Plant Guide for Waterline Road to Lomas Trail, Santa Rosa Plateau

Plant Guide for Waterline Road to Lomas Trail, Santa Rosa Plateau

This is a working list, about which I make no guarantees at all until I officially release it. Use at your own risk!

Introduction and Explanation of Plant Trail Guides
Introduction
Highlights of This Trail
Fieldwork Dates and Summary of List Changes With Time
The Plant Guide
Comments On Specific Species
Introduction

This trail begins immediately southeast of the Visitor Center.
Highlights of This Trail

The botanical highlights of this trail are:

Number of Unique Taxa On This Trail

The following histogram gives the number of trails in my database that contain each taxon on this trail. There were 84 trails in my database when this histogram was made; 14 of those trails, including this one, are at the Santa Rosa Plateau Ecological Reserve. A number of "1" means the taxon has only been found only on this list, among all the trails in my database; numbers of "14" or smaller may indicate taxa found only in this area.

Number of Trails
Containing A Taxon Number Of Taxa
On This Trail % of Taxa
On This Trail
1 1 1%
2 2 3%
3 3 4%
4 1 1%
5 3 4%

1-5 10 14%
6-10 14 19%
11-15 10 14%
16-20 8 11%
21-25 7 10%
26-30 5 7%
31-35 6 8%
36-40 6 8%
41-45 5 7%
46-50 2 3%
Total Taxa 73 100%

I found 9 additional species not in the above table, since they have not been fully identified yet. The unidentified ones are marked with ? or sp in the id? column in the guide, and have no entries in the #all column.
Fieldwork Dates and Summary of List Changes With Time

The following table gives the dates the trail was walked and taxa recorded. After each visit, the table gives the total number of taxa on the list and the breakdown of the taxa without positive identification. See Explanation of Plant Trail Guides to understand the symbols below.

Visit Date Visit # # taxa # "?" # "sp" # "~" # "ssp"
11/2/2002 1 67 3 7 6 1
12/22/2003 2 77 4 5 9 3
6/19/2004 3 82 4 6 10 3

Only the drainage at mile 0.54 was surveyed on 6/19/04.
The Plant Guide

Version for printing, without lines and other text on this page (4 pages)

