Montara Manzanita

Description

Arctostaphylos montaraensis,known by the common name Montara manzanita, is a species of manzanita in the Ericaceae family.This perennial evergreen shrub is endemic to California, native only to a few occurrences in northern San Mateo County on San Bruno Mountain and Montara Mountain, northern extensions of the Santa Cruz Mountains. It is found at elevations of 80-500 metres (260-1,640 ft) on the the two mountains, growing on decomposing granite and sandstone rock outcrops, in coastal chaparral and coastal sage scrub habitats. The plant is ranked as a Critically endangered species by the California Native Plant Society Inventory of Rare and Endangered Plants of California, due to being threatened by new developments and off trail/road walking and vehicle (e.g. motorcycles, mountain bikes) habitat degradation.