Dudleya Traskiae

SamHoutchens

Dudleya Traskiae

The Dudleya traskiae is a rare plant that is native to the Santa Barbara Islands in California. Dudleya traskiae is the plant’s species name, but the plant is also referred to as Santa Barbara Island Dudleya or more commonly; Trask’s live-forever (California Native Plant Database, 1994). Dudleya Traskiaes are in the Crassulaceae plant family. They are in full bloom during the spring and summer and have light green to yellow flowers. This endangered plant is limited to the Santa Barbara Island region and is protected by multiple endangered species acts to make sure no one can pick or kill them. Soil erosion, non-native plants, animals, and the cultivating of certain foods play a large part in why the Dudleya Traskiae has become so endangered, but the main reason the Dudleya Traskiae has had such trouble maintaining stability is because of the rabbit population. The rabbits in the Channel Islands like to eat and therefor kill these plants, and it wasn’t until the 1980s, when the national park put forth a programto try and limit the amount of rabbits that were allowed in the park, did the plant’s endangerment slow down (McEachern, 2004). The Channel Islands themselves contain very high peaks and mountains all throughout the park. The Dudleya Traskiae grows best on the slopes where it is not overexposed to the sun, yet it still. (California Native Plant Society, 2014). This plant is a medium sized plant growing about 6 inches tall and is a fairly easy plant to maintain. I could not find any specific cultural uses for these plants, but they are commonly used for aesthetic purposes in places such as butterfly and hummingbird gardens (California Native Plant Society, 2014). I personally would love to visit the Channel Islands someday plants such as the Dudleya traskiae among other endangered plants. The Channel Islands are home to so many other plants who are limited to only the Channel Islands and who are also endangered.

Works Cited:

California Native Plant Database. 21 Ja
nuary 2010. Dudleya traskiae. http://www.theodorepayne.org/mediawiki/index.php?title=Dudleya_traskiae. October 16, 2016.

California Native Plant Society. 2014. Santa Barbara Island Live Forever. http://calscape.org/Dudleya-traskiae-(Santa-Barbara-Island-Live-Forever)?srchcr=sc560da53065050. October 16, 2016.

McEachern, K. Fall 2004. Ecological effects of animal introductions at Channel Islands National Park.http://www.nature.nps.gov/ParkScience/Archive/PDF/Article_PDFs/ParkScience22(2)Fall2004_46-52_McEachern_2437.pdf. October 16, 2016.

Picture Citation:

Dudleya traskiae
“Santa Barbara Liveforever”. https://www.anniesannuals.com/plants/view/?id=1535