A Plan for Plants

Catalina Island Conservancy developed the Rare Plant Conservation Plan for Catalina Island in 2022. The document outlines a plan for rare plant conservation for the next three years using open standards of conservation to ensure that no more plant taxa are severely threatened. In particular, the Conservancy identified our top ten critical rare plants and outlined the best options to save them.

“In creating this plan, we took a deep dive into our rare plants threatened with extirpation or extinction. We assessed key ecological attributes pertaining to the current status of the plants and what our desired outcomes would be so they are no longer of concern,” said Conservancy Conservation Horticulturalist Cayman Lanzone.

The team ranked threats to each identified plant, investigating the scope, severity and irreversibility of these hazards. Browsing, habitat type conversion and invasive species topped the list of risks, which also included temperature increases, drought, how often fires blaze, and more.

The Rare Plant Conservation Plan looks at several interventions to effectively respond to challenges in order to provide a stable future for these precious plants on the Island. These strategies include threat abatement of non-native browsers, restoring grasslands and chapparal, completing restoration sites for specific species, and building a seed bulking facility.

As part of these interventions, the Conservancy recently set up a micropropagation lab and is “beginning to develop protocols for our rarest plants that are having challenges reproducing through traditional means” including the endangered Catalina Island mountain mahogany (Cercocarpus traskiae), said Conservancy Rare Plant Ecologist Kevin Allison. “Nature is dynamic. Therefore, it is important we have a diversified conservation strategy that will ensure the populations of our rare species are resilient to changes in the environment and management resources. New technologies, such as micropropagation, add to our conservation tool belt and allow us to not put all our eggs in one basket when it comes to attempting to continue the survival of a rare species.”

Each objective in the rare plant plan moves the Conservancy closer to our hopeful ultimate impact on Catalina: to ensure that no plant is threatened with extinction or extirpation. “This living document serves as an ambitious step forward in the effort to preserve rare plants on the landscape using habitat restoration, our nursery, and invasive plant control method,” said Acting Director of Conservation Lauren Dennhardt, Ph.D.. We look forward to following the continued rare plant restoration journey on this enchanting island.

Catalina Nightshade (Solanum wallacei)

Catalina Island Mountain Mahogany (Cercocarpus traskiae)

Lyon’s Pentachaeta (Pentachaeta lyonia)

Southern Island Mallow (Malva assurgentiflora ssp. glabra)

Catalina Grass (Dissanthelium californicum)

Santa Catalina Ironwood (Lyonothamnus floribundus ssp. floribundus)

Santa Cruz Island Rockcress (Sibara filifolia)

Santa Catalina Figwort (Scrophularia villosa)

Feltleaf Ceanothus (Ceanothus arboreus)

Island Rush-Rose (Crocanthemum greenei)