Taxon Report

Cardamine angulata Hook.

seaside bittercress

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Taxon Summary

Cardamine angulata, commonly known as seaside bittercress, is a perennial herb in the Brassicaceae that is found in California and elsewhere. It occurs within Lower montane coniferous forest, and North Coast coniferous forest, growing at elevations from 15 to 915 meters. Cardamine angulata is ranked 2B.2, Plants Rare, Threatened, or Endangered in California, But More Common Elsewhere; Moderately threatened in California.

Classification


Scientific Name:	Cardamine angulata Hook.
Common Name:	seaside bittercress
Family:	Brassicaceae
Element Code:	PDBRA0K010
USDA Plants Symbol:	CAAN5
Synonyms/Other Names:

Ecology and Life History


Lifeform:	perennial herb
Blooming Period: (Jan)Mar-Jul	(Jan)Mar-Jul
Elevation:	15-915 (50-3000)
General Habitats:	Lower montane coniferous forest, North Coast coniferous forest
Microhabitat:	Streambanks
Microhabitat Details:	wet areas

Conservation Status


CA Rare Plant Rank:	2B.2
Global Rank:	G4G5
State Rank:	S3
State List:	None
Fed List:	None
Other Status:
CRPR Changes:	changed from 2B.1 to 2B.2 on 2017-10-06 changed from 2.1 to 2B.1 on 2013-06-12 added to 2.1 on 2012-04-10

Occurrence Data from the CNDDB


Total Occurrences:	38
Element Occurrence Ranks:
Excellent (A)	10
Good (B)	14
Fair (C)	4
Poor (D)	2
None (X)	0
Unknown (U)	8

Location


California Endemic: False
California Counties and Islands: Name (Code)
Del Norte (DNT), Humboldt (HUM), Marin (MRN), Mendocino (MEN)
Quads: Name (Quad Code)
Ah Pah Ridge (4112348), Arcata South (4012471), Bolinas (3712286), Childs Hill (4112461), Fern Canyon (4112441), Hales Grove (3912377), High Divide (4112481), Hiouchi (4112471), Holter Ridge (4112338), Klamath Glen (4112358), McWhinney Creek (4012461), Orick (4112431), Requa (4112451), Rodgers Peak (4112421), San Geronimo (3812216), Sister Rocks (4112462), Smith River (4112482)

Threat List Data from the CNDDB


Threat List Total:	8
EOs with Threat Listed:	Total EOs	% of EOs
	24	63 %
Logging	15	39%
Road/trail construction/maint.	7	18%
Erosion/runoff	3	7%
Foot traffic/trampling	3	7%
Altered flood/tidal/hydrologic regime	2	5%
Non-native plant impacts	1	2%
Other	1	2%
Recreational use (non-ORV)	1	2%

Notes



Many occurrences are historical; need field surveys. Possibly threatened by foot traffic, and road maintenance. See Flora Boreali-Americana 1(1):44-45 (1829) for original description.
Threats:

Taxonomy:

Selected References

Proposed Addition to CRPR 2.1, G5 / S1 (2012)

Citation California Native Plant Society, Rare Plant Program. 2026. Rare Plant Inventory (online edition, v9.5.1). Website https://www.rareplants.cnps.org [accessed 8 June 2026].