Cupressus nevadensis
Encyclopedia
Cupressus nevadensis, the Piute Cypress, is a species of cypress
native to a small area in the western United States
, located in California
. It is sometimes considered to be its own species, or sometimes included within Cupressus arizonica
.
.
It is found in a large, almost pure cypress forest on soils of granitic origin at altitudes of 3,000-6000 ft. located 3 miles South of the town of Bodfish, California. It grows here with Pinus monophylla, Juniperus occidentalis, and Fremontodendron californicum. It is also known from no more than 8 other locales around the mountains of Lake Isabella; however these are much smaller, scattered stands compared to the Bodfish grove. Like most California cypress, it is a pyrophyte
, heavily reliant on wildfire for its regeneration.
tree
with a conic crown, growing to heights of 10-25 m (exceptionally to 39 m), and a trunk diameter of up to 0.5 m (exceptionally to 1 m). The foliage grows in sparse, very fragrant, sprays varying from dull gray-green to glaucous blue-green in color. The leaves
are scale-like, highly glandular, resinous and aromatic2-5 mm long, and produced on rounded (not flattened) shoots.
The seed cones
are globose to oblong, 25-55 mm long, with 6 or 8 (rarely 4 or 10) scales, green to brown at first, maturing gray or gray-brown about 20–24 months after pollination. The male cones are 3-5 mm long, and release pollen in February-March.
The cones often remain closed for several years, only opening after the parent tree is killed in a wildfire
, thereby allowing the seed
s to colonize the bare ground exposed by the natural fire.
.
Cupressus
The genus Cupressus is one of several genera within the family Cupressaceae that have the common name cypress; for the others, see cypress. It is considered a polyphyletic group...
native to a small area in the western United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, located in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. It is sometimes considered to be its own species, or sometimes included within Cupressus arizonica
Cupressus arizonica
Cupressus arizonica, the Arizona Cypress, is a species of cypress native to the southwest of North America, in the United States in Arizona, southwest New Mexico, southern California, and the Chisos Mountains of west Texas, and in Mexico in Coahuila, Chihuahua, Durango, Tamaulipas, Zacatecas and...
.
Distribution
Cupressus nevadensis grows in a restricted area of the southern Sierra Nevada Mountains in Kern County, CaliforniaKern County, California
Spreading across the southern end of the California Central Valley, Kern County is the fifth-largest county by population in California. Its economy is heavily linked to agriculture and to petroleum extraction, and there is a strong aviation and space presence. Politically, it has generally...
.
It is found in a large, almost pure cypress forest on soils of granitic origin at altitudes of 3,000-6000 ft. located 3 miles South of the town of Bodfish, California. It grows here with Pinus monophylla, Juniperus occidentalis, and Fremontodendron californicum. It is also known from no more than 8 other locales around the mountains of Lake Isabella; however these are much smaller, scattered stands compared to the Bodfish grove. Like most California cypress, it is a pyrophyte
Pyrophyte
Pyrophytes are plants which have adapted to tolerate fire. "Pyrophyte" comes from the ancient Greek "pyros" and "phytos" .Fire acts favorably for some species. "Passive pyrophytes" resist the effects of fire, particularly when it passes over quickly, and hence can out-compete less resistant...
, heavily reliant on wildfire for its regeneration.
Description
Cupressus nevadensis is a medium-sized evergreenEvergreen
In botany, an evergreen plant is a plant that has leaves in all seasons. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which completely lose their foliage during the winter or dry season.There are many different kinds of evergreen plants, both trees and shrubs...
tree
Tree
A tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
with a conic crown, growing to heights of 10-25 m (exceptionally to 39 m), and a trunk diameter of up to 0.5 m (exceptionally to 1 m). The foliage grows in sparse, very fragrant, sprays varying from dull gray-green to glaucous blue-green in color. The leaves
Leaf
A leaf is an organ of a vascular plant, as defined in botanical terms, and in particular in plant morphology. Foliage is a mass noun that refers to leaves as a feature of plants....
are scale-like, highly glandular, resinous and aromatic2-5 mm long, and produced on rounded (not flattened) shoots.
The seed cones
Conifer cone
A cone is an organ on plants in the division Pinophyta that contains the reproductive structures. The familiar woody cone is the female cone, which produces seeds. The male cones, which produce pollen, are usually herbaceous and much less conspicuous even at full maturity...
are globose to oblong, 25-55 mm long, with 6 or 8 (rarely 4 or 10) scales, green to brown at first, maturing gray or gray-brown about 20–24 months after pollination. The male cones are 3-5 mm long, and release pollen in February-March.
The cones often remain closed for several years, only opening after the parent tree is killed in a wildfire
Wildfire
A wildfire is any uncontrolled fire in combustible vegetation that occurs in the countryside or a wilderness area. Other names such as brush fire, bushfire, forest fire, desert fire, grass fire, hill fire, squirrel fire, vegetation fire, veldfire, and wilkjjofire may be used to describe the same...
, thereby allowing the seed
Seed
A seed is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant...
s to colonize the bare ground exposed by the natural fire.
Conservation
Fire suppression policies of the past decades have severely limited reproduction of this fire dependent species. It is listed as a Vulnerable speciesVulnerable species
On 30 January 2010, the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species identified 9694 Vulnerable species, subspecies and varieties, stocks and sub-populations.-References:...
.