Discovering a New Endemic

DiscoveringA NEW ENDEMIC

A NEW ENDEMIC

PROTECT

SINCE 1972

Part of the beauty of islands is that when plants are separated from the mainland for a long time, genetic drift occurs. Eventually, plants can become so different from their mainland counterparts that they can be classified as their own endemic species.

“For some botanists, Catalina is a bit of a plant treasure trove,” said Plant Conservation Manager Lauren Dennhardt, Ph.D.

In early April, Conservancy staff collaborated with personnel from Santa Barbara Botanic Garden and the California Native Plant Society to document rare plants all across the Island. The team found and collected a newly described endemic plant species, Cryptantha catalinensis, which may be referred to as Catalina popcorn-flower. This annual herb, a segregate of C. wigginsii, has white blooms with a yellow throat and seems to grow in open chaparral grassland areas.

Future plans likely include collecting seeds, growing more in the Ackerman Native Plant Nursery, documenting where plants are located across the Island and gathering information.“It’s a new endemic, so there is everything to be learned about it,” added Dennhardt.

With this discovery, there are now nine extant endemic plant taxa on Catalina Island. Catalina popcorn-flower was proposed as a new endemic species by Dr. Michael Simpson of San Diego State University.

The goal of the rare plant program is to prevent extinctions of rare species on Catalina. This season, the Conservancy is propagating several interesting, rare species in the Nursery including but not limited to:

Catalina nightshade (Solanum wallacei): This species, also known as Wallace’s nightshade, is an ‘island giant’ with purple flowers and a black fruit that is toxic to humans. It is not poisonous to deer, which have browsed many of the recorded populations. Conservancy Horticulturalist Roya Miller is the first known individual to successfully propagate this rare species using cuttings.

Island rush-rose

(Crocanthemum greenei): This federally-threatened species is a beautiful shrub with yellow flowers. It likes full sun and is threatened by invasive annual grasses. Island rush-rose tends to show up after fires occur. Malva rosa (Lavatera assurgentiflora ssp. glabra): On Catalina, the Channel Islands endemic, also known as southern island mallow, is found on Bird Rock and Indian Rock due to grazing by non-native mule deer. The Conservancy is currently experimenting with propagation through cuttings to work on preserving this rare species, which have been successful so far. 5