patchwork pattern of deep Connie Millar photos west slopes have with the Sierra Nevada. brilliant greens, silvery grays, and cheery The latter provide access of Sierra yellows and
Recommended publications
  • Geologic Map of the Long Valley Caldera, Mono-Inyo Craters
    DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR TO ACCOMPANY MAP 1-1933 US. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY GEOLOGIC MAP OF LONG VALLEY CALDERA, MONO-INYO CRATERS VOLCANIC CHAIN, AND VICINITY, EASTERN CALIFORNIA By Roy A. Bailey GEOLOGIC SETTING VOLCANISM Long Valley caldera and the Mono-Inyo Craters Long Valley caldera volcanic chain compose a late Tertiary to Quaternary Volcanism in the Long Valley area (Bailey and others, volcanic complex on the west edge of the Basin and 1976; Bailey, 1982b) began about 3.6 Ma with Range Province at the base of the Sierra Nevada frontal widespread eruption of trachybasaltic-trachyandesitic fault escarpment. The caldera, an east-west-elongate, lavas on a moderately well dissected upland surface oval depression 17 by 32 km, is located just northwest (Huber, 1981).Erosional remnants of these mafic lavas of the northern end of the Owens Valley rift and forms are scattered over a 4,000-km2 area extending from the a reentrant or offset in the Sierran escarpment, Adobe Hills (5-10 km notheast of the map area), commonly referred to as the "Mammoth embayment.'? around the periphery of Long Valley caldera, and The Mono-Inyo Craters volcanic chain forms a north- southwestward into the High Sierra. Although these trending zone of volcanic vents extending 45 km from lavas never formed a continuous cover over this region, the west moat of the caldera to Mono Lake. The their wide distribution suggests an extensive mantle prevolcanic basement in the area is mainly Mesozoic source for these initial mafic eruptions. Between 3.0 granitic rock of the Sierra Nevada batholith and and 2.5 Ma quartz-latite domes and flows erupted near Paleozoic metasedimentary and Mesozoic metavolcanic the north and northwest rims of the present caldera, at rocks of the Mount Morrisen, Gull Lake, and Ritter and near Bald Mountain and on San Joaquin Ridge Range roof pendants (map A).
    [Show full text]
  • California Pika Consortium Mono Basin- Bodie Hills Field Trip Sunday, July 31, 2011 – Monday, August 1, 2011
    California Pika Consortium Mono Basin- Bodie Hills Field Trip Sunday, July 31, 2011 – Monday, August 1, 2011 Amended with comments and observations in red font after the Field Trip: 13 August 2011 (cim) Field Trip Objectives: Provide a forum for California Pika Consortium (CPC) participants to observe and discuss topics of current interest at key and relevant field sites. In particular, to observe and contrast pika habitat abundance, quality, and connectivity in the Sierra Nevada and Bodie Hills; to visit low-elevation and high-elevation sites typical of the central-eastern Sierra Nevada; to observe and compare anthropogenic habitat (ore dumps) and native talus sites in the Bodie Hills; to discuss the relevance of these observations to climate relationships, talus thermal regimes, dispersal and connectivity (source/sink), population dynamics, and population processes in California and elsewhere in American pika’s range. Agenda Sunday, July 31 (see accompanying Road Log and Maps for specifics) 8:00 am Convene at USFS Mono Basin Scenic Area Visitor Center, consolidate vehicles (don’t forget lunch, snacks, water) 8:15 am Depart Visitor Center for Stops 1-7 Stop 1: Lundy Cyn (short walk) Stop 2: Virginia Lks Cyn Trailhead (short walk) Stop 3: Conway Highlands Overview instead we made a brief stop to “Benjamin Buttes” Stop 4: Bodie Pass – LUNCH (bring your own) Stop 5: Syndicate Mine, Bodie (short walk) Stop 6: Chemung Mine weather did not allow us to visit this site Stop 7: Serrita Mine, New York Hill, Masonic District (short walk) weather did not allow us to visit this site Note: If time gets short, we might forego one or more of the final stops ~ 7pm? Dinner (no host) at Tioga Gas Mart, Tioga Toomey’s Café, 0.25 miles west on SR 120 of junction with US 395.
