Taxon Report

Galium catalinense Gray ssp. acrispum Dempster & Steb.

San Clemente Island bedstraw

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Taxon Summary

Galium catalinense ssp. acrispum, commonly known as San Clemente Island bedstraw, is a perennial deciduous shrub in the Rubiaceae that is found only in California. It occurs within Valley and foothill grassland, growing at elevations from 25 to 275 meters. Galium catalinense ssp. acrispum is ranked 1B.3, Plants Rare, Threatened or Endangered in California and Elsewhere; Not very threatened in California.

Classification


Scientific Name:	Galium catalinense Gray ssp. acrispum Dempster & Steb.
Common Name:	San Clemente Island bedstraw
Family:	Rubiaceae
Element Code:	PDRUB0N0F1
USDA Plants Symbol:	GACAA
Synonyms/Other Names:

Ecology and Life History


Lifeform:	perennial deciduous shrub
Blooming Period: Mar-May(Aug)	Mar-May(Aug)
Elevation:	25-275 (80-900)
General Habitats:	Valley and foothill grassland
Microhabitat:
Microhabitat Details:

Conservation Status


CA Rare Plant Rank:	1B.3
Global Rank:	G4T3
State Rank:	S3
State List:	CE
Fed List:	None
Other Status:	SB_CalBG/RSABG; SB_CRES
CRPR Changes:	changed from 1B.2 to 1B.3 on 2015-05-08

Occurrence Data from the CNDDB


Total Occurrences:	37
Element Occurrence Ranks:
Excellent (A)	0
Good (B)	0
Fair (C)	0
Poor (D)	0
None (X)	0
Unknown (U)	37

Location


California Endemic: True
California Counties and Islands: Name (Code)
Los Angeles (LAX)
Quads: Name (Quad Code)
San Clemente Island Central (3211874), San Clemente Island North (3211885), San Clemente Island South (3211873)

Threat List Data from the CNDDB


Threat List Total:	0
EOs with Threat Listed:	Total EOs	% of EOs
	0	%

Notes



Feral herbivores removed from SCM Isl., and vegetation recovering. See University of California Publications in Botany 64:11 (1973) for original description, and Flora of California 4(2):20 (1979) by L. Dempster for taxonomic treatment.
Threats:
Possibly threatened by Navy activities, non-native plants, erosion, foot traffic (from people).
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 2 November 2025].