Thursday, May 4th

Mount Tamalpais (Steep Ravine): 37.88775, -122.62418

We visited Mount Tamalpais once again, but this time we visited a particular area near Stinson Beach. We used the Steep Ravine trail, which led us through both a hardwood riparian forest and a redwood forest. This trail is accessible year round, and features a number of waterfalls, one of which you can enjoy after climbing a ten foot ladder. The riparian forest was dominated by medium trees like Douglas fir, bay laurel, and Rosaceae species. The redwood forest was dominated by redwoods and smaller plants such as lilies and trail plant.The entire trail was dominated by fern species, especially lady ferns and sword ferns. I would definitely visit this trail again, it was gorgeous!

Rubus parviflorus (Thimbleberry)

      

R. parviflorus is a vine or shrub native to California. A member of the Rosaceae family, it is found in other areas of North America and elsewhere. The stems of R. parviflorus are about 6 millimeters in diameter. They tend to be glabrous to finely hairy. The leaves are simple and palmately lobed, grouped in lobes of 3 or 5. They are also coarse-toothed with acute tips.The leaves are hairy and triangular-lanceolate to narrow-ovate in shape. It has panicle-like cyme inflorescence and 3 to 7 flowers per inflorescence. The flowers have hairy sepals and widely elliptic to obovate petals. They are white with many thread-like stamens and densely hairy ovaries. The fruits are compound, raspberry-type, and red when ripe. They are common in moist, semi-shaded areas. This particular individual was found in a moist area adjacent to a stream within a hardwood riparian forest.

Equisetum telmatia spp.braunii (Giant horsetail)

E. telmatia spp. braunii is a fern native to California. It is a member of the Equisetaceae family, and it is found in North America and elsewhere. Its sterile stems are light green, and they grow from 30 to 100 millimeters in height. They also have sheaths 7 to 18 millimeters in length. The stems are lined with 14 to 28 teeth that extend radially. These teeth grow up to 10 millimeters in length. In addition, the stems have grooved ridges along their lengths and are solid. This species also has fertile, spore-bearing stems, also known as strobili. These stems are much shorter (from 17 to 45 millimeters in length), fleshy, and brown. The sheaths only grow up to 4 minutes long. The fertile stems have 20 to 30 teeth along their lengths. This species is often found in moist areas such as stream banks and seepage areas. There is one other subspecies that can be found in Europe and Asia. These individuals were found on a slope adjacent to a stream.

Ageratina adenophora (Sticky snake root)

      

A. adenophora is a perennial herb that is not native to California. In fact, it is so invasive that it has been classified as a noxious weed. It is a member of the Asteraceae family. It is a woody shrub with erect stems. These stems tend to be more or less purple, and glandular to hairy. It has opposite leaves from 40 to 100 millimeters in length. The leaves are dentate to ovate, serrate, and purple adaxially. Its inflorescences consist of heads about 6.5 millimeters wide. These heads are clustered, and the bracts are glandular to slightly pubescent. The corollas tend to be white or pinkish. We did not observe any fruit, but when it is present, it is about 2 millimeters wide. This species is native to Mexico and Central America, but it is common in disturbed places, stream bands, canyons, and hillslopes in areas less than 1000 meters in elevation. This individual was found in a muddy are adjacent to a stream (within a hardwood riparian forest). It was clear that it had abundant water, and seemed to be flourishing.

                           

Thursday, April 27th

Mount Tamalpais (Serpentine Sites): 37.88908, -122.61086

We returned to Mount Tamalpais, but this time we visited some areas near the middle peak. These areas were challenging to classify, as they were dominated by many different plant species. In general, the serpentine outcrops were dominated by small plants such as chamise and Mt. Tamalpais manzanita. I would classify the other areas as chaparral, as they were dominated by oak species and some conifer species.

