Malacothamnus davidsonii

Malacothamnus davidsonii
Conservation status
Critically Imperiled  (NatureServe)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Malvales
Family:	Malvaceae
Genus:	Malacothamnus
Species:	M. davidsonii
Binomial name
Malacothamnus davidsonii (B.L.Rob.) Greene

Malacothamnus davidsonii in Pacoima Canyon, Los Angeles County

Malacothamnus davidsonii, also known by the common names Davidson's bushmallow and Davidson's bush mallow, is a species of flowering plant in the mallow family.

Distribution

Malacothamnus davidsonii is endemic to California, where it grows in chaparral, oak woodland, and other habitats on slopes.
It is known from three California regions:

• the southern San Francisco Bay Area in and around San Mateo County.
• the Santa Lucia Mountains of the Outer South California Coast Ranges, Monterey Ranger District of Los Padres National Forest, in southern Monterey County.
• the Transverse Ranges including the San Gabriel Mountains, and the eastern San Fernando Valley, in Los Angeles County.

Description

Malacothamnus davidsonii is an erect shrub with a thick, multibranched stem reaching 3–5 metres (9.8–16.4 ft) in maximum height. It is coated densely in short, woolly fibers, appearing feltlike.

The thick, hairy leaves are rounded, divided into several dull lobes, and wavy along the edges. The largest leaves may approach 20 centimeters long.

The inflorescence is an elongated cluster of many pale pink, hairy flowers with oval or somewhat triangular petals about half a centimeter long.

See also

• California chaparral and woodlands — ecoregion.
• Flora of the California chaparral and woodlands

External links

• Jepson Manual Treatment: Malacothamnus davidsonii
• USDA Plants Profile for Malacothamnus davidsonii (Davidson's bushmallow)
• Malacothamnus davidsonii — U.C. Photo gallery