Surveys in Joshua Tree National Park in November 2017

This is a list of plants seen in two days of surveys of Joshua Tree National Park, on 3 and 7 November 2017, separated by area, for four different areas.

On 3 November 2017, Tom Chester, Walt Fidler, Mike Crouse, Michael Charters and Bill Bulger surveyed the first two miles of the Boy Scout Trail area, along with a brief excursion south of the Quail Springs Picnic Area.

On 7 November 2017, Tom Chester, Walt Fidler, Nancy Accola and Mike Crouse surveyed three areas: near the west entrance station; the drainage 0.4 miles south of the Boy Scout Trailhead; and an area in Queen Valley about 0.4 miles sw of the Desert Queen Well, along with a brief excursion south of the Quail Springs Picnic Area. In addition, Walt Fidler previewed those three areas before the rest of us joined him.

The following table indicates where a given species was observed.

The numbers of species found in our four surveys, from west to east, are given in Table 1.

Table 1. Number of Species Found in Each Area

# of Species	Area
77	park entrance area
107	boy scout trail area
86	drainage 0.4 miles south of the Boy Scout Trailhead
79	Queen Valley about 0.4 miles sw of the Desert Queen Well

Those numbers fit expectations from the amount of area covered at each location. We spent a whole day at the Boy Scout Trail area, and only an hour or two at each of the other locations.

Table 2 gives the number of species found in only one area; two areas; etc.

Table 2. Number of Species Found in 1, 2, 3 or 4 Areas

# of Areas	# of Species
1	57
2	24
3	36
4	34

More species are found in only a single area than are found in 2, 3 or 4 areas, as expected; see How Common Are The Plants Of Southern California?.

Table 3 gives the number of species found only in a single area, by area.

Table 3. Number of Species Found only in a single Area

# of Species	Area
14	park entrance area
22	boy scout trail area
13	drainage 0.4 miles south of the Boy Scout Trailhead
8	Queen Valley about 0.4 miles sw of the Desert Queen Well

The Boy Scout Trail stands out simply because more time was spent surveying there.

The column headers are as follows:

• W: the west entrance station area
• BS: the Boy Scout Trail Area
• DR: the drainage 0.4 miles south of the Boy Scout Trailhead
• QV: an area about 0.4 miles sw of the Desert Queen Well

Basic information about the checklist presentation and links:

• Notes on the Scientific Names Used At This Site and
• Information about the links from the Scientific Name and Common Name.

An asterisk before the Common Name indicates a non-native taxon.

