Otay Mountain Lotus / Center For Plant Conservation
Search / Plant Profile / Hosackia crassifolia var. otayensis
Plant Profile

Otay Mountain Lotus (Hosackia crassifolia var. otayensis)

  • Global Rank: T1 - Critically Imperiled
  • Legal Status: N/A
  • Family: Fabaceae
  • State: CA
  • Nature Serve ID: 160585
  • Lifeform: Forb/herb
  • Date Inducted in National Collection:
Description:

Silvery hairs cover this sprawling perennial. Compound leaves have 9-15 elliptic leaflets of 2-3cm in length. Contrasting leaf surfaces are paler on the bottom. 12-20 cream and purple flowers crowd an inflorescence. Though now found only on Otay Mountain in San Diego County, California, this taxa is endemic to California and Baja California.

Where is Otay Mountain Lotus (Hosackia crassifolia var. otayensis) located in the wild?

Habitat:

Chaparral (on metavolcanic soils)

Distribution:

Found on Otay Mountain in San Diego County and currently thought to be extirpated from Baja California. The Otay Mountain populations occur on BLM land. There are some reports of a disjunct population

States & Provinces:

Otay Mountain Lotus can be found in California

Which CPC Partners conserve Otay Mountain Lotus (Hosackia crassifolia var. otayensis)?

  • San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance

    Not Sponsored
    Conservation Actions
    Assigned 06/09/17
    • CPC's Plant Sponsorship Program provides long term stewardship of rare plants in our National Collection. We are so grateful for all our donors who have made the Plant Sponsorship Program so successful. We are in the process of acknowledging all our wonderful plant sponsorship donors on our website. This is a work in progress and will be updated regularly.

    Conservation Actions

    • 09/01/2020
      • Orthodox Seed Banking

    Based on an September 2020 extract of the California Plant Rescue Database, San Diego Zoo Global holds 2 accessions of Hosackia crassifolia var. otayensis in orthodox seed collection. There are as many as 46396 seeds of this species in their collection - although some may have been used for curation testing or sent to back up.

    • 09/01/2020
      • Orthodox Seed Banking

    Based on an September 2020 extract of the California Plant Rescue Database, California Botanic Garden holds 2 accessions of Hosackia crassifolia var. otayensis in orthodox seed collection. There are as many as 290 seeds of this species in their collection - although some may have been used for curation testing or sent to back up.

    • 08/05/2020
      • Seed Collection

    Based on an August 2020 extract of the California Plant Rescue Database, San Diego Zoo Global has collected 2 seed accessions of Hosackia crassifolia var. otayensis from 2 plant occurrences listed in the California Natural Diversity Database. These collections together emcompass 205 maternal plants

    • 08/05/2020
      • Seed Collection

    Based on an August 2020 extract of the California Plant Rescue Database, California Botanic Garden has collected 2 seed accessions of Hosackia crassifolia var. otayensis from 1 plant occurrences listed in the California Natural Diversity Database. These collections together emcompass an unknown number of maternal plants

    Nature Serve Biotics
    • 05/02/2017

    Lotus crassifolius var. otayensis is known from only Otay Mountain in San Diego County, California, and from one extant occurrence in Baja California, Mexico. Threats include road maintenance.

    • 04/15/2017

    The occurrences on BLM land are afforded some protection from development, though the are potential risks from road improvements and border activity (CNDDB 2017).

    • 04/15/2017

    Multiple populations occur on Otay Mountain, but more information is needed on the current population status.

    • 04/15/2017

    Seeds have been banked and research on germination and dormancy-breaking requirements is on the horizon. We are not aware of other research.

    • 04/15/2017

    Increase the number of occurrences represented in seed collections

    MORE

    Be the first to post an update!

    Nomenclature
    Taxon Hosackia crassifolia var. otayensis
    Authority Moran ex Isely
    Family Fabaceae
    CPC Number 9561
    ITIS 820932
    USDA LOCRO
    Duration Perennial
    Common Names Otay Mountain Peavine | big deervetch | Otay lotus
    Associated Scientific Names Hosackia crassifolia var. otayensis | Lotus crassifolius var. otayensis
    Distribution Found on Otay Mountain in San Diego County and currently thought to be extirpated from Baja California. The Otay Mountain populations occur on BLM land. There are some reports of a disjunct population
    State Rank
    State State Rank
    California S1
    Ecological Relationships

    Photos

    San Diego Botanic Garden Science and Conservation staff are surveying Otay Mountain for the rare Otay Mountain lotus.   SDBG will be mapping all occurrences, collecting herbarium vouchers and seed, conducting germination trials, and growing out plants for future restoration and ex situ efforts. Photo Credit: Joe DeWolf

    Primarily found on Otay Mountain (San Diego County, CA), this rare bean (1B.1/T1) is a wonderful sight on a mountain over looking the border into Mexico. Photo Credit: Tim Sisneros
    Newsletters
    Read More

    Donate to CPC to Save this Species

    CPC secures rare plants for future generations by coordinating on-the-ground conservation and training the next generation of plant conservation professionals. Donate today to help save rare plants from extinction.

    Donate Today