    [Show full text]
  • Conglomerate Mesa Action Alert Tip Sheet
    Make Your Voice Heard! A public comment period is OPEN for K2 Gold and Mojave Precious Metal’s exploratory drilling at Conglomerate Mesa. They are proposing miles of new road construction and 120 drill holes, spanning 12.1 acres of ancestral tribal lands, cultural resources, scenic landscapes, and threatened habitat. Read below to learn how to submit your public comment before August 30th to protect Conglomerate Mesa from this destructive mining project. Tips For Making Eective Comments Make it personal! Share your story of personal connection to these lands and why you want the area to be protected. Here is a sample letter - please personalize it and make it your own: To Whom it May Concern, I am a resident of [your city] and I strongly oppose K2 Gold’s exploratory drilling project at Conglomerate Mesa. This region is special to me because [insert your special connection to this place, your favorite memories here, etc. - no limit on how much you write! Some examples: ● Conglomerate Mesa is the traditional homelands of the Timbisha Shoshone and Paiute Shoshone Tribal Nations. This area is an important area for pinyon nut harvesting and is one of the many blending zones of transitional territories. Numerous leaders in local tribes have opposed the gold exploration and mining by K2 Gold. I stand united with the Indigenous people in this opposition. ● Conglomerate Mesa is designated as California Desert National Conservation Lands, and these lands are managed to conserve, protect, and restore these nationally signicant ecological, cultural, and scientic values. Mining Conglomerate Mesa would go directly against the intended management of this landscape.
    [Show full text]
  • Yosemite, Lake Tahoe & the Eastern Sierra
    Emerald Bay, Lake Tahoe PCC EXTENSION YOSEMITE, LAKE TAHOE & THE EASTERN SIERRA FEATURING THE ALABAMA HILLS - MAMMOTH LAKES - MONO LAKE - TIOGA PASS - TUOLUMNE MEADOWS - YOSEMITE VALLEY AUGUST 8-12, 2021 ~ 5 DAY TOUR TOUR HIGHLIGHTS w Travel the length of geologic-rich Highway 395 in the shadow of the Sierra Nevada with sightseeing to include the Alabama Hills, the June Lake Loop, and the Museum of Lone Pine Film History w Visit the Mono Lake Visitors Center and Alabama Hills Mono Lake enjoy an included picnic and time to admire the tufa towers on the shores of Mono Lake w Stay two nights in South Lake Tahoe in an upscale, all- suites hotel within walking distance of the casino hotels, with sightseeing to include a driving tour around the north side of Lake Tahoe and a narrated lunch cruise on Lake Tahoe to the spectacular Emerald Bay w Travel over Tioga Pass and into Yosemite Yosemite Valley Tuolumne Meadows National Park with sightseeing to include Tuolumne Meadows, Tenaya Lake, Olmstead ITINERARY Point and sights in the Yosemite Valley including El Capitan, Half Dome and Embark on a unique adventure to discover the majesty of the Sierra Nevada. Born of fire and ice, the Yosemite Village granite peaks, valleys and lakes of the High Sierra have been sculpted by glaciers, wind and weather into some of nature’s most glorious works. From the eroded rocks of the Alabama Hills, to the glacier-formed w Enjoy an overnight stay at a Yosemite-area June Lake Loop, to the incredible beauty of Lake Tahoe and Yosemite National Park, this tour features lodge with a private balcony overlooking the Mother Nature at her best.
    [Show full text]
  • CNPS Bristlecone Chapter Newsletter
    Dedicated to the Preservation of California Native Flora The California Native Plant Society Bristlecone Chapter Newsletter Volume 38, No. 2 March-April 2017 President’s Message March 2017 There is also some correspondence of thanking donors once in a while. If you would like to take on It is raining again today, a strong steady rain. the role, contact Katie at Although the weather has changed my plans about [email protected]. skiing I can only smile and think how the plants must feel soaking up all this much needed moisture. I am “It is the action, not the fruit of the action that's anxious to see how this winter water will affect the important. You have to do the right thing. It may not restoration plantings that were put into the burned be in your power, may not be in your time, that there areas last fall and hope that the added soil moisture will be any fruit. That doesn't mean you stop doing the will increase the success rate of the seedlings. I right thing. You may never know what results come imagine all this water will make for a pretty good from your action. But if you do nothing, there will be no flower season this year as well and we have some result.” — Gandhi good field trips lined up to enjoy the spring bloom; so — Katie Quinlan check those out in this newsletter and mark the dates on your calendars. WeDnesDay, March 29, 7 PM, General Meeting, White Mountain Research Center, To get ready for the spring gardening season we have 3000 E.
