Hesperocyparis pygmaea
Hesperocyparis pygmaea | |
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Hesperocyparis pygmaea at Salt Point, Mendocino, California | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Gymnospermae |
Division: | Pinophyta |
Class: | Pinopsida |
Order: | Cupressales
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Family: | Cupressaceae |
Genus: | Hesperocyparis |
Species: | H. pygmaea
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Binomial name | |
Hesperocyparis pygmaea (
Lemmon ) Bartel | |
Natural range of Cupressus pygmaea | |
Synonyms[1] | |
List
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Hesperocyparis pygmaea, the Mendocino cypress or pygmy cypress, is a
Description
The
The Mendocino cypress differs little from H. goveniana in morphology, with the most conspicuous difference in herbarium material being the usually glossy black seeds, unlike the dull brown seeds of H. goveniana, but even this character is not constant, with dull brown seeds found in the southernmost populations of H. pygmaea near Point Arena.[4] Preliminary genetic studies have shown some differences, with notably some plastid sequences (matK, rbcL, and trnL) suggesting a possible closer relationship to H. macrocarpa, though other sequences confirm its close relationship to H. goveniana.[5] In cultivation together with H. goveniana, it retains a very different crown shape, with a tall slender crown, contrasting with the broad, shrubby crown of H. goveniana; it also has darker green foliage (paler, yellow-green in H. goveniana).[4]
The largest recorded specimen is located in Mendocino County, with recorded dimensions of 43 m height, 2.13 m diameter, and 12 m crown spread, in 2000.[6]
Taxonomy
Hesperocyparis pygmaea was first described as a
Its taxonomic status is a long standing matter of dispute between botanists. In the 20th century some treated Cupressus pygmaea as a distinct species, following Sargent, including Wolf (1948),
The spelling of the scientific name has also been confused. Lemmon's
Disputes continued into the 2000s with Farjon agreeing that it should be part of C. goveniana in 2005.[2] Additionally moving the new world cypress species to different genuses was proposed three different times. In 2006 Damon P. Little proposed moving them to Callitropsis, but did not find wide acceptance.[5][1] In 2009 two different classifications were proposed, Hesperocyparis and Neocupressus.[1]
As of 2024[update] Hesperocyparis pygmaea is listed as the correct name in Plants of the World Online,[1] World Flora Online,[13] and the Gymnosperm Database.[6]
Distribution and habitat
The Mendocino cypress is highly variable in growth form, depending on soil conditions. In the
Mendocino cypress occurs in very limited ranges within only
Productivity
Along the Mendocino coastal terraces, whose geological age is approximately one million years, studies have been conducted of the biomass density and
In the Mendocino cypress pygmy forests, biomass was measured to range between 1.6 and 4.4 kilograms per square meter aboveground; moreover, net primary productivity was found to measure 180 to 360 grams per square meter per annum above the ground surface. Mean below-ground values are 3.5 kilograms biomass per square meter, productivity being 402 grams per meter per annum. The leaf-area ratio of the pygmy forest was estimated as 2.1 grams per square meter implying a high production efficiency per unit leaf area for an evergreen community (150 grams per meter aboveground ). According to Westman, productivity of the H. pygmaea forest lies within the range expected for open, dry woodlands. A similar community for which data is available is a pygmy conifer-oak scrubland in southern Arizona.
References
- ^ a b c d e "Hesperocyparis pygmaea (Lemmon) Bartel". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 2 March 2024.
- ^ ISBN 1-84246-068-4.
- ^ ISBN 0-9628505-3-5.
- ^ .
- ^ JSTOR 25064176.
- ^ a b Earle, Christopher J., ed. (2023). "Hesperocyparis pygmaea (Mendocino cypress) description". The Gymnosperm Database. Retrieved 4 March 2024.
- ^ Sargent, Charles S. (1901). "New or Little Known North American Trees. III". Botanical Gazette. 31 (4): 239–240. Retrieved 2 March 2024.
- ^ Griffin, James R.; Critchfield, William B. (1976). Research Paper PSW-82: The Distribution of Forest Trees in California (Report). USDA Forest Service. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
- ^ Lemmon, J. G. (1895). West-American Cone-Bearers. 3rd ed.
- ^ Camus, A (1914). "Les Cyprès". Encyclopédie Économique de Sylviculture. 2: 50.
- ^ a b Bartel, Jim A. (1993). "Cupressus pigmaea subsp. pygmaea". In Hickman, James C. (ed.). The Jepson Manual: Higher Plants of California. University and Jepson Herbaria.
- ^ Eckenwalder, James E. (1993). "Cupressus goveniana". In Flora of North America Editorial Committee (ed.). Flora of North America North of Mexico (FNA). Vol. 2. New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press – via eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA.
- ^ "Hesperocyparis pigmaea (Lemmon) Bartel". World Flora Online. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
- ^ "Woodland Management and Productivity". Soil Survey of Mendocino County, California, Western Part. National Cooperative Soil Survey. 1993. Archived from the original on 2006-09-23. Retrieved 2006-11-23.
- ISSN 0022-0477.
External links
Media related to Cupressus pygmaea at Wikimedia Commons