San Fernando Valley Spineflower
(State) Endangered Species
[Click here for more endangered & threatened species]
Common Name: San Fernando Valley Spineflower Scientific Name: Chorizanthe parryi var. fernandina
Status: Endangered (State of California)
Federal Register: None
Comments: The San Fernando Valley Spineflower, aka San Bernardino Spineflower, an annual herb, is a dicot in the family Polygonaceae and a member of the Coastal Sage Scrub community. It occurs in sandy soil and blooms with white and yellow flowers. It was believed extinct until 1999 when 10,000 examples were discovered in the Newhall Ranch project area of the Santa Clarita Valley, between Interstate 5 and the Ventura County border, and on the Ahmanson Ranch in Ventura County. The California Department of Fish and Game listed flower in June 2000 as a candidate species and on Aug. 23, 2001, as an endangered species, pursuant to Section 1904 (Native Plant Protection Act of 1977) and Section 2074.2 and 2075.5 (California Endangered Species Act of 1984) of the Fish and Game Code. It does not have a federal designation.
Photo: Courtesy of David Magney, David Magney Environmental Consulting,
P.O. Box 1346, Ojai, CA 93024-1346. The specific plants depicted here were collected by Mary Meyer, botanist, California Department of Fish & Game, from Laskey Mesa at the Ahmanson Ranch site.