    [Show full text]
  • Interest and the Panamint Shoshone (E.G., Voegelin 1938; Zigmond 1938; and Kelly 1934)
    109 VyI. NOTES ON BOUNDARIES AND CULTURE OF THE PANAMINT SHOSHONE AND OWENS VALLEY PAIUTE * Gordon L. Grosscup Boundary of the Panamint The Panamint Shoshone, also referred to as the Panamint, Koso (Coso) and Shoshone of eastern California, lived in that portion of the Basin and Range Province which extends from the Sierra Nevadas on the west to the Amargosa Desert of eastern Nevada on the east, and from Owens Valley and Fish Lake Valley in the north to an ill- defined boundary in the south shared with Southern Paiute groups. These boundaries will be discussed below. Previous attempts to define the Panamint Shoshone boundary have been made by Kroeber (1925), Steward (1933, 1937, 1938, 1939 and 1941) and Driver (1937). Others, who have worked with some of the groups which border the Panamint Shoshone, have something to say about the common boundary between the group of their special interest and the Panamint Shoshone (e.g., Voegelin 1938; Zigmond 1938; and Kelly 1934). Kroeber (1925: 589-560) wrote: "The territory of the westernmost member of this group [the Shoshone], our Koso, who form as it were the head of a serpent that curves across the map for 1, 500 miles, is one of the largest of any Californian people. It was also perhaps the most thinly populated, and one of the least defined. If there were boundaries, they are not known. To the west the crest of the Sierra has been assumed as the limit of the Koso toward the Tubatulabal. On the north were the eastern Mono of Owens River.
    [Show full text]
  • Insights Into Rhyolite Magma Dome Systems Based on Mineral and Whole Rock Compositions at the Mono Craters, Eastern California
    ABSTRACT INSIGHTS INTO RHYOLITE MAGMA DOME SYSTEMS BASED ON MINERAL AND WHOLE ROCK COMPOSITIONS AT THE MONO CRATERS, EASTERN CALIFORNIA The Mono Craters magmatic system, found in a transtensional tectonic setting, consists of small magmatic bodies, dikes, and sills. New sampling of the Mono Craters reveals a wider range of magmatic compositions and a more complex storage and delivery system than heretofore recognized. Space compositional patterns, as well as crystallization temperatures and pressures taken from olivine-, feldspar-, orthopyroxene-, and clinopyroxene-liquid equilibria, are used to create a new model for the Mono Craters magmatic system. Felsic magmas erupted throughout the entire Mono Craters chain, whereas intermediate batches only erupted at Domes 10-12 and 14. Mafic magmas are spatially restricted, having erupted only at Domes 10, 12 and 14. Data from the new whole rock analyses illustrates a linear trend. Fractional crystallization does not replicate this trend but rather the linear trend indicates magma mixing. This study also analyzes samples from the Mono Lake Islands and the June Lake Basalts and compares them to the Mono Craters. Although the Mono Lake Islands fall into the intermediate to felsic group, they contain distinctly higher Al2O3 and Na2O at a given SiO2. Therefore, this study concludes that the Mono Craters represent a distinct magmatic system not directly related to the magmatic activity that created the Mono Lake Islands. Michelle Ranee Johnson May 2017 INSIGHTS INTO RHYOLITE MAGMA DOME SYSTEMS BASED
    [Show full text]
  • Chapter 8 Manzanar