Mile S # id? Common Name Latin Name #here #all
0.00 Beginning of Waterline Road next to Visitor Center at Gate; elevation 1760 feet (536 m)
0.00 l 1 toyon Heteromeles arbutifolia⁺ / 41
0.00 l 2 ~ showy penstemon Penstemon spectabilis var. spectabilis⁺ / 10
0.00 l 3 ? ash? Fraxinus sp.?⁺ /
0.00 r 4 California-aster Lessingia filaginifolia var. filaginifolia / 46
0.00 r 5 Torrey's scrub oak Quercus acutidens⁺ / 21
0.00 r 6 saw-toothed goldenbush Hazardia squarrosa var. grindelioides / 32
0.00 r 7 *soft chess Bromus hordeaceus / 34
0.00 r 8 bristly bird's beak Cordylanthus rigidus ssp. setigerus / 25
0.00 r 9 *red brome Bromus madritensis ssp. rubens / 43
0.00 r 10 blue wildrye Elymus glaucus ssp. glaucus / 17
0.00 r 11 chamise Adenostoma fasciculatum / 34
0.00 r 12 coast live oak Quercus agrifolia var. agrifolia / 39
0.01 13 broom snakeweed Gutierrezia sarothrae / 4
0.01 r 14 San Diego tarweed Hemizonia paniculata / 7
0.01 15 *tocalote Centaurea melitensis / 39
0.01 r 16 *nit grass Gastridium ventricosum / 19
0.02 l Note the unusual "row" of tree-like Torrey's scrub oak, Quercus acutidens. Although they might be mistaken as Engelmanns from their height, they all have multiple trunks and none have Engelmann hairs on their leaves.
0.02 r 17 southern honeysuckle Lonicera subspicata var. denudata / 37
0.02 r 18 California buckwheat Eriogonum fasciculatum var. foliolosum / 45
0.02 Natural (non-planted) toyon, Heteromeles arbutifolia.
0.02 19 hollyleaf redberry Rhamnus ilicifolia / 39
0.02 20 *narrowleaf filago Filago gallica / 35
0.03 21 golden yarrow Eriophyllum confertiflorum var. confertiflorum / 49
0.03 22 ~ *ripgut brome Bromus diandrus / 44
0.03 23 ~ small-flowered melica Melica imperfecta / 35
0.04 24 ssp deerweed Lotus scoparius / 7
0.04 25 ~ southern Indian pink Silene laciniata ssp. major / 15
0.05 26 sp popcorn flower Cryptantha sp. /
0.06 27 *shortpod mustard Hirschfeldia incana / 45
0.06 28 ~ *bull thistle Cirsium vulgare / 15
0.07 l Jct. shortcut to Granite Loop Trail
0.07 29 vinegar weed Trichostema lanceolatum / 7
0.08 r Jct. animal path
0.09 r 30 *yellow salsify Tragopogon dubius / 7
0.09 b (deergrass, Muhlenbergia rigens)
0.10 31 sp wild oats Avena sp. /
0.11 r 32 *prickly lettuce Lactuca serriola / 32
0.11 r 33 sp needlegrass Nassella sp. /
0.14 l 34 deergrass Muhlenbergia rigens / 15
0.16 35 western ragweed Ambrosia psilostachya / 29
0.18 r 36 Engelmann oak Quercus engelmannii / 19
0.19 b Jct. Granite Loop Trail.
0.19 l 37 *pineapple weed Chamomilla suaveolens / 14
0.19 r Sign: "Mountain Lion..."
0.21 r (Palmer's goldenbush, Ericameria palmeri var. pachylepis)
0.21 38 dove weed Eremocarpus setigerus / 19
0.21 l 39 arroyo willow Salix lasiolepis / 30
0.21 l 40 mugwort Artemisia douglasiana / 25
0.22 r 41 horseweed Conyza canadensis / 27
0.22 b 42 cocklebur Xanthium strumarium / 12
0.22 Cross drainage.
0.22 l (mule fat, Baccharis salicifolia)
0.24 l 43 spike primrose Epilobium densiflorum / 3
0.26 44 ? saltgrass?
0.26 45 Indian milkweed Asclepias eriocarpa / 10
0.26 r 46 creeping wild rye Leymus triticoides / 8
0.26 r 47 goldenrod Solidago californica / 28
0.29 48 poison oak Toxicodendron diversilobum / 37
0.30 49 ? leafy daisy?
0.31 ~ 50 *curly dock Rumex crispus / 18
0.36 l (branching phacelia, Phacelia ramosissima var. latifolia)
0.37 51 sp *short-fruited filaree Erodium brachycarpum / 13
0.38 l 52 triangular-fruit sedge Carex triquetra / 12
0.40 53 Pomona locoweed Astragalus pomonensis / 7
0.41 r (giant wild-rye, Leymus condensatus)
0.42 l 54 rattlesnake weed Daucus pusillus / 21
0.43 55 sp Mariposa lily Calochortus sp. /
0.46 Shrubs with beautiful oakmoss lichen, Evernia prunastri, on left.
0.47 Jct. use trail to bathroom bush on left.
0.51 r 56 basketbush Rhus trilobata / 17
0.51 r 57 California fuchsia Epilobium canum ssp. canum / 14
0.52 l 58 seaside heliotrope Heliotropium curassavicum / 7
0.53 r 59 Palmer's goldenbush Ericameria palmeri var. pachylepis / 5
0.53 c 60 *bermuda grass Cynodon dactylon / 21
0.53 r 61 canchalagua Centaurium venustum / 5
0.53 r 62 ~ umbrella sedge Cyperus eragrostis / 7
0.53 r 63 ~ floriferous monkeyflower Mimulus floribundus / 2
0.53 r 64 *sourclover Melilotus indicus / 17
0.53 r 65 Mexican rush Juncus mexicanus / 12
0.54 Cross drainage.
0.54 l 66 sp cattail Typha sp. /
0.54 r 67 ~ *rabbits-foot grass Polypogon monspeliensis / 15
0.54 l 68 ? tule? Scirpus sp.? /
0.54 r 69 rigid hedge-nettle Stachys ajugoides var. rigida / 5
0.54 r 70 southern skullcap Scutellaria bolanderi ssp. austromontana / 2
0.54 r 71 *common plantain Plantago major / 6
0.54 r 72 *spearmint Mentha spicata var. spicata / 3
0.55 r 73 narrow-leaf milkweed Asclepias fascicularis / 6
0.55 74 bird's-foot fern Pellaea mucronata var. mucronata / 25
0.60 Jct. tree growing in 6" crack in large boulder. The crack was probably significantly widened by the tree's roots.
0.61 l ~ (white-flowering currant, Ribes indecorum)
0.61 75 ~ Vasey's prickly-pear Opuntia vaseyi / 23
0.61 Jct. use trail to left.
0.66 l 76 sticky tarweed Holocarpha virgata ssp. elongata / 6
0.66 l 77 San Diego wreathplant Stephanomeria diegensis / 17
0.69 l (Tree with ~7 big crown galls, looking like large cancer tumors)
0.75 l ssp (white everlasting, Gnaphalium canescens ssp. microcephalum)
0.83 Jct. beautiful old Coast Live Oak defaced in 2002 by large initials in bark. This may seriously hurt the tree by interrupting its vascular flow.
0.84 Jct. Tenaja Truck Trail; elevation ~1780 feet (542 m); go right.
0.87 r 78 hook three-awn Aristida ternipes var. hamulosa / 1
0.88 r 79 ssp white everlasting Gnaphalium canescens ssp. microcephalum / 36
0.96 r 80 telegraph weed Heterotheca grandiflora / 28
1.07 Road curves right 45°
1.40 81 bristly goldenaster Heterotheca sessiliflora ssp. echioides / 7
1.50 Big turnout on left side of road.
1.57 82 Siskiyou aster Aster lanceolatus ssp. hesperius / 3
1.61 Jct. Lomas Trail on left; road to old main entrance gate on right; elevation ~1790 feet (545 m). End Plant Guide.

