Syrmatium veatchii

Syrmatium veatchii, synonyms Lotus dendroideus and Acmispon dendroideus, is a species of legume native to California.[1][2] It is known by the common name island broom.[3] It is endemic to the Channel Islands of California, where it grows on coastal bluffs and cliffs. It is a spreading perennial herb or erect shrub approaching 2 meters in height. It is hairless to hairy and gray-green in color. The branches lined with leaves each made up of a few oval leaflike leaflets up to 1.5 centimeters long each. The inflorescence bears up to 10 yellow pealike flowers, each roughly a centimeter long and fading red as they age.[2]

Syrmatium veatchii
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Fabales
Family: Fabaceae
Genus: Syrmatium
Species:
S. veatchii
Binomial name
Syrmatium veatchii
Synonyms[1][2]
  • Acmispon dendroideus (Greene) Brouillet
  • Lotus dendroideus Greene
  • Lotus dendroideus var. traskiae (Eastw. ex Noddin) Isely
  • Lotus dendroideus var. veatchii (Greene) Isely
  • Lotus scoparius subsp. traskiae (Eastw. ex Noddin) P.H.Raven
  • Lotus scoparius var. dendroideus Ottley
  • Lotus scoparius var. traskiae (Eastw. ex Noddin) Ottley
  • Lotus scoparius var. veatchii Ottley
  • Lotus veatchii Greene

When known as Lotus dendroideus or Lotus scoparius, the species was divided into varieties, although these are not recognized by some sources.[1] The rarest, var. traskiae, the San Clemente Island broom or San Clemente Island lotus, is limited to San Clemente Island. It is treated federally as an endangered species.[4][5] In the 1990s the Navy removed goats from San Clemente Island and started a management program to benefit this species. Due to the management efforts for this species, it has increased from just 9 occurrences at the time of listing to over 150 populations consisting of over 10,000 individuals. In 2007 the US Fish & Wildlife Service recommended it be downlisted from endangered to threatened status.[6]

References

  1. "Syrmatium veatchii Greene", Plants of the World Online, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, retrieved 2018-02-05
  2. Brouillet, Luc (2012), Jepson Flora Project (ed.), "Acmispon dendroideus", Jepson eFlora, Regents of the University of California, retrieved 2018-02-06
  3. Center for Plant Conservation Archived 2009-08-19 at the Wayback Machine
  4. California Native Plant Society Rare Plant Profile
  5. USFWS. L. d. var. traskiae Five-year Review. September 2007.


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