Cirsium occidentale (Western thistle)

      

C. occidentale is a California perennial herb in the family Asteraceae. It is native and endemic to California. It tends to have erect stems with distal branches. Its leaves are gray-green to white-tomentose. They are more or less glabrous with spiny petioles and oblanceolate blades. The leaves also have triangular lobes with spines from 1 to 10 millimeters long. The inflorescence of C. occidentale consists of one to several heads in a loose to tight cluster. The cluster is ovoid to spheric, and can be straight, twisted, or bent. The heads can come together in an appressed to widely radiating pattern. They are sometimes connected by a network of hairs resembling spiderwebs (as observed in this individual). We did not observe any flowers, but when they are present, they are white to lavender, purple, or red with a corolla from 18-35 millimeters wide. In addition, we did not observe any fruit, but when it is present, it is about 5 millimeters in size with a pappus from 15-30 millimeters long.This individual was found near a moist gully on the side of the road on Mount Tamalpais.

Quercus parvula spp. tamalpaisensis (Tamalpais oak)

      

Q. parvula is a native tree species in the family Fagaceae. We observed the subspecies Q. parvula spp. tamalpaisensis (the Tamalpais oak). This evergreen subspecies grows from 1 to 6 meters tall. Its leaves are 8 to 14 centimeters long, with long, dentate margins. The leaves were also dark green and glabrous, with a roughly tapering shape. On this individual, some leaves had dentation and others were entire. We did not observe any fruits, but when it is present in the form of nuts. These nuts are 30 to 45 millimeters in length, with a bowl shaped cup. The nuts are also barrel-shaped to ovoid, tapered, and mature during the second year of growth. It grows in understory conifer woodland, up to 750 meters in elevation. This taxon is considered to be rare or endangered. This individual was found on a slight slope on the side of a trail.

Streptanthus glandulosus spp. pulchellus (Mt. Tamalpais bristly jewel flower)

     

S. glandulosus is an annual in the Brassicaceae family. It is native and endemic to California. It has a simple, glabrous stem that is branched throughout its length. The leaves are basal and petioled. They are also coarsely dentate to lobed and sessile. The leaves tend to be lanceolate-linear to oblanceolate in shape. This species also exhibits open inflorescence. The flowers consist of a bilateral calyx and sepals 5 to 10 millimeters in length. These sepals can vary greatly in color, from white to yellow, rose, purple, or purple-black. They are also glabrous or have sparse bristles. The petals are 7 to 17 millimeters in length. In addition, the flowers have filaments in three pairs of unequal length. We did not observe any fruit, but when it is present, it is ascending to spreading or reflexed and is 3 to 11 centimeters long. It is either straight or curved, and can be glabrous to moderately pubescent. There are 22 to 70 ovate to oblong seeds per plant. This species is notable because seven out of its eight subspecies are found in California. More specifically, Streptanthus glandulosus spp. pulchellus is a rare or endangered taxon, and is occasionally found on serpentine. Its stems and leaves are bristly and its flowers are rose to lavender to purple. The individual we saw was about 15 centimeters tall, with purple flowers. It was found on the edge of a serpentine outcrop in full sun.

The views at the end of the trip were incredible–maybe even the best I’ve seen all semester! I am very thankful to get off campus and appreciate the rich botanical diversity of the Bay Area.

         

 

Thursday, April 20th

Ring Mountain: 37.90974, -122.48580

Ring Mountain is an area at the north end of the Tiburon Peninsula in Marin County. It has serpentine rock outcrops and also includes rare and endangered flora (such as the Tiburon mariposa lily). Ring Mountain is only 602 feet tall, but one can enjoy views of Mt. Tamalpais, the North Bay hills and the San Francisco skyline. It was dominated by vegetative shrubs less than 5 meters tall. There were many, many grass species and a diverse range of flowering plants.

Based on these characteristics, I would classify this floral community as grassland or prairie. This area is able to support a wide array of wildlife.

Calochortus umbellatus (Oakland mariposa lily)

C. umbellatus is a perennial herb that is both native and endemic to California. It is a member of the family Liliaceae. Its stems tend to be 8 to 25 centimeters long, and its leaves are persistent, carline, and generally linear. The inflorescences are more or less umbel-like and erect, with 3 to 12 flowers per inflorescence. The flowers themselves are perianth bell-shaped and tend to be white or pale pink to lilac with purples spots at the base. Its sepals and petals are distinct from each other. The petals are 12 to 18 millimeters long and are widely wedge shaped to obovate. In addition, the petals are glabrous. The filaments are about 5 millimeters long, and the anthers are about 2 millimeters long and light blue or pink. When fruit is present it is 10 to 14 millimeters wide and elliptic or winged. The seeds are irregular, dark brown, and netlike It often grows on serpentine soils, and is found in open chaparral or woodland. This particular specimen was found on the edge of a moist trail in full sunlight.