    CHAPTER 8 MANZANAR Introduction The Manzanar Relocation Center, initially referred to as the “Owens Valley Reception Center”, was located at about 36oo44' N latitude and 118 09'W longitude, and at about 3,900 feet elevation in east-central California’s Inyo County (Figure 8.1). Independence lay about six miles north and Lone Pine approximately ten miles south along U.S. highway 395. Los Angeles is about 225 miles to the south and Las Vegas approximately 230 miles to the southeast. The relocation center was named after Manzanar, a turn-of-the-century fruit town at the site that disappeared after the City of Los Angeles purchased its land and water. The Los Angeles Aqueduct lies about a mile to the east. The Works Progress Administration (1939, p. 517-518), on the eve of World War II, described this area as: This section of US 395 penetrates a land of contrasts–cool crests and burning lowlands, fertile agricultural regions and untamed deserts. It is a land where Indians made a last stand against the invading white man, where bandits sought refuge from early vigilante retribution; a land of fortunes–past and present–in gold, silver, tungsten, marble, soda, and borax; and a land esteemed by sportsmen because of scores of lakes and streams abounding with trout and forests alive with game. The highway follows the irregular base of the towering Sierra Nevada, past the highest peak in any of the States–Mount Whitney–at the western approach to Death Valley, the Nation’s lowest, and hottest, area. The following pages address: 1) the physical and human setting in which Manzanar was located; 2) why east central California was selected for a relocation center; 3) the structural layout of Manzanar; 4) the origins of Manzanar’s evacuees; 5) how Manzanar’s evacuees interacted with the physical and human environments of east central California; 6) relocation patterns of Manzanar’s evacuees; 7) the fate of Manzanar after closing; and 8) the impact of Manzanar on east central California some 60 years after closing.
    [Show full text]
  • SOUTHEASTERN INYO Tt;OUNTAINS, CALIFORNIA
    CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, NORTHRIDGE SUPERPOSED MESOZOIC DEFOR~~TIONS~ }) SOUTHEASTERN INYO tt;OUNTAINS, CALIFORNIA A thesis submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of 14aster of Science in Geology by Michael Robert Werner Janu(l.ry 3 i 979 The Thesis of Michael Robert Werner is approved: Or. L. Ehltg}rCSULA) Ca 1i forn i a State Un i vers ·j ty, Northridge ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ~1y respectful thanks to George Dunn£ for suggesting this study and for his helpful comments throughoutthe investigation. I am grateful also to Rick Miller and Perry Eh1ig VJho reviewed the manuscript in various stages of preparation. !'r1y special thanks to my parents for theit~ emotiona1 and 1ogistica·i support, and to Diane Evans who typed the first draft. Calvin Stevens and Duane Cavit, California State University~ San Jose, provided valuable information on stratigraphy; and Jean Ju11iand, geologist of the Desert Plan Staff, BLM, Riverside, made available aerial photographs of the study area.· The Department of Geosciences, California State University. Northridge pi·ovided computer time and financial support. Terry Dunn, CSUN, typed the fina1 manuscript. iii TAaLE OF CONTENTS p~~ ACKNOl~LEDGEHENTS. .. 111 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS . vi ABSTRACT ... vii. INTRODUCTION 1 METHOD • 3 ROCK UNITS •. 5 PALEOZOIC STRATIGRAPHY . 5 Perdido Formation 7 Rest Spring Shale . .. 3 Keeler Canyon Formation 10 Owens Vulley Formation 14 MESOZOIC INTRUSIVE ROCKS . 16 • Hunter Mountain batholith 16 Andes 'ite porphyry di kas 17 CENOZOIC UNITS . 18 STRUCTURJl.L GEOLOGY 19 FOLDS • ~ . 19 Introduction 19 Folds in the Nelson Range . 21 F., - The San Lucas Canyon syncline 2"1 j r2 - Northwest-trending folds 31 Folds aajacent to the Hunter Mountain batholith 37 Folds in the Southeastern Inyo r'Jounta·ins 43 Southwest-trending folds 43 Northwest-trending folds .
