Overview
Pine Hill ceanothus is a low-growing mat- to mound-like evergreen shrub with blue-tinged white flowers that grows in gabbro soils.
At the time of listing, Pine Hill ceanothus occurred primarily on the Pine Hill formation in western El Dorado County, California, ranging in elevation from 453 to 2,060 feet. Today, the species is only found in the Pine Hill Preserve and the immediate vicinity.
Threats include alteration of the natural fire regime and encroachment of native plants due to succession. Alteration of the natural fire regime includes fires that occur too frequently, which kill recently germinated plants before they can contribute to the seedbank, and fires that do not occur frequently enough, which fail to provide for the creation of regeneration niches free of shading.
Pine Hill ceanothus was listed as endangered on October 18, 1996.
Scientific Name
Identification Numbers
Characteristics
Physical Characteristics
Pine Hill ceanothus is a prostrate evergreen shrub of the buckthorn family that generally grows to 9.8 feet in diameter. The smooth gray-brown branches radiate from a central axis and root when they come into contact with the ground. Its leaves are semi-erect with smooth-edged margins. Small whitish flowers tinged with blue appear from March through June. Its fruit is a generally not horned, globe-shaped capsule.
Habitat
Pine Hill ceanothus occurs exclusively on gabbro soils in chaparral and woodland vegetation communities in the Central Sierra Nevada foothills in California.
Land on which the natural dominant plant forms are grasses and forbs.
A dense growth of trees and underbrush covering a large tract.
Environments influenced by humans in a less substantial way than cities. This can include agriculture, silvaculture, aquaculture, etc.
Life Cycle
Flower, and or, fruit development in this species is negatively affected by canopy shading. Unlike most chaparral shrub species, Pine Hill ceanothus will not resprout from a caudex, which is a woody axis that comprises the stem and root, after a fire, and therefore, depends on nearby plants connected via branch layering for survival or the seedbank for re-establishment. There is reason to believe that seeds can survive at least 80 years in the seedbank. Hot, and or cold, stratification, but not necessarily fire, seems to be required for germination. Because juvenile plants do not begin flowering until 5 to 6 years after fire, populations need a fire-free period of at least 6 years to replenish the seed bank, otherwise populations may be permanently lost.
Timeline
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