Taxon Report

Lavatera assurgentiflora Kell. ssp. assurgentiflora

island mallow

Print Report

Taxon Summary

Lavatera assurgentiflora ssp. assurgentiflora, commonly known as island mallow, is a perennial evergreen shrub in the Malvaceae that is found only in California. It occurs within Coastal bluff scrub, and Coastal scrub, growing at elevations from 15 to 245 meters. Lavatera assurgentiflora ssp. assurgentiflora is ranked 1B.1, Plants Rare, Threatened or Endangered in California and Elsewhere; Seriously threatened in California.

Classification


Scientific Name:	Lavatera assurgentiflora Kell. ssp. assurgentiflora
Common Name:	island mallow
Family:	Malvaceae
Element Code:	PDMAL0N021
USDA Plants Symbol:	LAASA
Synonyms/Other Names:

Ecology and Life History


Lifeform:	perennial evergreen shrub
Blooming Period: Mar-Nov	Mar-Nov
Elevation:	15-245 (50-805)
General Habitats:	Coastal bluff scrub, Coastal scrub
Microhabitat:	Rocky (sometimes), Sandy (sometimes)
Microhabitat Details:

Conservation Status


CA Rare Plant Rank:	1B.1
Global Rank:	G1T1
State Rank:	S1
State List:	None
Fed List:	None
Other Status:	SB_SBBG
CRPR Changes:

Occurrence Data from the CNDDB


Total Occurrences:	6
Element Occurrence Ranks:
Excellent (A)	0
Good (B)	0
Fair (C)	0
Poor (D)	0
None (X)	2
Unknown (U)	4

Location


California Endemic: True
California Counties and Islands: Name (Code)
Santa Barbara (SBA), Ventura (VEN)
Quads: Name (Quad Code)
Anacapa Island (3311983), San Miguel Island East (3312083), San Miguel Island West (3312084), San Nicolas Island (3311924)*, Santa Rosa Island North (3312081)

Threat List Data from the CNDDB


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

Notes



Known from fewer than ten native occurrences. Rare at all occurrences, and seriously threatened by grazing; reduced to one plant on ANA Isl. One occurrence introduced on SMI Isl. (SMIE); cultivated plants grow on SNI Isl. but native occurrence extirpated. May not be native to SRO Isl.; plants on mainland, SCZ Isl., and Todos Santos Isl. (BA) most likely planted. Recovery efforts ongoing on ANA Isl. See L. assurgentiflora in The Jepson Manual. See The California Islands: Proceedings of a Multidisciplinary Symposium, pp. 175-178 (1980) for species account.
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 24 October 2025].