#	Fam	Scientific Name Link goes to the Jepson eflora	(*)Common Name Link goes to Calphotos	Survey area
				W	BS	DR	QV
Ferns
1	Pte	Cheilanthes covillei	beady lipfern		x
2	Pte	Cheilanthes parryi	woolly lipfern	x
3	Pte	Pellaea mucronata var. mucronata	bird's-foot fern		x	x	x
Gymnosperms
4	Cup	Juniperus californica	California juniper		x	x	x
5	Eph	Ephedra nevadensis	Nevada ephedra	x	x	x	x
6	Pin	Pinus monophylla	pinyon pine		x	x
Eudicots
7	Ama	Amaranthus fimbriatus	fringed amaranth	x	x	x	x
8	Ana	Rhus aromatica	basketbush		x	x	x
9	Api	Lomatium mohavense	Mojave lomatium		x
10	Apo	Amsonia tomentosa	woolly amsonia			x	x
11	Apo	Matelea parvifolia	spearleaf				x
12	Ast	Acamptopappus sphaerocephalus var. sphaerocephalus	goldenhead	x	x	x	x
13	Ast	Adenophyllum cooperi	Cooper's dogweed	x	x	x
14	Ast	Adenophyllum porophylloides	San Felipe dogweed				x
15	Ast	Ambrosia acanthicarpa	bur-ragweed	x	x	x
16	Ast	Ambrosia dumosa	burroweed	x	x?
17	Ast	Ambrosia salsola var. salsola	cheesebush	x	x	x	x
18	Ast	Artemisia dracunculus	wild tarragon			x
19	Ast	Artemisia ludoviciana ssp. incompta	mountain mugwort		x	x	x
20	Ast	Bahiopsis parishii	Parish's goldeneye	x	x		x
21	Ast	Baileya pleniradiata	woolly marigold	x	x	x	x
22	Ast	Brickellia atractyloides var. arguta	California spear-leaved brickellia	x	x		x
23	Ast	Brickellia desertorum	desert brickellia	x	x	x
24	Ast	Chaenactis stevioides	desert pincushion		x
25	Ast	Cirsium neomexicanum	desert thistle		x	x	x
26	Ast	Encelia actoni	Acton encelia	x	x	x	x
27	Ast	Ericameria cooperi var. cooperi	Cooper's goldenbush	x	x	x	x
28	Ast	Ericameria cuneata var. spathulata	wide-leaved rock goldenbush	x	x	x
29	Ast	Ericameria linearifolia	narrowleaf goldenbush		x
30	Ast	Ericameria nauseosa var. mohavensis	Mohave common rabbitbrush			x
31	Ast	Eriophyllum wallacei var. wallacei	Wallace's woolly daisy				x
32	Ast	Gutierrezia microcephala	sticky snakeweed	x	x	x
33	Ast	Helianthus annuus	annual sunflower	x
34	Ast	Malacothrix glabrata	desert dandelion		x	x
35	Ast	Nicolletia occidentalis	western nicolletia		x	x	x
36	Ast	Pectis papposa var. papposa	chinch-weed	x	x	x	x
37	Ast	Pseudognaphalium canescens	white everlasting		x
38	Ast	Stephanomeria exigua ssp. exigua	slender wreathplant	x	x	x	x
39	Ast	Stephanomeria pauciflora	wire-lettuce				x
40	Ast	Tetradymia axillaris var. longispina	catclaw horsebrush	x	x	x	x
41	Ast	Xylorhiza tortifolia var. tortifolia	Mojave-aster	x			x
42	Big	Chilopsis linearis ssp. arcuata	desert-willow			x	x
43	Bor	Amsinckia tessellata var. tessellata	bristly fiddleneck	x	x	x	x
44	Bor	Cryptantha circumscissa var. circumscissa	cushion cryptantha		x
45	Bor	Phacelia campanularia ssp. campanularia	desert bluebells		~x		~x
46	Bor	Phacelia campanularia ssp. vasiformis	desert bluebells	~x
47	Bor	Phacelia distans	common phacelia	x	x	x	x
48	Bor	Phacelia pedicellata	pedicellate phacelia	x
49	Bor	Pholisma arenarium	sand plant		x	x	x
50	Bra	Boechera perennans	perennial rock-cress		x
51	Bra	Caulanthus lasiophyllus	California mustard	x
52	Bra	Descurainia pinnata	western tansy-mustard	x	x
53	Bra	Dithyrea californica	spectacle-pod			x
54	Bra	Lepidium fremontii	desert pepper-grass	x
55	Bra	Lepidium lasiocarpum ssp. lasiocarpum	hairy-podded pepper-grass	x	x	x	x
56	Bra	Stanleya pinnata var. pinnata	prince's plume			x
57	Cac	Cylindropuntia bigelovii	teddy-bear cholla	x
58	Cac	Cylindropuntia echinocarpa	silver cholla	x	x	x	x
59	Cac	Cylindropuntia ramosissima	pencil cholla	x	x	x
60	Cac	Echinocereus engelmannii	Engelmann's hedgehog cactus	x	x		x
61	Cac	Echinocereus mojavensis	claret cup	x	x	x	x
62	Cac	Ferocactus cylindraceus	California barrel cactus		x		x
63	Cac	Opuntia basilaris var. basilaris	beavertail cactus	x	x	x	x
64	Cac	Opuntia chlorotica	pancake prickly-pear		x	x	x
65	Cac	Opuntia phaeacantha	desert prickly-pear		x
66	Che	Atriplex canescens var. canescens	four-wing saltbush		x	x	x
67	Che	Salsola tragus	*Russian thistle				x
68	Con	Cuscuta denticulata	desert dodder		~x
69	Con	Cuscuta subinclusa	canyon dodder			x
70	Cra	Dudleya saxosa ssp. aloides	desert dudleya		x		x
71	Cuc	Cucurbita palmata	coyote melon	x	x
72	Eup	Chamaesyce albomarginata	rattlesnake weed	x	x	x	x
73	Eup	Chamaesyce micromera	Sonoran spurge	x	x		x
74	Eup	Chamaesyce setiloba	starfish (Yuma) spurge	x	x	x
