Santa Clara River Natural History

Prunus ilicifolia (Common names: "Hollyleaf cherry", "Evergreen cherry"; "Islay" - Salinan Native American) is an evergreen shrub to tree, producing edible cherries, with shiny and spiny toothed leaves similar in appearance to holly. It is native to the chaparral areas of coastal California and northern Baja California, as well as the desert chaparral areas of the Mojave desert. less ↑

Veronica anagallis-aquatica is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family known by the common names water speedwell, blue speedwell, and brook pimpernel. Its true native range is not clear, but the plant is present on most continents, and in most places it is probably naturalized. It occurs in many types of moist and wet habitat, and it is semi-aquatic, often growing in shallow water along streambanks, in ponds, and in other wetland environments. It... less ↑

Typha latifolia (bulrush, common bulrush, broadleaf cattail, common cattail, great reedmace, cooper's reed, cumbungi) is a perennial herbaceous plant in the genus Typha. It is found as a native plant species in North and South America, Europe, Eurasia, and Africa. In Canada, broadleaf cattail occurs in all provinces and the Northwest Territories, and in the United States, it is native to all states except Hawaii. It is an introduced and invasive species, and considered a noxious... less ↑

The cougar (Puma concolor), also known as the mountain lion, puma, panther, mountain cat, or catamount, is a large cat of the family Felidae native to the Americas. Its range, from the Canadian Yukon to the southern Andes of South America, is the greatest of any large wild terrestrial mammal in the Western Hemisphere. An adaptable, generalist species, the cougar is found in most American habitat types. It is the second heaviest cat in the Western... less ↑

The bobcat (Lynx rufus) is a North American mammal of the cat family Felidae, appearing during the Irvingtonian stage of around 1.8 million years ago (AEO). With 12 recognized subspecies, it ranges from southern Canada to northern Mexico, including most of the continental United States. The bobcat is an adaptable predator that inhabits wooded areas, as well as semidesert, urban edge, forest edges, and swampland environments. It persists in much of its original range, and populations... less ↑

Euphorbia serpens is a species of euphorb known by the common name matted sandmat. It is native to South America but it can be found on most continents as an introduced species and often a weed. This is an annual herb forming a mat of prostrate stems which root at nodes where the stem comes in contact with the ground. The oval leaves occur in oppositely arranged pairs, each leaf less than a centimeter long. The... less ↑

Pogonomyrmex is a genus of harvester ants, occurring primarily in the deserts of North and South America. The genus name originated from the Greek language and refers to a beard-like structure, the psammophore, below the head (Greek πώγων/pōgōn, "beard" + μύρμηξ/murmēx, "ant"), which can be found in most species of the subgenus sensu stricto. The psammophore is used for gathering small seeds, helping to increase the efficiency of transportation of fine sand and pebbles during nest... less ↑

Camissoniopsis bistorta is a species of flowering plant in the evening primrose family known by the common names southern suncup and California suncup. It is native to southern California and Baja California, where it grows in several types of plant community along the coast and in the coastal hills and mountain ranges. This is a hairy annual or perennial herb spreading from a basal rosette with stems reaching up to 80 centimeters long. Leaves are lance-shaped... less ↑

The genus Dasymutilla belongs to the Mutillidae family. The females of the genus are well known for their painful sting, which is where many gain their common name, Cow Killer. The female is wingless and often resemble large ants while the males still retain their wings. The larva of the Dasymutilla are external parasites to various types of hymenoptera. When disturbed the Dasymutilla makes a high-pitched squeaking sound identical to the Pogonomyrmex (Harvester ant). less ↑

Artemisia /ˌɑrtɨˈmiːziə/ is a large, diverse genus of plants with between 200 and 400 species belonging to the daisy family Asteraceae. Common names for various species in the genus include mugwort, wormwood, and sagebrush. Artemisia comprises hardy herbaceous plants and shrubs, which are known for the powerful chemical constituents in their essential oils. Artemisia species grow in temperate climates of both hemispheres, usually in dry or semiarid habitats. Notable species include A. vulgaris (common mugwort), A.... less ↑

Echinochloa is a grass genus, some of whose members are millets grown as cereal or fodder crops. The most notable of these are Japanese millet (E. esculenta) in East Asia, Indian barnyard millet (E. frumentacea) in South Asia, and burgu millet (E. stagnina) in West Africa. Collectively, the members of this genus are called barnyard grasses (though this may also refer to E. crus-galli specifically), barnyard millets or billion-dollar grasses. less ↑

Cuscuta (dodder) is a genus of about 100–170 species of yellow, orange, or red (rarely green) parasitic plants. Formerly treated as the only genus in the family Cuscutaceae, it now is accepted as belonging in the morning glory family, Convolvulaceae, on the basis of the work of the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group. The genus is found throughout the temperate and tropical regions of the world, with the greatest species diversity in subtropical and tropical regions; the genus... less ↑

Isocoma menziesii is a species of flowering plant in the daisy family known by the common name Menzies' goldenbush. It is native to California and Baja California, where it grows in coastal and inland habitat such as chaparral, particularly in sandy soils. This is a subshrub forming a matted bush reaching between one and two meters tall. The erect branching stems may be hairless to woolly, are generally glandular, and vary in color from gray-green to... less ↑

Bidens is a genus of flowering plants in the aster family, Asteraceae. The common names beggarticks, black jack, burr marigolds, cobbler's pegs, Spanish needles, stickseeds, tickseeds and tickseed sunflowers refer to the fruits of the plants, most of which are bristly and barbed, with two sharp pappi at the end. The generic name refers to the same character; Bidens comes from the Latin bis ("two") and dens ("tooth"). less ↑

