Taxon Report

Verbena californica Mold.

Red Hills vervain

Print Report

Taxon Summary

Verbena californica, commonly known as Red Hills vervain, is a perennial herb in the Verbenaceae that is found only in California. It occurs within Cismontane woodland, and Valley and foothill grassland, growing at elevations from 260 to 400 meters. Verbena californica is ranked 1B.1, Plants Rare, Threatened or Endangered in California and Elsewhere; Seriously threatened in California.

Classification


Scientific Name:	Verbena californica Mold.
Common Name:	Red Hills vervain
Family:	Verbenaceae
Element Code:	PDVER0N050
USDA Plants Symbol:	VECA9
Synonyms/Other Names:

Ecology and Life History


Lifeform:	perennial herb
Blooming Period: May-Sep	May-Sep
Elevation:	260-400 (855-1310)
General Habitats:	Cismontane woodland, Valley and foothill grassland
Microhabitat:	Mesic, Seeps (usually), Serpentine (usually)
Microhabitat Details:	usually serpentinite creeks

Conservation Status


CA Rare Plant Rank:	1B.1
Global Rank:	G2
State Rank:	S2
State List:	CT
Fed List:	FT
Other Status:	SB_CalBG/RSABG; SB_UCBG
CRPR Changes:

Occurrence Data from the CNDDB


Total Occurrences:	12
Element Occurrence Ranks:
Excellent (A)	2
Good (B)	3
Fair (C)	3
Poor (D)	0
None (X)	0
Unknown (U)	4

Location


California Endemic: True
California Counties and Islands: Name (Code)
Tuolumne (TUO)
Quads: Name (Quad Code)
Chinese Camp (3712074), Keystone (3712075), Sonora (3712084)

Threat List Data from the CNDDB


Threat List Total:	12
EOs with Threat Listed:	Total EOs	% of EOs
	10	83 %
Foot traffic/trampling	6	50%
Other	6	50%
Improper burning regime	5	41%
Altered flood/tidal/hydrologic regime	4	33%
Recreational use (non-ORV)	4	33%
Grazing	3	25%
Development	2	16%
Non-native plant impacts	2	16%
ORV activity	2	16%
Mining	1	8%
Feral pigs	1	8%
Vandalism/dumping/litter	1	8%

Notes



Known only from the Red Hills. Threatened by grazing, mining, development, non-native plants, recreation, foot traffic, and vehicles. Protected in part at Red Hills ACEC (BLM).
Threats:

Taxonomy:

Selected References

Citation California Native Plant Society, Rare Plant Program. 2025. Rare Plant Inventory (online edition, v9.5.1). Website https://www.rareplants.cnps.org [accessed 7 November 2025].