75	Eup	Croton californicus	California croton			x
76	Fab	Acmispon rigidus	desert lotus	x	x		x
77	Fab	Astragalus palmeri	Palmer's milk-vetch		x	x	x
78	Fab	Lupinus andersonii	Anderson's lupine			x
79	Fab	Lupinus concinnus ssp. orcuttii	bajada lupine		x
80	Fab	Senegalia greggii	catclaw	x	x	x	x
81	Fab	Senna armata	spiny senna	x
82	Fag	Quercus cornelius-mulleri	desert scrub oak		x
83	Ger	Erodium cicutarium	*redstem filaree		x	x	x
84	Kra	Krameria bicolor	white rhatany	x
85	Kra	Krameria erecta	Pima rhatany	x	x		x
86	Lam	Monardella robisonii	Robison's monardella	x	x	x
87	Lam	Salvia columbariae	chia	x	x		x
88	Lam	Salvia dorrii var. pilosa	hairy sage			x
89	Lam	Salvia mohavensis	Mojave sage				x
90	Lam	Scutellaria mexicana	Mexican bladder sage	x	x	x	x
91	Loa	Mentzelia nitens	shining blazing star			x?
92	Loa	Petalonyx thurberi ssp. thurberi	Thurber's sandpaper-plant			x	x
93	Mal	Sphaeralcea ambigua var. ambigua	apricot mallow	x	x	x	x
94	Mol	Mollugo cerviana	*carpet-weed	x	x	x
95	Nyc	Abronia villosa var. villosa	hairy sand-verbena			x	x
96	Nyc	Allionia incarnata var. incarnata	small-flowered trailing four o'clock	x			x
97	Nyc	Boerhavia coulteri var. palmeri	Coulter's spiderling	x	x	x	x
98	Nyc	Mirabilis laevis var. villosa	Bigelow's desert four-o'clock	x	x	x	x
99	Ona	Chylismia claviformis ssp. aurantiaca	brown-eyed primrose	x	x	x	x
100	Ona	Eulobus californicus	California suncup				x
101	Ona	Oenothera deltoides ssp. deltoides	dune primrose		x	x	x
102	Oro	Cordylanthus rigidus ssp. setiger	bristly bird's beak		x
103	Pap	Eschscholzia androuxii	Joshua Tree poppy		x?
104	Pla	Penstemon clevelandii var. mohavensis	Mojave beardtongue		x
105	Pol	Eriastrum densifolium	giant woolly-star			x
106	Pol	Eriastrum eremicum ssp. eremicum	desert woolly-star	x	x	x	x
107	Pol	Centrostegia thurberi	red triangles			x	x
108	Pol	Eriogonum angulosum	angled-stem buckwheat	x	x	x	x
109	Pol	Eriogonum brachyanthum	short-flowered buckwheat			x	x
110	Pol	Eriogonum davidsonii	Davidson's buckwheat		x	x	x
111	Pol	Eriogonum fasciculatum var. flavoviride	California buckwheat		x	x
112	Pol	Eriogonum fasciculatum var. polifolium	California buckwheat	x			x
113	Pol	Eriogonum inflatum	desert trumpet	x	x		x
114	Pol	Eriogonum nidularium	birdnest buckwheat		x	x	x
115	Pol	Eriogonum plumatella	yucca buckwheat	x	x	x	x
116	Pol	Eriogonum wrightii var. membranaceum	Wright's buckwheat		x
117	Pol	Eriogonum wrightii var. nodosum	Wright's buckwheat	x
118	Por	Portulaca halimoides	desert portulaca		x
119	Ran	Delphinium parishii ssp. parishii	Parish's larkspur	x	x	x	x
120	Rha	Ceanothus vestitus	Mojave ceanothus				x
121	Rha	Rhamnus ilicifolia	hollyleaf redberry		x	x
122	Ros	Coleogyne ramosissima	black brush	x	x	x	x
123	Ros	Prunus fasciculata var. fasciculata	desert almond	x	x	x	x
124	Ros	Purshia tridentata var. glandulosa	desert bitterbrush		x
125	Rub	Galium stellatum	star-flowered bedstraw	x
126	Sim	Simmondsia chinensis	jojoba	x	x
127	Sol	Datura wrightii	sacred datura		x
128	Sol	Lycium andersonii	Anderson's boxthorn	x	x
129	Sol	Lycium cooperi	Cooper's boxthorn	x	x	x
130	Sol	Nicotiana obtusifolia	desert tobacco		x	x
131	Sol	Physalis crassifolia	thick-leaved ground cherry	x	x	x	x
132	Urt	Parietaria hespera var. hespera	pellitory	x
133	Vis	Phoradendron californicum	desert mistletoe		x	x	x
134	Zyg	Larrea tridentata	creosote bush	x	x
Monocots
135	Aga	Yucca brevifolia	joshua tree	x	x	x
136	Aga	Yucca schidigera	Mohave yucca	x	x	x	x
137	Poa	Aristida purpurea var. purpurea	purple three-awn		x
138	Poa	Bouteloua aristidoides var. aristidoides	needle grama	x
139	Poa	Bouteloua barbata var. barbata	six-weeks grama			x
140	Poa	Bouteloua curtipendula	side-oats grama		x
141	Poa	Bromus madritensis ssp. rubens	*red brome	x	x	x
142	Poa	Dasyochloa pulchella	fluff grass		x
143	Poa	Elymus elymoides	squirreltail			x
144	Poa	Hilaria rigida	big galleta	x	x	x	x
145	Poa	Melica frutescens	tall melica		x
146	Poa	Muhlenbergia porteri	Porter's muhly	x	x	x	x
147	Poa	Schismus barbatus	*Mediterranean schismus	x
148	Poa	Sporobolus flexuosus	mesa dropseed			x
149	Poa	Stipa hymenoides	Indian ricegrass		x	x	x
150	Poa	Stipa speciosa	desert needlegrass	~x	x	x	x
151	Rus	Nolina parryi	Parry's nolina		x		x

Go to:

• Plants of Southern California: Regional Floras