Comments On Specific Species

Heteromeles arbutifolia, Penstemon sp., and Fraxinus sp.?. These specimens are planted.
Quercus acutidens. Most botanists would call the scrub oaks at the Santa Rosa Plateau Q. berberidifolia and hybrids with Q. engelmannii, without actually keying them out or studying them, since that is the conventional wisdom. However, that identification is unsatisfactory in a number of ways:

There are very few plants that key to Q. berberidifolia using either the JM or Roberts key, due to the size, shape and toothedness of the leaves. Further, some of the plants that do key to Q. berberidifolia turn out to have Q. engelmannii hairs on their leaves! The presence of those hairs is naturally explained by the putative origin of Q. acutidens as a ancient cross, or multiple ancient crosses, of an ancient scrub oak with Q. engelmannii. The species itself is then simply naturally variable in how it expresses the Engelmann hairs.
Invoking the magic wand of the word hybridization with Q. engelmannii to explain the vast majority of the plants that don't key to Q. berberidifolia is a very poor fit to the observed plants. In addition to the problem posed by the most scrub-oak-like specimens having Englemann hairs in their leaves, some of the most tree-like specimens with the most Engelmann-like leaves have no Engelmann hairs on their leaves.
These plants cannot be hybrids in the traditional sense of resulting from a single cross between Q. berberidifolia and Q. engelmannii, since they are not few in number resulting from a cross between nearby parents. The alternative explanation, that of a hybrid swarm, is also untenable, since there is no gradation in form over all of Southern California. That is, there is no portion of the physical distribution swarm that is more Engelmann-like, and no portion that is more scrub-oak-like.
These plants behave like a single species all over their range in Southern California, with the full range of variation in this species seen in small areal patches.

In contrast, these plants all fit perfectly with all the other Q. acutidens I've observed in Southern California. See my unfinished article on Scrub Oaks for more information.
I thank Jane Strong for her considerable assistance with helping me to learn the plants of the Santa Rosa Plateau.

Number of Trails Containing A Taxon	Number Of Taxa On This Trail	% of Taxa On This Trail
1	1	1%
2	2	3%
3	3	4%
4	1	1%
5	3	4%

1-5	10	14%
6-10	14	19%
11-15	10	14%
16-20	8	11%
21-25	7	10%
26-30	5	7%
31-35	6	8%
36-40	6	8%
41-45	5	7%
46-50	2	3%
Total Taxa	73	100%

Visit Date	Visit #	# taxa	# "?"	# "sp"	# "~"	# "ssp"
11/2/2002	1	67	3	7	6	1
12/22/2003	2	77	4	5	9	3
6/19/2004	3	82	4	6	10	3