Linum bienne (Flax)

     

L. bienne is a non-native, annual herb in the family Linaceae. It tends to grow from 6 to 60 centimeters tall, with glabrous stems. Its leaves are 5 to 25 millimeters long and tend to be linear. The flowers have distinct sepals and petals. The sepals are about 5 millimeters long, and are ovate to lanceolate with translucent margins. The petals are light blue and 6 to 10 millimeters long. They also have free styles and linear to club-shaped stigmas. When fruit is present, it is 4 to 6 millimeters wide and dehiscent. The seeds are about 3 millimeters wide and dark brown to black. Flax is often found in grassland, woodland, and disturbed places. This particular specimen was also found on the side of a moist trail in full sunlight.

Calystegia purpurata (Smooth Western morning glory)

 

C. purpurata is a perennial herb that is both native and endemic to California. It is a member of the family Convolvulaceae. It is glabrous, with a trailing to strongly climbing stem less than 7 meters long. Its leaves are 1.5 to 5 centimeters long and are triangular to reniform. It exhibits peduncle inflorescence and its bracts do not hide the calyx. Its flowers are made up of sepals 7 to 14 millimeters wide and a corolla 23 to 52 millimeters wide. They are white/cream to purple, and often have purple stripes. This species also has two subspecies: subspecies purpurata and subspecies saxicola. This specimen most closely resembles subspecies purpurata because its leaves are triangular and V-shaped. Their lobes are also strongly angled and the margins are not wavy. This species, in general, is found in chaparral and coastal scrub. This particular specimen was found on the side of a moist trail in full sunlight.

Views on a beautiful day…

       

Thursday, April 6th

Edgewood County Park: 37.47367, -122.27864

Edgewood County Park is a lovely area in San Mateo County. It is known for its wildflowers in the spring and 160 acres of serpentine soil. It has many native plant species, and these include rare and locally endemic species. This area is also notable because it includes grasslands, chaparral, coastal scrub, foothill woodlands, and wetlands. In addition, it includes parts of Cordilleras Creek and Laguna Creek. I would classify the area we visited as a Foothill Woodland because it included medium sized trees such as coast live oak and toyon. The trees here were 20 meters tall or shorter, and many areas were relatively moist and shaded.

Adiantum jordanii (California maidenhair)

      

A. jordanii is a fern species that is native to California and Oregon. A member of Pteridaceae, it can be recognized by its 2-3 pinnate and asymmetrical leaves. It is bright green and has blackish stems. In addition, one can see false indusia on the underside of this fern species. The sori and false indusia tend to be less than 5 millimeters in size. This fern is one of two maidenhair species in this area. This particular specimen was found on the side of a moist hill in complete shade.

Lithophragma affine (common woodland star)

L. affine is a perennial herb in the Saxifragaceae family. It is also native to California. It usually grows to be 10 to 60 centimeters tall. Its leaves are lobes and often have sharp-tipped teeth. This species has pedicel inflorescence and with bright white flowers. These flowers are in parts of 5 and have ovate/elliptic petals approximately 5 to 13 millimeters long. One can also see their reddish-green sepals. Most noticeably, the petals are 3-lobed at their tips. This particular specimen was found on a hillside in partial sunlight. Poison oak was intertwined with multiple L. affine plants in this area.

Wyethia angustifolia (narrow leaved mule’s ears)

           

Narrow leaved mule’s ear and blue eyed grass compete for Dr. Paul’s attention!

