California coastal prairie, also known as northern coastal grassland, is a

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge ( Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur natu ...

plant community A plant community is a collection or association of plant species within a designated geographical unit, which forms a relatively uniform patch, distinguishable from neighboring patches of different vegetation types. The components of each plant ...

of California and Oregon in the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands

biome A biome () is a biogeographical unit consisting of a biological community that has formed in response to the physical environment in which they are found and a shared regional climate. Biomes may span more than one continent. Biome is a broader ...

. It is found along the Pacific Coast, from as far south as Los Angeles in Southern California to southern Oregon.

Description

California's coastal prairies are the most

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of ...

-rich grassland types in North America (Stromberg et al. 2002) with at most, 26 species present per square meter. Coastal prairie is also the single most urbanized major vegetation type in the US; 24% of the habitat has been lost to pavement. Wind, salt spray, fire, and grazing are evolutionary disturbances which affected shrubs and tree growth maintaining more open grasslands. In the absence of grazing and/or fire, many areas of coastal prairie are being lost to shrub and tree encroachment. The accumulated organic matter from centuries produce a rich, dark

prairie soil Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as t ...

(''mollisol''). Coastal prairie often forms a landscape mosaic with the

Northern coastal scrub Northern coastal scrub is a scrubland plant community of California and Oregon. It occurs along the Pacific Coast from Point Sur on the Central California coast in Monterey County, California, to southern Oregon. It frequently forms a landscape mo ...

plant community. Coastal prairies also often form coastal terraces which can occur without a major successional event such as fire or grazing. These terraces are often used for human services such as agriculture and can be seen in areas such as Santa Cruz and San Luis Obispo.

Characteristic species

Characteristic species of this community include: * Perennial bunch grasses: :'' Bromus carinatus'' :'' Calamagrostis foliosa'' :''

Danthonia californica ''Danthonia californica'' is a species of grass known by the common name California oatgrass. This plant is native to two separate regions of the Americas, western North America from California to Saskatchewan, and Chile. Description ''Danthonia ...

'' :''

Deschampsia cespitosa ''Deschampsia cespitosa'', commonly known as tufted hairgrass or tussock grass, is a perennial tufted plant in the grass family Poaceae. Distribution of this species is widespread including the eastern and western coasts of North America, parts o ...

'' :''

Festuca californica ''Festuca californica'' is a species of grass known by the common name California fescue. This fescue species is native to the U.S. states of California and Oregon, where it is a member of many plant communities, including chaparral and oak wo ...

'' :'' Festuca elmeri'' :''

Festuca idahoensis ''Festuca idahoensis'' is a species of grass known by the common names Idaho fescue and blue bunchgrass. It is native to western North America, where it is widespread and common. It can be found in many ecosystems, from shady forests to open plai ...

'' :'' Hordeum brachyantherum'' :''

Nassella pulchra ''Nassella pulchra'', basionym ''Stipa pulchra'', is a species of grass known by the common names purple needlegrass and purple tussockgrass. It is native to the U.S. state of California, where it occurs throughout the coastal hills, valleys, and ...

'' *Other plants : Bracken fern - ''Pteridium aquilinum'' : Douglas iris - ''Iris douglasiana'' : Blue dicks - ''Dipterostemon capitatus'' : Blue-eyed grass - ''Sisyrinchium bellum''

Endangered species

Many of the rarest plant species in the coastal prairie exist mainly on land currently being grazed by livestock. These species have been disappearing when land is set aside for conservation and the livestock are removed. The entire coastal prairie biome can be completely restored, even after the plants seem to have disappeared for decades after grazing end, by unearthing their dormant native seeds in the soil, that are still viable underneath the weeds. Between 1992 and 2000, at 300 Byers Lane, La Selva Beach in Santa Cruz County, 70 acres of habitat went from 99% weed-covered to 95% native covered in only eight years, without sowing any seeds.(Dremann with Shaw 2002) Rare and endangered species found in the coastal prairie include: *Flora :

Santa Cruz tarweed ''Holocarpha macradenia'', commonly known as the Santa Cruz tarplant, is an endangered plant endemic to Northern California.

