4 Jorge Montiel Molina, former graduate student at
CICESE, taking microelevation data in vernal pools.
Photo: Seth Kauppinen.
plants that occur predominantly or wholly in northwestern Baja California and nowhere else; some
Baja California vernal pool plants occur just north
of the international border and are often considered rare in the USA, e.g., San Diego button celery
(Eryngium aristulatum var. parishii; Apiaceae), California Orcutt grass (Orcuttia californica, Poaceae),
and spreading navarretia (Navarretia fossalis; Polemoniaceae).
The Baja California populations of these species
are often more numerous than those in the USA, and
thus the protection of Baja California vernal pools
will contribute importantly toward the long-term
persistence of these plants in the wild.
At least four species of plants are endemic to Baja
California vernal pools, and three of these are new
to science. The Valle de Las Palmas region supports
a highly localized mesa mint (Pogogyne sp. nov.
“mexicana”; Lamiaceae) related to but distinct from
relatives in the San Diego area. The entire distribution
of this yet-to-be-described plant is two small river terraces in single, rapidly developing valley. The Colonet
region to the south supports two narrow endemics,
Centromadia perennis (Asteraceae), and one yet-tobe-described popcorn flower (Plagiobothrys sp. nov.
“colonetensis”; Boraginaceae). Finally, the San Quintín
region is the home of an undescribed button celery
(Eryngium sp. nov., Apiaceae), which -until our team
discovered two new populations earlier in 2016- was
12
AUGUST 2016
thought to have been driven to extinction before it
could be formally described.
Our team has also initiated region-wide genetic
studies of the endemic fairy shrimp of Baja California
(Branchinecta; Crustacea), with a focus on regional
endemic, B. sandiegonensis. This work, led by Dr.
María Clara Arteaga Uribe and her graduate student
Nayeli Escudero Castelán at the Center for Scientific
Research and Higher Education at Ensenada (CICESE),
has revealed interesting genetic patterns between
coastal and inland vernal pool regions in northwestern
Baja California. In particular, fairy shrimp from the Valle
de Las Palmas area appear to be genetically distinct
from fairy shrimp from coastal locations (EscuderoCastelán et al., 2014). This pattern is similar to that of the
undescribed mesa mint species, with isolated, interior
populations in Valle de Las Palmas appearing distinct
from close relatives in coastal San Diego County.
What’s next?
Although much has been accomplished in recent years,
we still know relatively little about Baja California’s vernal
pools. Therefore, it is imperative that we continue to
study and attempt to protect the remaining vernal pool
landscapes. In the coming field seasons, biologists will
continue to study the floristics of the Baja California
vernal pools and will work toward formally recognizing the three undescribed vernal pool plant species.