W. angustifolia is a perennial herb species native to California, and a member of the Asteraceae family. Its leaves tend to be linear to lanceolate (or nearly deltate) and 10 to 50 centimeters long. This species has head inflorescence, with soft/hairy radially symmetrical flowers. It has 8 to 21 ray flowers, which are up to 45 millimeters long. The disk flowers usually take up approximately 10 millimeters in the center of the ray flowers. This particular specimen was found in a field in full sunlight. It was at the border of the field and the trail.

     

This coast live oak was able to expand and grow very large without other large floral competitors present!

Thursday, March 30th

San Bruno Mountain State Park: 37.69676, -122.43384

San Bruno Mountain is a State Park at the northern tip of the Santa Cruz Mountain Range. It has beautiful hiking trails and views of San Francisco. One can also see the remains of a Nike Missile early warning radar site. The mountain includes the Guadalupe Valley Creek and Colma Creek, as well as some serpentine rock. It often experiences the fog that is seen around the Bay. It is also home to the endangered San Bruno elfin butterfly, which is endemic to this area.

I would characterize this area as Northern Coastal Scrub, as it was dominated by various shrub species. For example, the trail we took was dominated by the Franciscan wallflower, coastal buckwheat, manzanita species, These shrubs were approximately 2 meters tall and shorter, and created an intermittent canopy.

Salvia spathacea (Hummingbird sage)

         

S. spathacea is a perennial herb that is endemic (and native) to California. Its leaves tend to be 8 to 20 centimeters long. They are pubescent and oblong in shape, with rounded teeth. Its inflorescences are 6 centimeters wide or less, and the green or purple bracts can be up to 5 centimeters wide (this specimen had purple bracts). Flowers can be red to light pink in color, and are also divided into upper and lower lips with protruding stamens and styles. It is a member of the Laminaceae family and shares many of its characteristics. For example, this particular specimen had square stems and slightly sticky, strong-smelling leaves. Its stalks were especially pubescent and it had magenta, bilaterally symmetrical flowers. It is also known as hummingbird sage because hummingbirds pollinate the species when they stick their heads into the tube-shaped flowers and rub against the petals. This specimen was found on the side of a hillside in partial shade.

Castilleja wightii (Wight’s paintbrush)

      

C. wightii is a perennial herb that is endemic (and native) to California. This species can be yellow to purple in color. We saw both orange and yellow specimens in this area. This herb is in the family Orobanchaceae, along with other paintbrush species. The paintbrushes often appear to have been dipped in paint, and this species only has its very end dipped in this “paint”. It has fairly short stems with many leafy axillary shoots. Its leaves tend to be lanceolate to ovate and 20 to 60 millimeters wide. The inflorescences have bracts and can be bright red to yellow. The flowers are divided abaxially and adaxially, with acute or rounded lobes. They are made up of both the calyx and corolla, with red to yellow margins. These specimens were found in full sunlight on the side of a trail within the Park. They were found only a few feet away from each other.

Phacelia malvifolia (Stinging phacelia)

P. malvifolia is an annual herb native to California. It is found outside of California, but it is confined to western North America. It is found in the family Boraginaceae and tends to grow from 20 to 100 centimeters tall. It has erect stems and can be most obviously characterized by sharp, bulb-based hairs. Its leaves are 20 to 140 millimeters wide and dentate to round. The leaves are also toothed to lobed. Its flowers are bell-shaped and cream-white, and are oblong to oblanceolate. This particular specimen was found on the side of a hill in full sunlight. It was on the border of the hill and a parking lot.

I really enjoyed the great diversity of plants we saw during this lab. And though it distracted us a bit, In-N-Out was an amazing reward! Thank you, Prof Paul, for including it in the course!

Thursday, March 23rd

SCA Trail: 37.832143, -122.482281

On Thursday, we hiked part of the SCA Trail. This area was significant because it contained many of the plants we had seen over the course of the semester. This area seemed to be Central CA Coastal/Montane Chapparal, as it had many shrubs and small trees. It was found at a fairly low elevation, and the canopy was intermittent with some oak species scattered throughout.  Although this outing was quite stressful due to the field quiz, I really enjoyed it. It was a gorgeous day!

