Arctostaphylos auriculata

Mount Diablo manzanita
Conservation status
Imperiled  (NatureServe)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Asterids
Order:	Ericales
Family:	Ericaceae
Genus:	Arctostaphylos
Species:	A. auriculata
Binomial name
Arctostaphylos auriculata Eastw.

Arctostaphylos auriculata (Mount Diablo manzanita) is an endangered species of Arctostaphylos endemic to California, and limited in geography to the area surrounding Mount Diablo, in Contra Costa County.

Description

Arctostaphylos auriculata is a woody shrub 1–4.5 m high with serpentine, glandless stems covered in white hair. The short [1.5-4.5 cm], silvery leaves overlap and have deeply lobed bases. It flowers densely in white February through May. The fruit is also hairy and small (5–10 mm). The Mount Diablo manzanita has no basal burl for regrowth and must propagate by seed.

Distribution

Growing in sandstone chaparral around 150-650 meter elevation, the thick undergrowth of Mount Diablo manzanita is often accompanied by poison oak or California wild grapes.

See also

• California chaparral and woodlands
• California montane chaparral and woodlands
• California interior chaparral and woodlands

References

• W. L. Jepson. 1951. A Manual of the Flowering Plants of California, p. 750.
• Coffey, Geoffrey. "Sympathy for the devil -- tricks and treats on Mount Diablo." San Francisco Chronicle 25 Oct. 2003 : E-7.

External links

• Media related to Arctostaphylos auriculata at Wikimedia Commons
• Data related to Arctostaphylos auriculata at Wikispecies
• Jepson Flora Project: Arctostaphylos andersonii.
• USDA Plants Profile; Arctostaphylos auriculata
• Arctostaphylos auriculata - Photo gallery