- ''Holocarpha macradenia'' — found in limited locations :San Francisco popcornflower - ''

Plagiobothrys ''Plagiobothrys'' is a genus of flowering plants known commonly as popcorn flowers. These are small herbaceous plants which bear tiny white or yellow flowers. Their fruits are nutlets. Although these plants are found predominantly in North Amer ...

diffusus'' :Robust spineflower - '' Chorizanthe robusta robusta'' : Artist's popcornflower - ''Plagiobothrys chorisianus'' :Pt. Reyes meadowfoam - '' Limnanthes sp.'' :Santa Cruz clover - '' Trifolium buckwestiorum'' : Indian clover - ''Trifolium amoenum'' :Gray's clover - ''Trifolium grayii'' :San Francisco owl's clover - ''

Triphysaria floribunda ''Triphysaria floribunda'' is a rare species of flowering plant in the family Orobanchaceae known by the common name San Francisco owl's-clover. It is endemic to California, where it is known only from the San Francisco Bay Area. It is limited t ...

''. *Fauna : Ohlone tiger beetle - ''Cicindela ohlone'' — endemic to Santa Cruz County : San Francisco garter snake - ''Thamnophis sirtalis tetrataenia''

Endangered habitat

Unlike many other Mediterranean climate grasslands, the mostly perennial

bunch grass Tussock grasses or bunch grasses are a group of grass species in the family Poaceae. They usually grow as singular plants in clumps, tufts, hummocks, or bunches, rather than forming a sod or lawn, in meadows, grasslands, and prairies. As perennial ...

es stay green all summer, which makes the coastal prairies attractive for grazing cattle and sheep. Other effects to this plant community include agriculture and development. California's coastal prairie, like most other California grasslands, has been greatly affected by the invasion of non-native species, including earthworms, snails, slugs, pill bugs, earwigs, and annual Mediterranean grasses. Most recently, invasive perennial grasses are the greatest threat. These include velvet grass ('' Holcus lanatus''), tall fescue ('' Festuca arundinacea''), and Harding grass (''

Phalaris aquatica ''Phalaris aquatica'', known by the common names bulbous canary-grass and Harding grass, is a species of grass in the genus ''Phalaris'' of the family Poaceae. Description It is an erect, waist-high, stout perennial bunch grass, with grayish to ...

''); the impact of these species can be somewhat ameliorated by well-planned livestock grazing, which can reduce these species' cover and allow native species to persist. Woody species also pose an invasion threat. These include '' Hypericum perforatum'', gorse, and broom. California's coastal prairies are protected by the California Coastal Act, which considers these habitat types to be Environmentally Sensitive Habitat Areas (ESHA). Akin to the endangered species act for habitat types on California's coast, ESHA protections disallow any harm to so designated habitats, except where such harm is necessary to otherwise restore the habitat as a whole (e.g., prescribed fire, grazing). Coastal Prairies of California are classified as critically endangered with the following stressors causing the most impacts: invasive species, low nutrient soils, urbanization, and unregulated recreational activities. There are also a number of abiotic factors which make this environment extremely hard to tolerate from a plant’s perspective such as constant sun exposure, high salt deposits, strong winds, and abrasion damage or complete submersion from sandy dunes or beaches. Both impacts of high winds and salinity are damaging to plants, acting as an accelerated corrosive agent to those who are especially not fit or adapted for such conditions. Historically, applications for sand stabilization resulted in positive feedbacks within the system, thus spurring an optimal habitat for invasive species to flourish.

References

Bibliography

* Dremann, C., with M. Shaw. 2002
An Innovative Approach to Restoring a Coastal California Ecosystem. Ecological Restoration
20(2):103-107. * Ford, L. D., and G. F. Hayes. 2007. Northern coastal scrub and coastal prairie. in M. G. Barbour, T. Keeler-Wolf, and A. A. Schoenherr, editors. Terrestrial vegetation of California. University of California Press., Berkeley * Hayes, G., and K. D. Holl. 2003. Cattle grazing impacts on annual forbs and vegetation composition of mesic grasslands in California. Conservation Biology 17:1694 - 1702. * Loveland, T. R., and H. L. Hutcheson. 1995. Monitoring Changes in Landscapes from Satellite Imagery. Pages 468-473 in U. S. G. Society, editor. Our Living Resources: A Report to the Nation on the Distribution, Abundance, and Health of U.S. Plants, Animals, and Ecosystems. U.S. Department of Interior, National Biological Service, Washington, D.C. * Ornduff, Robert. (2003) ''Introduction to California Plant Life''. Revised by Phyllis M. Faber and Todd Keeler-Wolf. University of California Press.
Plant Communities of Santa Cruz County
Santa Cruz Chapter, California Native Plant Society. * Stromberg, M. R., P. Kephart, and V. Yadon. 2002. Composition, invasability, and diversity in coastal California grasslands. Madroño 48:236-252.

Notes

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External links

CNGA: California Native Grasslands Association website
California chaparral and woodlands Grasslands of California Grasslands of Oregon Plant communities of California Temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands in the United States Ecoregions of California * *Prairie Prairies