Lupinus bicolor (Lupine)

L. bicolor is a small annual or perennial herb. It is native to California, and its distribution is confined to western North America. It has tends to have 5 to 7 leaflets, which are linear and more or less glabrous. Its flowers are 4 to 10 millimeters in length and are deeply lobed. They can be blue, pink, or white, with white age spots and pointed ends.

This particular specimen was light blue. It was found at the top of a large hill adjacent to the Golden Gate Bridge with serpentine rock nearby.

Nemophila menziesii (Baby blue eyes)

N. menziesii is an annual herb (and a dicot) that is native to California. This species was very photogenic, with opposite, ovate leaves. The flowers are lobed and tend to be 6 to 40 millimeters wide. They can be bright blue (with white centers) to white, and blue-veined along the length of each petal. The filaments within the flower are tubed-shaped and the black anthers can be seen in stark contrast to the light-colored flower. We did not observe any seeds, however, when they are present, they are wrinkled and brown to black in color. This particular specimen was found on a hillside in full sunlight.

Drymocallis glandulosa (Sticky cinquefoil)

D. glandulosa is also a perennial herb native to California. Its stems are lined with hairs (especially at the base). The flowers are in parts of five, with 5 white petals surrounding a cluster of yellow anthers. This particular specimen was missing 2 of its five petals (for some reason I did not take pictures of intact specimens). It was found on a hillside in full sunlight.

 

Thursday, March 9th

Mount Tamalpais/Ridgecrest: 37.912957, -122.62479

Mount Tamalpais is the highest peak in the Marin Hills. It is encompassed by Mount Tamalpais State Park and various other protected lands. It borders the Golden Gate National Recreation Area and several Marin County Open Space Preserves. Mount Tamalpais was formed by the collisions between the North American and Pacific tectonic plates. It is a beautiful place in Marin County, as it features many native plant species. For example, serpentine rock can be found in some areas, as well as serpentine endemics. The Mount Tamalpais thistle and the Mount Tamalpais jewelflower are both endemic to this area, for example. It experiences both the cool fog from the ocean, but also hot and dry air. Therefore, it is able to support many plant species, such as oaks, madrones, coyote brush, bracken fern, various grasses, and various conifer species.

We visited two areas on Mount Tamalpais. First, we visited an open, meadow-like hillside where we could follow a rough trail. Although it had many other species, this area was dominated by coyote brush and various grasses. This area had a variable ground layer (with many open slopes) with fairly short shrubs. Later, we visited an area of higher elevation where the growth form of many species was higher. This area included many coniferous species, as well as Arbutus and Quercus species. We walked under a canopy of medium height to find the elusive fairy slipper orchid (Calypso bulbosa). Both of these areas on Mount Tamalpais could be classified as a Central California Coastal/Montane chaparral community because they were dominated by various shrub and small tree species. We observed several oak species (Q. durata, N. densiflorus) and associated conifer species (such as P. menziesii).The canopy was also intermittent, as it was broken up by various shrubs, grasses, and rock outcrops. We emerged from the canopy to find a greenish-gray serpentine rock outcrop.

Raphanus sativus (wild radish)

R. sativus is an invasive plant species in the family Brassicaceae. A biennial herb, R. sativus is quite common in this area. Its growth form is sparsely hairy to glabrous. The leaves are simple and dentate, with oblong to obovate leaves. Each flower has four petals, which can range in color from white to yellow to pink. As this species is in the family Brassicaceae, it will have siliques. The leaves of this particular specimen had slight dentation and tiny lobes. The petals were thin at their base and thickened as they extended. They were also flattened and reflexed. This specimen was found at the edge of a trail in full sunlight, in Mount Tamalpais State Park.

Pseudotsuga menziesii (Douglas fir)

     

P. menziesii is a gymnosperm species that is native to California. This species is very abundant in coniferous forests, especially in the North West region of the California Floristic Province. P. menziesii can grow to almost 70 meters tall, with large upper branches. The branches are whorled, and the flat and spreading leaves (needles) radiate out from each stem in a circular fashion. These trees also have thick, dark brown bark that can become very furrowed. They can easily be distinguished by their deciduous seed cones, which have protruding bracts with scales extending from each bract. Each seed cone contains two seeds per scale. This particular specimen was a mid-size Douglas fir (about 20 feet tall). It was found in full sunlight near a serpentine outcrop on Mount Tamalpais.

