Nasturtium gambelii
Encyclopedia
Nasturtium gambelii is a rare species of flowering plant in the mustard family
known by the common names Gambel's yellowcress and Gambel's watercress. It is known from three to four scattered occurrences in California
, and it has been reported to exist in central Mexico
and Guatemala
. Its total population was last estimated at fewer than 300 individuals. It was federally listed as an endangered species
of the United States in 1993.
This is a perennial herb growing decumbent to erect, its branching stems reaching up to 2 meters long. It is aquatic
or semi-aquatic, its herbage sometimes floating on standing water or sprawling over wet ground. The leaves are up to 10 centimeters long and each is divided into several pairs of toothed, pointed leaflets. The inflorescence
is a raceme
of flowers with spoon-shaped white petals each just under a centimeter long. The fruit is a long, narrow, cylindrical silique
which may be 3 centimeters long but less than 2 millimeters wide. It contains up to 20 minute seeds, the fruit narrowing between each. The plant reproduces via seed or vegetatively
by sprouting from spreading shoots.
This rare plant grows in fresh
and brackish water
habitat, such as lakesides and marsh
es. Two of its remaining California occurrences are at Oso Flaco Lake at the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes
and on coastal land on Vandenberg Air Force Base
.
Brassicaceae
Brassicaceae, a medium sized and economically important family of flowering plants , are informally known as the mustards, mustard flowers, the crucifers or the cabbage family....
known by the common names Gambel's yellowcress and Gambel's watercress. It is known from three to four scattered occurrences 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...
, and it has been reported to exist in central Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and Guatemala
Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
. Its total population was last estimated at fewer than 300 individuals. It was federally listed as an endangered species
Endangered species
An endangered species is a population of organisms which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters...
of the United States in 1993.
This is a perennial herb growing decumbent to erect, its branching stems reaching up to 2 meters long. It is aquatic
Aquatic plant
Aquatic plants are plants that have adapted to living in aquatic environments. They are also referred to as hydrophytes or aquatic macrophytes. These plants require special adaptations for living submerged in water, or at the water's surface. Aquatic plants can only grow in water or in soil that is...
or semi-aquatic, its herbage sometimes floating on standing water or sprawling over wet ground. The leaves are up to 10 centimeters long and each is divided into several pairs of toothed, pointed leaflets. The inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
is a raceme
Raceme
A raceme is a type of inflorescence that is unbranched and indeterminate and bears pedicellate flowers — flowers having short floral stalks called pedicels — along the axis. In botany, axis means a shoot, in this case one bearing the flowers. In a raceme, the oldest flowers are borne...
of flowers with spoon-shaped white petals each just under a centimeter long. The fruit is a long, narrow, cylindrical silique
Silique
A silique or siliqua is a fruit of 2 fused carpels with the length being more than three times the width. The outer walls of the ovary usually separate when ripe, leaving a persistent partition...
which may be 3 centimeters long but less than 2 millimeters wide. It contains up to 20 minute seeds, the fruit narrowing between each. The plant reproduces via seed or vegetatively
Vegetative reproduction
Vegetative reproduction is a form of asexual reproduction in plants. It is a process by which new individuals arise without production of seeds or spores...
by sprouting from spreading shoots.
This rare plant grows in fresh
Freshwater
Fresh water is naturally occurring water on the Earth's surface in ice sheets, ice caps, glaciers, bogs, ponds, lakes, rivers and streams, and underground as groundwater in aquifers and underground streams. Fresh water is generally characterized by having low concentrations of dissolved salts and...
and brackish water
Brackish water
Brackish water is water that has more salinity than fresh water, but not as much as seawater. It may result from mixing of seawater with fresh water, as in estuaries, or it may occur in brackish fossil aquifers. The word comes from the Middle Dutch root "brak," meaning "salty"...
habitat, such as lakesides and marsh
Marsh
In geography, a marsh, or morass, is a type of wetland that is subject to frequent or continuous flood. Typically the water is shallow and features grasses, rushes, reeds, typhas, sedges, other herbaceous plants, and moss....
es. Two of its remaining California occurrences are at Oso Flaco Lake at the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes
Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes
Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes is the largest remaining dune system south of San Francisco and the second largest in the U.S. state of California. It encompasses an stretch of coastline on the Central Coast of California and extends from southern San Luis Obispo County to northern Santa Barbara County.The...
and on coastal land on Vandenberg Air Force Base
Vandenberg Air Force Base
Vandenberg Air Force Base is a United States Air Force Base, located approximately northwest of Lompoc, California. It is under the jurisdiction of the 30th Space Wing, Air Force Space Command ....
.