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CATALINA’S NATIVE
FIRE FOLLOWERS
With the extra sunlight and nutrients available after a fire, our fire- following
native plants burst out onto the scene. These include Trask’s Yerba Santa
(Eriodictyon traskiae), Phacelia grandiflora (had not been seen on Catalina in
over a century until the 1999 fire), Whispering bells (Emmenanthe penduliflora),
Golden yarrow (Eriophyllum confertiflorum), Blue twining snapdragon (Antirrhinum
kelloggii), Fiesta flower (Pholistoma auritum var. auritum), Eucrypta (Eucrypta
chrysanthemifolia) and Island rush rose (Helianthemum greenii), a federally listed "threatened" species.
Fire poppy (Papaver californicum), is a fire follower that was discovered
after the 1999 fire. It had never been recorded as present on Catalina before!
These plants are fire followers for a couple of reasons: they prefer charate
(ashy burned material) as a seed germination stimulant and fire clears space
that may previously have been occupied by non-native grasses or other plants.
Three shrubs known to require fire for optimal seed germination are Catalina
manzanita (Arctostaphylos catalinae, a Catalina endemic), Feltleaf or Island
ceanothus (Ceanothus arboreus, a Channel Island endemic), and Mission manzanita
(Xylococcus bicolor). These plants have very hard seed coats that are scarified
by fire and thereby “activated”. |
