Contra Costa Wallflower
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Sacramento Fish & Wildlife Office

Species Account

CONTRA COSTA WALLFLOWER
(Erysimum capitatum var. angustatum)

CLASSIFICATION:Federal Endangered Species (Federal Register 43:17910 (pdf); April 26, 1978)

CRITICAL HABITAT: Designated in Federal Register 43:39042: August 31, 1978

T.2N., R.2E. SW 1/4 of Section 17, and E 2/3 of S 1/3 of Section 18 (Mt. Diablo Meridian), Contra Costa County, California. (Code of federal Regulations 50:17.96)

RECOVERY PLAN: Revised recovery plan for three endangered species endemic to Antioch Dunes, California. 1984

DESCRIPTION:

Contra Costa wallflower (Erysimum capitatum var. angustatum) is an erect, coarse-stemmed, biennial herb in the mustard family (Brassicaceae). Plants grow from a somewhat woody caudex (trunk-like base) which typically elongates into multiple branched stems 8-32 inches tall in mature plants. The elongated woody base distinguishes this subspecies of E. capitatum from related subspecies. The lower leaves are lance-like to linear, up to 6 inches long and nearly half an inch wide, with minute teeth. Leaves taper to a petiole at base.

Yellow four-petalled flowers, which bloom from March to July of the second year, resemble those of garden wallflowers. They are born laterally on unbranched stems at the top of the plant. The petals have claws (slender stalks) and are about ½ to 1 inch long. The slender pod-like fruit (silique) is dry when ripe and is to 4 inches long.

See Hickman (1993) in General Information about California Plants, below, for a detailed description of the species.

DISTRIBUTION:

Contra Costa wallflower grows naturally only in sand dune habitat along the San Joaquin River east of Antioch. Contra Costa wallflower forms a persistent dormant seed bank. Areas of suitable habitat (riverine or wind-blown sandy soils near Antioch) that do not contain visible vegetative, reproductive or senescent/dead plants may support viable seed banks.

THREATS:

In the early 1900's, the isolated dune habitat in the delta began to experience a dramatic change as human development expanded. The easily-accessible sand was harvested to make bricks. Large-scale sand mining and industrial development fragmented the sand dune habitat until only a small portion of the original ecosystem remained. Non- native grasses and vegetation encroached on the sand dunes to crowd the few remaining endangered plants.

By the time the Antioch Dunes National Wildlife Refuge (administered by the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge Complex) was established, only a few acres of remnant dune habitat supported the last natural populations of Antioch Dunes evening-primrose, Contra Costa wallflower, and Lange's metalmark butterfly.

A reservoir of moving sand is essential to maintain the dynamic ecology of the dunes, as moving sand opens areas for the establishment of seedling plants. Roto-tilling has contributed to the invasion of exotic vegetation that stabilizes the remaining sand-dune habitat and competes with native dune vegetation.

Habitat improvement activities have included dune restoration, hand-clearing nonnative plant species, planting buckwheat seedlings and restriction of public access to avoid trampling and fire.

STATE & CALIFORNIA NATIVE PLANT SOCIETY STATUS:

This species was listed as endangered by the California Department of Fish and Game in 1978, and the California Native Plant Society has placed it on List 1B (rare or endangered throughout its range).

REFERENCES FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Pavlik, B.M., N. Ferguson and M. Nelson. 1993. Assessing limitations on the growth of endangered plant populations. I. Experimental demography of Erysimum capitatum ssp. angustatum and Oenothera deltoides ssp. howellii. Biological Conservation 65:257-265.

Pavlik, B.M., N. Ferguson and M. Nelson. 1993. Assessing limitations on the growth of endangered plant populations. II. Seed production and seed bank dynamics of Erysimum capitatum ssp. angustatum and Oenothera deltoides ssp. howellii. Biological Conservation 65:267-278.

Rossbach, G. B. 1958. New taxa and new combinations in the genus Erysimum in North America. Aliso 4:115-124.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 1984. Revised recovery plan for three endangered species endemic to Antioch Dunes, California. Portland, OR.

General Information about California Plants

Photo, Contra Costa wallflower, by Beatrice F. Howitt, California Academy of Sciences

Prepared by Endangered Species Div., Sacramento Fish & Wildlife Office, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service

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