Taxon Report

Arctostaphylos silvicola Jeps. & Wies.

Bonny Doon manzanita

Print Report

Taxon Summary

Arctostaphylos silvicola, commonly known as Bonny Doon manzanita, is a perennial evergreen shrub in the Ericaceae that is found only in California. It occurs within Chaparral, Closed-cone coniferous forest, and Lower montane coniferous forest, growing at elevations from 120 to 600 meters. Arctostaphylos silvicola is ranked 1B.2, Plants Rare, Threatened or Endangered in California and Elsewhere; Moderately threatened in California.

Classification


Scientific Name:	Arctostaphylos silvicola Jeps. & Wies.
Common Name:	Bonny Doon manzanita
Family:	Ericaceae
Element Code:	PDERI041F0
USDA Plants Symbol:	ARSI
Synonyms/Other Names:

Ecology and Life History


Lifeform:	perennial evergreen shrub
Blooming Period: Jan-Mar	Jan-Mar
Elevation:	120-600 (395-1970)
General Habitats:	Chaparral, Closed-cone coniferous forest, Lower montane coniferous forest
Microhabitat:
Microhabitat Details:	inland marine sands

Conservation Status


CA Rare Plant Rank:	1B.2
Global Rank:	G1
State Rank:	S1
State List:	None
Fed List:	None
Other Status:	SB_CalBG/RSABG
CRPR Changes:

Occurrence Data from the CNDDB


Total Occurrences:	16
Element Occurrence Ranks:
Excellent (A)	1
Good (B)	1
Fair (C)	1
Poor (D)	1
None (X)	0
Unknown (U)	12

Location


California Endemic: True
California Counties and Islands: Name (Code)
Santa Cruz (SCR)
Quads: Name (Quad Code)
Big Basin (3712222), Castle Rock Ridge (3712221), Davenport (3712212), Felton (3712211), Laurel (3712118)

Threat List Data from the CNDDB


Threat List Total:	10
EOs with Threat Listed:	Total EOs	% of EOs
	9	56 %
Development	5	31%
Mining	4	25%
Improper burning regime	2	12%
ORV activity	2	12%
Other	2	12%
Recreational use (non-ORV)	1	6%
Road/trail construction/maint.	1	6%
Logging	1	6%
Erosion/runoff	1	6%
Non-native plant impacts	1	6%

Notes




Threats:
Threatened by sand mining and urbanization.
Taxonomy:

Selected References

Erythea 8:101 (1938)

Citation California Native Plant Society, Rare Plant Program. 2025. Rare Plant Inventory (online edition, v9.5.1). Website https://www.rareplants.cnps.org [accessed 30 October 2025].