Contributed by Doreen L. Smith
Some Marin rare plants have had their Latin names changed in the new Flora, Jepson Manual #2 !
One of the most unexpected changes was that the annual mint found in the sand-dunes of Pt. Reyes, thought for many years to be Monadella undulata, was really the quite different species Monardella sinuata var. nigrescens.
The real M. undulata is a perennial, shrubby plant from Southern California.
Only one of the images on Calphotos.org is the real M. undulata. It is by Gerald and Buff Corsi of the California Academy of Sciences, and it is from the Nipoma Dunes.
| Old Scientific Name | Old Common Name | New Scientific Name | New Common Name |
| Arctostaphylos hookeri ssp. montana | Mt. Tamalpais manzanita | Arctostaphylos montana ssp. montana | Mt. Tamalpais manzanita |
| Cordylanthus maritimus ssp. palustris | Pt. Reyes bird’s-beak | Chloropyron maritimum ssp. palustre | Pt. Reyes bird’s-beak |
| Cordylanthus mollis ssp. mollis | soft bird’s-beak | Chloropyron molle ssp. molle | soft bird’s-beak |
| Lotus formosissimus | harlequin lotus | Hosackia gracilis | coast lotus |
| Monardella undulata | curly-leaved monardella | Monardella sinuata ssp. nigrescens | wavy-leaved monardella |
| Streptanthus niger | Tiburon black jewelflower | Streptanthus glandulosus ssp. niger | Tiburon black jewel-flower |
There remain several rare plants reported from Marin that still defy our searches.
If you happen to discover what you believe to be any of them, please contact Doreen Smith.
These plants are:
Arctostaphylos virgata and A. crustacea ssp. rosei from near Muir woods
Collinsia corymbosa from Pt. Reyes
Cordylanthus mollis from San Pablo Bay shores
Erigeron supplex from Pt. Reyes headlands
Gilia capitata ssp. tomentosa from near Tomales
Helianthella castanea from Mt. Tamalpais
Holocarpha macradenia from Ross Valley
Horkelia cuneata ssp. sericea from Pt. Reyes
Linanthus croceus from R.C.A. beach, Bolinas
Micropus amphibolus from Ignacio
Pentachaeta bellidiflora from southern Marin
Pityopus californicus from Big Carson canyon
Plagiobothrys glaber from Mill Valley
Sidalcea hickmanii ssp. viridis from Carson Ridge
Sidalcea malviflora ssp. purpurea from north of Inverness
Stebbinsoseris decipiens from the south of Stinson Beach cliffs
For more information and photographs of these
California native plants, go to Calflora or CalPhotos.