Land Management Plan - Part 2 Los Padres National Forest Strategy

September 2005 Land Management Plan Part 2
Los Padres National Forest Strategy
Special Interest Areas
Cuesta Ridge Botanical Places: Cuesta
Established in 1969, the Cuesta Botanical Area covers 1,304 acres of serpentine Sargent cypress
(Cupressus sargentii), but also includes small stands of Coulter pine (Pinus coulteri). In addition
to being the largest area of Sargent cypress on the national forest, the area is of special
importance because it provides important habitat
for the following sensitive plants: Cuesta Pass
checkerbloom (Sidalcea bickmanii spp. anomala), San Luis sedge (Carex obispoensis), San Luis
mariposa lily (Calochortus obispoensis), and Brewer's spineflower (Chorizanthe breweri). In
1994, the Highway 41 Fire burned through the botanical area destroying most of the Sargent
cypress trees. However, the year after the fire, botanists found thousands of Sargent cypress
seedlings. In a similar fashion,
thousands of Cuesta Pass checkerbloom plants appeared where
previously there were only known to be 50. This illustrates the resiliency of the botanical area
and its vegetation to wildland fire.
Dry Lakes Ridge Botanical Places: Highway 33 Corridor
The Dry Lakes Ridge Special Interest Area (SIA) (located in Ventura County) was set aside for
its outstanding botanical values. The area encompasses over 400 acres of dry lakes formed from
a relatively small internal basin located at the axis of a steeply folded anticline. Of botanical and
scientific interest are the disjunct relict plant species including Lotus stipularis, Rhus trilobata
quinata, Apoxynum pumilum, and Chrysothasmnus nauseosus consumilis, none of which are
found on nearby ridges. In addition, there are remnant stands of Pinus ponderosa.
Mount Pinos Summit Botanical Places: Mt. Pinos
Located in Ventura and Kern Counties, the 450-acre Mount Pinos SIA was designated for its
unique botanical values. The species of special interest is limber pine, which grows in two
relatively small areas (less than 20 acres) on Mt. Pinos and Sawmill Mountain above 8,000-feet
in elevation. These pine trees are the only representatives of southern California subalpine forest
on the Los Padres National Forest.
Quatal Canyon Geological Places: Mt. Pinos
Quatal Canyon SIA (located in Ventura and Kern Counties) was set aside for its unique
geological attributes. The area as viewed from Quatal Canyon clearly has a distinctive
geomorphic character when compared with the surrounding terrain. Vertical pedestals and eroded
cliffs of folded buff and iron-stained sandstone beds (Caliente Formation) have been sculpted by
surface waters. The results are channels and near vertical slopes of loose debris which disgorge
onto Quatal Canyon Valley. Soils are so thin that little or no vegetation grows. The area shows a
unique terrain, which is being eroded so fast that soil profiles cannot develop. Indeed, the area
allows anyone interested in earth science to observe how quickly the bedrock history of the
national forest can be erased by water erosion, even in a desert climate.
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