    [Show full text]
  • Vascular Plants of Horse Mountain (Humboldt County, California) James P
    Humboldt State University Digital Commons @ Humboldt State University Botanical Studies Open Educational Resources and Data 4-2019 Vascular Plants of Horse Mountain (Humboldt County, 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., "Vascular Plants of Horse Mountain (Humboldt County, California)" (2019). Botanical Studies. 38. https://digitalcommons.humboldt.edu/botany_jps/38 This Flora of Northwest California: Checklists of Local Sites of Botanical Interest 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]. VASCULAR PLANTS OF HORSE MOUNTAIN (HUMBOLDT COUNTY, CALIFORNIA) Compiled by James P. Smith, Jr. & John O. Sawyer, Jr. Department of Biological Sciences Humboldt State University Arcata, California Fourth Edition · 29 April 2019 Horse Mountain (elevation 4952 ft.) is located at 40.8743N, -123.7328 W. The Polystichum x scopulinum · Bristle or holly fern closest town is Willow Creek, about 15 miles to the northeast. Access is via County Road 1 (Titlow Hill Road) off State Route 299. You have now left the Coast Range PTERIDACEAE BRAKE FERN FAMILY and entered the Klamath-Siskiyou Region. The area offers commanding views of Adiantum pedatum var. aleuticum · Maidenhair fern the Pacific Ocean and the Trinity Alps.
    [Show full text]
  • Annotated Checklist of Vascular Flora, Bryce
    National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior Natural Resource Program Center Annotated Checklist of Vascular Flora Bryce Canyon National Park Natural Resource Technical Report NPS/NCPN/NRTR–2009/153 ON THE COVER Matted prickly-phlox (Leptodactylon caespitosum), Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah. Photograph by Walter Fertig. Annotated Checklist of Vascular Flora Bryce Canyon National Park Natural Resource Technical Report NPS/NCPN/NRTR–2009/153 Author Walter Fertig Moenave Botanical Consulting 1117 W. Grand Canyon Dr. Kanab, UT 84741 Sarah Topp Northern Colorado Plateau Network P.O. Box 848 Moab, UT 84532 Editing and Design Alice Wondrak Biel Northern Colorado Plateau Network P.O. Box 848 Moab, UT 84532 January 2009 U.S. Department of the Interior National Park Service Natural Resource Program Center Fort Collins, Colorado The Natural Resource Publication series addresses natural resource topics that are of interest and applicability to a broad readership in the National Park Service and to others in the management of natural resources, including the scientifi c community, the public, and the NPS conservation and environmental constituencies. Manuscripts are peer-reviewed to ensure that the information is scientifi cally credible, technically accurate, appropriately written for the intended audience, and is designed and published in a professional manner. The Natural Resource Technical Report series is used to disseminate the peer-reviewed results of scientifi c studies in the physical, biological, and social sciences for both the advancement of science and the achievement of the National Park Service’s mission. The reports provide contributors with a forum for displaying comprehensive data that are often deleted from journals because of page limitations.
    [Show full text]
  • California Rare & Endagered Birds
    California brown pelican Pelecanus occidentalis californicus State Endangered 1971 Fully Protected Federal Endangered 1970 General Habitat: The California brown pelican uses a variety of natural and human-created sites, including offshore islands and rocks, sand spits, sand bars, jetties, and piers, for daytime loafing and nocturnal roosting. Preferred nesting sites provide protection from mammalian predators and sufficient elevation to prevent flooding of nests. The pelican builds a nest of sticks on the ground, typically on islands or offshore rocks. Their nesting range extends from West Anacapa Island and Santa Barbara Island in Channel Islands National Park to Islas Los Coronados, immediately south of and offshore from San Diego, and Isla San Martín in Baja California Norte, Mexico. Description: The brown pelican is one of two species of pelican in North America; the other is the white pelican. The California brown pelican is a large, grayish-brown bird with a long, pouched bill. The adult has a white head and dark body, but immature birds are dark with a white belly. The brown pelican weighs up to eight pounds and may have a wingspan of seven feet. Brown pelicans dive from flight to capture surface-schooling marine fishes. Status: The California brown pelican currently nests on West Anacapa Island and Santa Barbara Island in Channel Islands National Park. West Anacapa Island is the largest breeding population of California. In Mexico, the pelicans nest on Islas Los Coronados and Isla San Martín. Historically, the brown pelican colony on Islas Los Coronados was as large as, or larger than, that of recent years on Anacapa Island.
    [Show full text]