Mile	S	#	id?	Common Name	Latin Name	#here	#all
0.00				Beginning of Waterline Road next to Visitor Center at Gate; elevation 1760 feet (536 m)
0.00	l	1		toyon	Heteromeles arbutifolia⁺	/	41
0.00	l	2	~	showy penstemon	Penstemon spectabilis var. spectabilis⁺	/	10
0.00	l	3	?	ash?	Fraxinus sp.?⁺	/
0.00	r	4		California-aster	Lessingia filaginifolia var. filaginifolia	/	46
0.00	r	5		Torrey's scrub oak	Quercus acutidens⁺	/	21
0.00	r	6		saw-toothed goldenbush	Hazardia squarrosa var. grindelioides	/	32
0.00	r	7		*soft chess	Bromus hordeaceus	/	34
0.00	r	8		bristly bird's beak	Cordylanthus rigidus ssp. setigerus	/	25
0.00	r	9		*red brome	Bromus madritensis ssp. rubens	/	43
0.00	r	10		blue wildrye	Elymus glaucus ssp. glaucus	/	17
0.00	r	11		chamise	Adenostoma fasciculatum	/	34
0.00	r	12		coast live oak	Quercus agrifolia var. agrifolia	/	39
0.01		13		broom snakeweed	Gutierrezia sarothrae	/	4
0.01	r	14		San Diego tarweed	Hemizonia paniculata	/	7
0.01		15		*tocalote	Centaurea melitensis	/	39
0.01	r	16		*nit grass	Gastridium ventricosum	/	19
0.02	l			Note the unusual "row" of tree-like Torrey's scrub oak, Quercus acutidens. Although they might be mistaken as Engelmanns from their height, they all have multiple trunks and none have Engelmann hairs on their leaves.
0.02	r	17		southern honeysuckle	Lonicera subspicata var. denudata	/	37
0.02	r	18		California buckwheat	Eriogonum fasciculatum var. foliolosum	/	45
0.02				Natural (non-planted) toyon, Heteromeles arbutifolia.
0.02		19		hollyleaf redberry	Rhamnus ilicifolia	/	39
0.02		20		*narrowleaf filago	Filago gallica	/	35
0.03		21		golden yarrow	Eriophyllum confertiflorum var. confertiflorum	/	49
0.03		22	~	*ripgut brome	Bromus diandrus	/	44
0.03		23	~	small-flowered melica	Melica imperfecta	/	35
0.04		24	ssp	deerweed	Lotus scoparius	/	7
0.04		25	~	southern Indian pink	Silene laciniata ssp. major	/	15
0.05		26	sp	popcorn flower	Cryptantha sp.	/
0.06		27		*shortpod mustard	Hirschfeldia incana	/	45
0.06		28	~	*bull thistle	Cirsium vulgare	/	15
0.07	l			Jct. shortcut to Granite Loop Trail
0.07		29		vinegar weed	Trichostema lanceolatum	/	7
0.08	r			Jct. animal path
0.09	r	30		*yellow salsify	Tragopogon dubius	/	7
0.09	b			(deergrass, Muhlenbergia rigens)
0.10		31	sp	wild oats	Avena sp.	/
0.11	r	32		*prickly lettuce	Lactuca serriola	/	32
0.11	r	33	sp	needlegrass	Nassella sp.	/
0.14	l	34		deergrass	Muhlenbergia rigens	/	15
0.16		35		western ragweed	Ambrosia psilostachya	/	29
0.18	r	36		Engelmann oak	Quercus engelmannii	/	19
0.19	b			Jct. Granite Loop Trail.
0.19	l	37		*pineapple weed	Chamomilla suaveolens	/	14
0.19	r			Sign: "Mountain Lion..."
0.21	r			(Palmer's goldenbush, Ericameria palmeri var. pachylepis)
0.21		38		dove weed	Eremocarpus setigerus	/	19
0.21	l	39		arroyo willow	Salix lasiolepis	/	30
0.21	l	40		mugwort	Artemisia douglasiana	/	25
0.22	r	41		horseweed	Conyza canadensis	/	27
0.22	b	42		cocklebur	Xanthium strumarium	/	12
0.22				Cross drainage.
0.22	l			(mule fat, Baccharis salicifolia)
0.24	l	43		spike primrose	Epilobium densiflorum	/	3
0.26		44	?	saltgrass?
0.26		45		Indian milkweed	Asclepias eriocarpa	/	10
0.26	r	46		creeping wild rye	Leymus triticoides	/	8
0.26	r	47		goldenrod	Solidago californica	/	28
0.29		48		poison oak	Toxicodendron diversilobum	/	37
