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CAMATTA
CANYON AMOLE
Chlorogalum purpureum var. reductum
Photo courtesy
California Native Plant Society
The Camatta
Canyon amole is a type of lily that is endemic to the La Panza
Range in San Luis Obispo County, and grows nowhere else. The
plant is so rare that it's found in only two locations in and
around the Los Padres National Forest.
The amole is
a perennial herb with long, linear leaves that sprout from the
base of the plant. The plant arises from an underground bulb
each year, with purple flowers with curved-backwards petals. It
blooms in the spring, typically April-May. It's the only member
of the Chlorogalum genus with purple flowers (all others
have white or pink flowers).
The amole
comes in two varieties, easily distinguished by their sizes and
geographic occurrence; var. purpureum (the variety
commonly called "purple amole") grows up to 16 inches tall and
var. reductum (the Camatta Canyon amole) reaches only 8
inches in height. Most (90%) of the amoles are of the
purpureum variety and are found in the Santa Lucia Range of
Monterey and San Luis Obispo counties.
The Camatta
Canyon amole (var. reductum) occurs in two
locations in the La Panza Range in the center of San Luis Obispo
County, near State Highway 58. Most of these plants are on the
Los Padres National Forest (LPNF), the rest (less than 2%) is on
nearby private lands or alongside the highway. Together, the
Forest Service estimates that all Camatta Canyon amole plants
are restricted to an area of only ten to twelve acres, where the
plant thrives on a unique soil type found nowhere else.
The Camatta
Canyon amole grows extremely slowly and requires years to mature
and produce seeds according to the California Department of Fish
and Game (CDFG)--twelve years after they began a research
project with 360 newly planted seeds only ONE plant had reached
maturity and produced seed itself!
In addition,
the amole appears to grow in association with cryptogamic crusts
- cyanobacteria, lichens, mosses and fungi that form a layer on
the soil surface. These crusts help to stabilize the soil,
retain soil moisture, provide nutrients, and inhibit weed
growth.
Threats
Both amole
varieties were classified as "threatened" in 2000 and continue
to receive formal protection under the Endangered Species Act.
Unfortunately, the Camatta Canyon amole occurs in an area that
is heavily used by off-road vehicles, is grazed by livestock,
and is bisected by several Forest Service roads, all of which
have adversely affected amole populations here.
In 2009, the
Forest Service installed new barriers to discourage illegal ORV
trespass in amole habitat, an informal vehicle staging area was
closed, and ranger patrols of the area were increased.
Most of the
Camatta Canyon amole population is located within a grazing
allotment on the Los Padres National Forest. Livestock grazing
there is allowed from February through May (the same time that
the amole is flowering). In reviewing the status of this plant
in 2007, the US Fish & Wildlife Service concluded that "cattle
grazing is likely adversely affecting the taxon by trampling,
soil compaction, and possibly herbivory."
In addition,
the Forest Service has acknowledged that road maintenance
activities have destroyed amole habitat by unnecessarily
widening the road that cuts through the area.
Wildfire may
actually result in a favorable response from the amole if
competing plant species are removed, but the tiny distribution
the species can also mean total devastation if lost in a
wildfire.
Conservation Efforts
Critical
habitat was designated in 2002, making it illegal to adversely
modify the habitat of the amole on national forest land. In
2005, the Forest Service revised its management plan,
establishing a 55-acre "Camatta Special Interest Area." The plan
requires preparation of a management plan, implementation
schedule, and monitoring protocols for the area, but to date, no
thorough population study has been conducted and no species
management plan has been completed.
Population
estimates range from "thousands of individuals" (U.S. Forest
Service) to over 100,000 by CDFG and The Center for Plant
Conservation. CDFG has not observed this population of amole to
be decreasing over the past decade, but again no scientific
study has been conducted to back up that statement.
ForestWatch
will continue to track the management of the Camatta Canyon
amole, and will work to ensure this rare flower gets the proper
protection that it needs. |
