The Future of the Santa Cruz Sunflower (Tarplant) and Coastal Prairie

It's Up to Us:

The Future of the Santa Cruz Sunflower (tarplant) and Coastal Prairie

Grey Hayes, PhD Elkhorn Slough Coastal Training Program

1 POGONIP GREENBELT Photo by Don Nielson, courtesy of Santa Cruz City Parks

Photo by Don Nielson, courtesy of Santa Cruz City Parks MOORE CREEK PRESERVE Photo by Don Nielson, courtesy of Santa Cruz City Parks

2 What is the Santa Cruz Sunflower?

Disk flower

Ray flower

J. E.(Jed) and Bonnie McClellan © California Academy of Sciences

3 Photo by Forest Starr and Kim Starr (USGS)

Photo by Forest Starr and Kim Starr (USGS) Photo by Forest Starr and Kim Starr (USGS)

Photo by Forest Starr and Kim Starr (USGS)

4 Charles Webber © California Academy of Sciences Charles Webber © California Academy of Sciences

Photo by Kevin Merk

Disk flower

Ray flower

J. E.(Jed) and Bonnie McClellan © California Academy of Sciences

5 Ray seed

Disk seed

Adult The Life of a Santa Cruz Sunflower Seedling

Seed

6 7 © Vince Scheidt

Walter Knight © California Academy of Sciences

8 Narrow tarplant

Holocarpha virgata ssp. virgata

Holocarpha virgata ssp. elongata

Heerman’s tarweed

Holocarpha heermannii

San Joaquin tarweed Santa Cruz Sunflower

Holocarpha obconica ssp. obconica Holocarpha macradenia and H. o. ssp. autumnalis

No photo available

Photo by Kevin Merk

10 16 Populations

• Watsonville Airport • Buena Vista • Arana Gulch • Spring Hills Golf Course • De Laveaga • Winkle Avenue • Porter Ranch • O’Neil Ranch •Fairway Drive • Harkin Slough • Graham Hill • Tarplant Hill •Apple Hill • Anna Jean Cummings • Twin Lakes • -Wildcat Canyon-

Graham Hill

30 ac private lands under development

Includes 17 ac conservation easement for Santa Cruz Sunflower

De Laveaga Watsonville

State National Private 840 Guard 5 ac City 309 surrounded by city State 56 park Total 1,205

11 East Bay Regional Parks Arana Gulch

City of Santa Cruz 64 ac 130 ac

Twin Lakes Rodeo Gulch and Soquel Rodeo

State Private lands with Parks approved development proposal 26 ac 26 ac Soquel

Private lands 45 ac

County park 55 ac

Porter Gulch Casserly

Private lands Private lands with rural (ranchlands, rural development 15 ac with development, golf conservation course) easement

Land Trust of 1,112 ac Santa Cruz County 20 ac

12 Santa Cruz Gardens Story Elkhorn

Private land (Elkhorn Slough Foundation)

168 ac

What Do Plants Need?

Pollinators

13 Nutrients

Dispersal

14 Water Coastal Prairie

Perched water table

Soil

Groundwater

Bedrock

15 Light Popular Perception of California Grasslands: The Bunchgrasses

With Wildflowers and Without Disturbance Native Annual Grasses

With Disturbance Present Reality

16 All litter removed

Moderate litter

Heavy litter

From Heady, 1956

All litter removed

Moderate litter

Heavy litter

From Heady, 1956

17 Coastal Prairie Why does the Santa Cruz Sunflower grow where it does?

Extent of Coastal Prairie: the Fog Zone

From Barbour and Major (eds.). 1988. Terrestrial Vegetation of California.

Coastal Prairie

18 19 20 What can we do to help protect the Santa Cruz Sunflower?

Seed beater basket

Northwestern University Library Edward S. Curtis's "The North American Indian," 2003. Pomo woman with Burden Basket

Pomo Seed Gathering Utensils, 1924

How many species do YOU need?

Northwestern University Library, Edward S. Curtis's "The North American Indian," 2003.

Help Save Species By:

• Better understanding them Vote for representatives that • Voting for representatives that support species support species conservation conservation

• Working where you live to improve habitat

• Giving to and volunteering for organizations that help save species

21 22 Work where you live to improve habitat

23 24 Give to and volunteer for organizations that help save species

Photo by Don Nielson, courtesy of Santa Cruz City Parks