Plants Profile for Lythrum californicum (California loosestrife)

General Information
Symbol:	LYCA4
Group:	Dicot
Family:	Lythraceae
Duration:	Perennial
Growth Habit:	Forb/herb Subshrub
Native Status:	L48 N
Data Source and Documentation

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	Native		Introduced		Both		Absent/Unreported
	Native, No County Data		Introduced, No County Data		Both, No County Data

Native Status:

L48

NAV

CAN

SPM

Images

click on a thumbnail to view an image, or see all the Lythrum thumbnails at the Plants Gallery

©Gary A. Monroe. United States, NV, Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge. May 23, 2002. Usage Requirements.

Patrick J. Alexander. Usage Requirements.

Synonyms

Classification

Click on a scientific name below to expand it in the PLANTS Classification Report.

Rank	Scientific Name and Common Name
Kingdom	Plantae – Plants
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
Superdivision	Spermatophyta – Seed plants
Division	Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants
Class	Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons
Subclass	Rosidae
Order	Myrtales
Family	Lythraceae – Loosestrife family
Genus	Lythrum L. – loosestrife
Species	Lythrum californicum Torr. & A. Gray – California loosestrife

Subordinate Taxa

This plant has no children

Legal Status

Noxious Weed Information
This plant is listed by the U.S. federal government or a state. Common names are from state and federal lists. Click on a place name to get a complete noxious weed list for that location, or click here for a composite list of all Federal and State Noxious Weeds.
Michigan Lythrum purple loosestrife Sale prohibited ¹
North Carolina Lythrum Class B noxious weed ²
Wisconsin Lythrum purple loosestrife Nuisance weed ³
¹any nonnative member of the genus Lythrum or hybrid of the genus is prohibited from sale ²any Lythrum spp. not native to North Carolina ³any nonnative member of the genus Lythrum or hybrids thereof

Wetland Status

Interpreting Wetland Status

North America
Arid West	OBL
Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain	OBL
Eastern Mountains and Piedmont	OBL
Great Plains	OBL
Midwest	OBL
Western Mountains, Valleys, and Coast	OBL

Related Links

More Accounts and Images
ARS Germplasm Resources Information Network (LYCA4)
CalPhotos (LYCA4)
Integrated Taxonomic Information System (LYCA4)
Jepson Interchange (University of California - Berkeley) (LYCA4)
Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center Native Plant Information Network (LYCA4)
Native American Ethnobotany (University of Michigan - Dearborn) (LYCA4)

Wildlife

Food

Source	Large Mammals	Small Mammals	Water Birds	Terrestrial Birds
Everitt	Low

Cover

Source	Large Mammals	Small Mammals	Water Birds	Terrestrial Birds
Everitt

Sources

Everitt, J.H., D.L. Drawe, and R.I. Lonard. 1999. Field guide to the broad leaved herbaceous plants of South Texas used by livestock and wildlife. Texas Tech University Press. Lubbock.

Description of Values

Value Class	Food	Cover
High	Average 25-50% of diet	Regular source of cover
Low	5-10% of diet	Infrequently used as cover
Minor	2-5% of diet	Sparsely used as cover
Moderate	Average 10-25% of diet	Occasional source of cover