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The pallid manzanita is a fire-adapted shrub in the heath family that can grow to heights in excess of 13 feet — even on what looks to us like barren ground. The plant thrives on adversity: rocky ridges and outcrops with thin, low-nutrient soil. Found only in the hills east of San Francisco Bay, it can withstand fire but will never adapt to the human-induced habitat destruction that currently threatens its survival.
ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT PROFILE
PROTECTION STATUS: Threatened
YEAR PLACED ON LIST: 1998
CRITICAL HABITAT: None
RECOVERY PLAN: Draft 2003
RANGE: Alameda and Contra Costa counties in California’s eastern San Francisco Bay Area
THREATS: Urban development, improper vegetation-management activities, shading and competition by native and nonnative trees, the effects of fire suppression, herbicide spraying, hybridization, and habitat loss and fragmentation
POPULATION TREND: There are only 13 known occurrences of pallid manzanita. The total population in 2006 numbered about 1,200 plants — only 25 percent of the estimated numbers reported in 2002. During the past two decades, the Oakland Hills population has been reduced by almost half, to approximately 125 plants.
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SAVING THE PALLID MANZANITA
Careless vegetation and fire management activities by the City of Oakland, including grazing, herbicide spraying, and contracted manual vegetation removal, have caused substantial losses of pallid manzanita. Many manzanitas in the Oakland Hills have also been bulldozed for development. The Center sent a warning letter to the City of Oakland over the ongoing illegal destruction of pallid manzanita and other rare and protected plant species.
Currently, the Center is pushing Oakland to consult with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, California Department of Fish and Game, East Bay Regional Park District, and local watershed groups about how to avoid further devastation of pallid manzanita. We are also requesting that the city come into compliance with California law by preparing Environmental Impact Reports for any development projects likely to affect the plant. In addition, the Center is pressuring Oakland to complete a proposed “Vegetation Management Plan” for the area that will provide fire protection while taking steps to recover pallid manzanita by implementing the recommendations of the recovery plan.
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Contact: Jeff Miller
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