Armadillidiidae is a family of woodlice, a terrestrial crustacean group in the order Isopoda. Unlike members of other woodlouse families, members of this family can roll into a ball, an ability they share with the outwardly similar but unrelated pill millipedes and other animals. It is this ability which gives woodlice in this family their common name of pill bugs or roly polies. The best known species in the family is Armadillidium vulgare, the common pill... less ↑

Berula is a cosmopolitan monotypic genus of flowering plant in the Apiaceae, containing the single species Berula erecta, which is known by the common name cutleaf water parsnip, or also simply water parsnip as are some other plants in Apiaceae such as Sium latifolium and Sium suave. It is easily confused with the highly toxic water hemlock. Water parsnip is a widespread aquatic plant found across Eurasia, Africa, North America, and elsewhere. It is a perennial... less ↑

Phoenix dactylifera (date, or date palm) is a palm in the genus Phoenix, cultivated for its edible sweet fruit. Although its place of origin is unknown because of long cultivation, it probably originated from lands around Iraq. It grows 70–75 feet (21–23 m) in height, growing singly or forming a clump with several stems from a single root system. The leaves are 4–6 metres (13–20 ft) long, with spines on the petiole, and pinnate, with about 150 leaflets;... less ↑

Cyperus esculentus (or chufa sedge, nut grass, yellow nutsedge, tigernut sedge, or earth almond) is a crop of the family sedge native to warm temperate to subtropical regions of the Northern Hemisphere. It can be found wild, as a weed or as a crop. It has been cultivated since the fourth millennium BC in Egypt, and for several centuries in Southern Europe. Nowadays it is often cultivated for its edible tubers (tigernuts), mainly in Spain for... less ↑

The Western Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio rutulus) is a common swallowtail butterfly of western North America, frequently seen in urban parks and gardens as well as in rural woodlands and riparian areas. It is a member of the Papilio genus, of which Papilio appalachiensis and Papilio xuthus are also members. It is a large, brightly colored and active butterfly, rarely seen at rest; its wingspan is 7 to 10 cm (~2.75 to 4 in), and its wings are yellow... less ↑

Schinus terebinthifolius is a species of flowering plant in the cashew family, Anacardiaceae, that is native to subtropical and tropical South America (southeastern Brazil, northern Argentina and Paraguay). It is found in the following states of Brazil: Alagoas, Bahia, Espírito Santo, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais, Pernambuco, Paraná, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Norte, Rio Grande do Sul, Santa Catarina, São Paulo and Sergipe. Common names include Brazilian pepper, aroeira, rose pepper, and Christmasberry. less ↑

The raccoon (i/ræˈkuːn/, Procyon lotor), sometimes spelled racoon, also known as the common raccoon,North American raccoon,northern raccoon and colloquially as coon, is a medium-sized mammal native to North America. The raccoon is the largest of the procyonid family, having a body length of 40 to 70 cm (16 to 28 in) and a body weight of 3.5 to 9 kg (8 to 20 lb). Its grayish coat mostly consists of dense underfur which insulates against cold weather. Two of the raccoon's most distinctive features are its extremely dexterous... less ↑

Washingtonia robusta (Mexican Fan Palm or Mexican Washingtonia) is a palm tree native to western Sonora and Baja California Sur in northwestern Mexico. It grows to 25 m (82 ft) tall, rarely up to 30 m (98 ft). The leaves have a petiole up to 1 m (3.3 ft) long, and a palmate fan of leaflets up to 1 m long. The inflorescence is up to 3 m (9.8 ft) long, with numerous small pale orange-pink flowers. The fruit is a spherical, blue-black drupe,... less ↑

Peruvian pepper (Schinus molle, also known as American pepper, Peruvian peppertree, escobilla, false pepper, molle del Peru, pepper tree,peppercorn tree, Californian pepper tree, pirul and Peruvian mastic.) is an evergreen tree that grows to 15 meters (50 feet). It is native to the Peruvian Andes. The bright pink fruits of Schinus molle are often sold as "pink peppercorns" although S. molle is unrelated to true pepper (Piper nigrum). less ↑

Eriogonum parvifolium is a species in the Polygonaceae family that occurs on dune formations in the coastal area of Central and Southern California. This evergreen shrub grows to a height of 30 to 100 centimeters with a spread of approximately the same dimension. This plant is an important host for a number of pollinating insects including certain endangered species. E. parvifolium occurs both on bluffs along the Pacific Ocean coast as well as Coastal Strand dunes... less ↑

Parthenocissus vitacea (syn. P. inserta), also known as Thicket Creeper, False Virginia Creeper, Woodbine, or Grape Woodbine, is a woody vine native to North America, in southeastern Canada (west to southern Manitoba) and a large area of the United States, from Maine west to Montana and south to New Jersey and Missouri in the east, and Texas to Arizona in the west. It is present in California, but it may be an introduced species that far... less ↑

Cucurbita foetidissima, has numerous common names, including: buffalo gourd,calabazilla,chilicote, coyote gourd, fetid gourd, fetid wild pumpkin,Missouri gourd,prairie gourd,stinking gourd, wild gourd, and wild pumpkin. The plant is tuberous and a true xerophytic plant found in the Southwestern United States and Northwestern Mexico. The type specimen was collected from Mexico by Humboldt and Bonpland sometime before 1817. less ↑