0.30		49	?	leafy daisy?
0.31	~	50		*curly dock	Rumex crispus	/	18
0.36	l			(branching phacelia, Phacelia ramosissima var. latifolia)
0.37		51	sp	*short-fruited filaree	Erodium brachycarpum	/	13
0.38	l	52		triangular-fruit sedge	Carex triquetra	/	12
0.40		53		Pomona locoweed	Astragalus pomonensis	/	7
0.41	r			(giant wild-rye, Leymus condensatus)
0.42	l	54		rattlesnake weed	Daucus pusillus	/	21
0.43		55	sp	Mariposa lily	Calochortus sp.	/
0.46				Shrubs with beautiful oakmoss lichen, Evernia prunastri, on left.
0.47				Jct. use trail to bathroom bush on left.
0.51	r	56		basketbush	Rhus trilobata	/	17
0.51	r	57		California fuchsia	Epilobium canum ssp. canum	/	14
0.52	l	58		seaside heliotrope	Heliotropium curassavicum	/	7
0.53	r	59		Palmer's goldenbush	Ericameria palmeri var. pachylepis	/	5
0.53	c	60		*bermuda grass	Cynodon dactylon	/	21
0.53	r	61		canchalagua	Centaurium venustum	/	5
0.53	r	62	~	umbrella sedge	Cyperus eragrostis	/	7
0.53	r	63	~	floriferous monkeyflower	Mimulus floribundus	/	2
0.53	r	64		*sourclover	Melilotus indicus	/	17
0.53	r	65		Mexican rush	Juncus mexicanus	/	12
0.54				Cross drainage.
0.54	l	66	sp	cattail	Typha sp.	/
0.54	r	67	~	*rabbits-foot grass	Polypogon monspeliensis	/	15
0.54	l	68	?	tule?	Scirpus sp.?	/
0.54	r	69		rigid hedge-nettle	Stachys ajugoides var. rigida	/	5
0.54	r	70		southern skullcap	Scutellaria bolanderi ssp. austromontana	/	2
0.54	r	71		*common plantain	Plantago major	/	6
0.54	r	72		*spearmint	Mentha spicata var. spicata	/	3
0.55	r	73		narrow-leaf milkweed	Asclepias fascicularis	/	6
0.55		74		bird's-foot fern	Pellaea mucronata var. mucronata	/	25
0.60				Jct. tree growing in 6" crack in large boulder. The crack was probably significantly widened by the tree's roots.
0.61	l		~	(white-flowering currant, Ribes indecorum)
0.61		75	~	Vasey's prickly-pear	Opuntia vaseyi	/	23
0.61				Jct. use trail to left.
0.66	l	76		sticky tarweed	Holocarpha virgata ssp. elongata	/	6
0.66	l	77		San Diego wreathplant	Stephanomeria diegensis	/	17
0.69	l			(Tree with ~7 big crown galls, looking like large cancer tumors)
0.75	l		ssp	(white everlasting, Gnaphalium canescens ssp. microcephalum)
0.83				Jct. beautiful old Coast Live Oak defaced in 2002 by large initials in bark. This may seriously hurt the tree by interrupting its vascular flow.
0.84				Jct. Tenaja Truck Trail; elevation ~1780 feet (542 m); go right.
0.87	r	78		hook three-awn	Aristida ternipes var. hamulosa	/	1
0.88	r	79	ssp	white everlasting	Gnaphalium canescens ssp. microcephalum	/	36
0.96	r	80		telegraph weed	Heterotheca grandiflora	/	28
1.07				Road curves right 45°
1.40		81		bristly goldenaster	Heterotheca sessiliflora ssp. echioides	/	7
1.50				Big turnout on left side of road.
1.57		82		Siskiyou aster	Aster lanceolatus ssp. hesperius	/	3
1.61				Jct. Lomas Trail on left; road to old main entrance gate on right; elevation ~1790 feet (545 m). End Plant Guide.

Go to:

Plant Trail Guides For The Santa Rosa Plateau
Field Guide to the Santa Rosa Plateau: Plants

Copyright © 2002-2004 by Tom Chester.
Permission is freely granted to reproduce any or all of this page as long as credit is given to me at this source:
http://tchester.org/srp/plants/guides/waterline_to_lomas.html
Comments and feedback: Tom Chester
Updated 20 December 2004.