Taxon Details

Cylindropuntia californica var. californica

snake cholla

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Taxon Summary:

Cylindropuntia californica var. californica, commonly known as snake cholla, is a perennial stem in the Cactaceae that is found in California and elsewhere. It occurs within Chaparral, and Coastal scrub, growing at elevations from 30 to 150 meters. Cylindropuntia californica var. californica is ranked 1B.1, Plants Rare, Threatened or Endangered in California and Elsewhere; Seriously threatened in California.

Classification

Scientific Name: Cylindropuntia californica (Torr. & A. Gray) F.M. Knuth var. californica
Common Name: snake cholla
Family:	Cactaceae
Element Code:	PDCAC0D2Y1
USDA Plants Symbol:	CYCAC
Synonyms/Other Names: Opuntia parryi Engelm. var. serpentina (Engelm.) L. Benson Opuntia californica var. californica
Name Status:	JEF, FNA, POWO, IPNI, Tropicos

Conservation Status

CA Rare Plant Rank:	1B.1
Fed List:	None
State List:	None
Global Rank:	G3T2
State Rank:	S1
Other Status:	BLM_S; SB_CRES
CRPR Changes:
Add Date:	1974-01-01
Date Edited:	2021-05-26

Ecology and Life History

Lifeform: perennial stem

Blooming Period: Apr-May

Elevation:
30 - 150 meters
100 - 490 feet

General Habitats:

Chaparral
Coastal scrub

Microhabitat Details:

Microhabitat:

Notes

Notes: Threatened by development and vehicles. A synonym of O. parryi var. serpentina in TJM (1993); see O. parryi. See Haseltonia 4:103 (1996) for taxonomic discussion.
Threats: Threatened by development and vehicles.
Taxonomy: A synonym of O. parryi var. serpentina in TJM (1993); see O. parryi.

Threat List Data from the CNDDB

THREAT LIST:
Threat List Total:	9
	Total EOs	% of EOs
EOs with Threat Listed:	15	41 %
Development	9	24%
Road/trail construction/maint.	6	16%
Non-native plant impacts	5	13%
ORV activity	3	8%
Other	2	5%
Recreational use (non-ORV)	2	5%
Grazing	2	5%
Vandalism/dumping/litter	1	2%
Foot traffic/trampling	1	2%

Occurrence Data from the CNDDB

Element Occurrence Ranks:
Total Occurrences:					37
A	B	C	D	X	U
0	6	4	0	1	26

Occurrence Status:
Historical >20 Years	19
Recent <=20 Years	18

Presence:
Presumed Extant	36
Possibly Extirpated	0
Presumed Extirpated	1

Location

California Endemic:

California Island:

States: Name (Code)
Baja California (BA), California (CA)

California Counties and Islands: Name (Code)
San Diego (SDG)

Quads: Name (Quad Code)
Del Mar (3211782), Dulzura (3211667), Imperial Beach (3211751), Jamul Mountains (3211668), National City (3211761), Otay Mesa (3211658), Point Loma (3211762)

Notes:

Definitions of codes following a county and/or quad:
*		Presumed extirpated
(?)		Occurrence confirmed, but possibly extirpated
Quad and county data is imported from the CNDDB. Species may be present in other areas where conditions are favorable. These data should NOT be substituted for pre-project review or for on-site surveys.

Regional Map

Map

Presumed Extant

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CNPS Rare Plant Inventory