Claytonia exigua (little spring beauty)

        

C. exigua is an annual herb that is native to California. It is also found outside of California, but it is confined to western North America. This species is an annual that can only grow to be 1-15 centimeters tall. It has glaucous, sword shaped leaves that are typically linear. These leaves were gray to green in color and had a rubbery feel. The flowers were extremely small, as they were about 3 millimeters in diameter. The flowers can be white to pink and appear in parts of five. This specimen was found on a serpentine outcrop on Mount Tamalpais. This species is a serpentine indicator, meaning that its presence is often correlated with that of serpentine rock. As soon as we encountered the serpentine rock, the growth forms of existing species changed drastically. The plant species growing on the serpentine were all extremely small, as it is inhospitable to plant life.

 

                            

 

 

Thursday, March 2nd

San Pedro Valley County Park: 37.578450, -122.475945

San Pedro Valley County Park is a park in Pacifica, in San Mateo County. It is located in between the Santa Cruz mountain range and the foothills of Pacifica. It is a Chaparral community, as many species are woody shrubs that make up dense thickets of plants. Here, many species have leathery, small sclerophyllous evergreen leaves. Blue gum eucalyptus, coyote brush, yerba santa, and manzanita varieties make up the dominant species. Before the eucalyptus trees were planted, however, this area would have closely resembled the Marin Headlands (coastal scrub). This park has beautiful (seasonal) waterfalls and three looping trails. One can also hike Montara Mountain for beautiful views of the San Mateo coast.

Iris douglasiana (Douglas iris)

A. douglasiana is a plant species in the family Iridaceae. It has a branched stem with 1-3 cauline, entire leaves. Its leaves are unique because they are very flat and originate from one plane at the base of the stem. Each inflorescence has 2-6 flowers with enclosing perianth tubes. Each flower can be light to dark lavender, red-purple, or cream coloured with purple veins. It also has obovate petals and triangular anthers. It is a common native in California, and is usually found in Mixed Evergreen Forest or Coastal Prairie communities. This specimen was found on the perimeter of the trail in partial shade under the shade of coast live oaks.

Toxicoscordion fremontii (Fremont’s death camas)

This plant species is a member of the family Melanthiaceae, and it is a perennial herb often found in chaparral communities. It is native to California with a distribution confined to western North America. This species has wide, curved, sword-shaped leaves and glabrous stems. It exhibits panicle or raceme inflorescence with bisexual flowers. The flowers are widely ovate to obtuse with erect styles. It is sometimes associated with serpentine rock. This specimen was found on the perimeter of the trail in partial shade under the shade of coast live oaks.

Quercus agrifolia (Coast live oak)

      

Q. agrifolia is a common tree (and a dicot) native to California in the Fagaceae family. It is usually found in Mixed Evergreen Forest communities, as it is an evergreen species. It grows to about 10-25 meters tall with thick, ridged bark. Its leaves are glabrous and widely elliptical to round. The leaves we saw were dull green with inrolled and spine-toothed margins. In addition, there were tiny tufts of hairs at the intersection between the mid vein and the secondary veins on the underside of each leaf. No fruits (nuts) were seen, but when they are present, they are brown and glabrous with a slender ovoid shape and pointed tips. The top of each nut is contained in a small cup about 10-16 millimeters wide. This specimen was found on the side of one of the trails. It was spreading over all of the neighboring plants, so it had grown up before any other significant plants were competing with it for space.

Thursday, February 23rd

Presidio: 37.80090, -122.47983

Marin Headlands: 37.82619, -122.49970

The Presidio and the Marin Headlands were beautiful environments just across the Golden Gate Bridge from each other. There were many plant species to catalogue, and we observed about 20 species in each place. I would classify the Presidio as coastal sage scrub because it featured mostly shrubs (below 2 meters in height) on coastal bluffs and stabilized dunes. It was also fairly close to the ocean. However, the Marin Headlands was slightly more inland, so I would classify the area we visited there as Central CA Coast/Montane chaparral. We saw many shrubs and small tree species.

Lupinus arboreus (Coastal bush lupine)

Coastal bush lupine is a shrub in the family Fabaceae that is native to California. It typically has erect stems and palmate compound leaves. The leaves are bright green and the stems have a pinkish red color. This specimen did not have any flowers, but when they are present, they are usually yellow and entire. In addition, raceme inflorescence and whorled flowers are often seen. It is distributed along the California coast, but it has also become invasive in other areas because it can be used to stabilize sand dunes. This specimen was found in full sunlight along the coastal path in the Presidio.

Solanum douglasii (White nightshade)

     

White nightshade is a California native herb in the family Solanaceae. It has ovate, entire leaves and umbel-like inflorescence. The flowers can be white or lavender, with deep lobes and reflexed petals. The bright yellow anthers were held right against these petals, and tiny stigmas emerged from the centers. Its leaves are asymmetrical and spade-shaped, with dentation. It often grows on sand dunes in California and it is quite toxic. No fruit was seen on this specimen, but when fruit is present it is a spherical black structure from 6-9 mm in length. In general, it can be seen all year in western North America. This particular specimen was found in full sunlight along the coastal path in the Presidio.

Tomatoes, potatoes, and peppers are also in the Solanaceae family.

 Rubus ursinus (California blackberry)

     

The California blackberry is part of the Rosaceae family. It has straight stems and simple or compound leaves, each with 3-5 leaflets. These leaflets tend to be triangular or ovate with dentation. This species has cyme inflorescence and small white flowers with many anthers. The sepals are hairy and prickly, and this particular specimen had flowers with five flat, open petals. It also had many thorns (a defining characteristic of the Rosaceae family) and trifoliate, compound leaves with thorns on the midlines. When fruit is present, it is aggregate, blackberry type with a black color. R. ursinus is a California native that is seen as a vine or a shrub. It is found outside of California, but only in western North America. This specimen was found in a coastal environment on a hillside unexposed to sunlight in the Marin Headlands.

          

Thursday, February 16th


Baltimore Canyon Open Space: 37.940362, -122.56146

Baltimore Canyon Open Space is a 193-acre preserve in Marin County, with an approximate elevation of 160-400 feet. One can easily park at the trailhead and enjoy an easy 2.2 mile hike, ending with a view of Dawn Falls and a short loop back to the trailhead. Larkspur Creek runs through the preserve and flows vibrantly during the winter.

This area can be characterized as a coastal redwood forest, as it is dominated by redwoods. It also includes California bay, big leaf maple, and tan oak trees. There were also many organisms growing on fallen trees (such as moss and lichen) due to the increased moisture.

Aesculus californica (California buckeye)

  

A. californica is a deciduous shrub/tree species that grows to be 4-12 meters tall. Its leaflets are palmately compound and appear in groups of 5-7 leaflets. They are finely serrate and oblong. We observed these leaflets just emerging from buds, as most of the tree was bare. All of its parts are toxic, and no flowers were present. When flowers are present, they are in a panicle-like inflorescence with fine hairs and white/pale rose flowers 12-18 millimeters in size. This specimen was found on the side of a well-lit, open hill covered in grass.

Scoliopus bigelovii (Slink pod)

This species was a short and relatively compact angiosperm. It had elliptic, mottled leaves with parallel venation. Its flower was white with purple lines, with umbel inflorescence and 3 stamens attached to its sepals. Also known as adder’s tongue, when its flower withers and goes to seed, it digs down into the earth and plants its own seeds. It is also a specialist in redwood forests and flowers very early in the year (February-March). It was found on a moist hillside underneath redwood species, surrounded by many other plants of short status and fallen redwood materials.

Trillium ovatum (Western wakerobin)

T. ovatum is a short rhizome species with three leaves in a whorled orientation. It has one flower per stem, and these tend to be bisexual with three sepals. Flowers can be white, pink, yellow, or purple with six stamens. They have ascending petals that can be linear to widely obovate. The leaves are 4-20 centimeters long and acute to acuminate at their tips. This specimen was found at the edge of a well shaded hillside and the trail.