Coastal Strand
Encyclopedia
Coastal Strand is a term used to describe a plant community of flowering plants that form along the shore
in loose sand
just above the high tide
line, the on West Coast of the United States
.
Many plants that grow in this area are endemic to the strand. The community has low species diversity because so few plants can tolerate the harsh conditions of high winds, battering salt spray, and extreme high temperatures in the summer. Plants must also be adapted to sandy saline soils, with extremely low nutrient loads, and low water holding capacity.
Plants that grow along the coast are very tolerant of the winds and salt and sand loaded ocean spray. Many species are succulent, storing salty water in their leaves. The leaves are often light colored or grey-green to reflect sunlight and reduce desiccation. Hairy leaves may reduce evapotranspiration
, may help gather moisture from the air, and may reflect a small portion of incoming solar radiation thereby reducing the plants internal temperature. They are often very low in height with prostrate stems and spread by rooting at the nodes and may have deep tap roots, both rooting systems helping to anchor the shifting sands as the plants colonize the beach above high tide.
Note that common names in parentheses are common names for the genus, not the specific species.
Shore
A shore or shoreline is the fringe of land at the edge of a large body of water, such as an ocean, sea, or lake. In Physical Oceanography a shore is the wider fringe that is geologically modified by the action of the body of water past and present, while the beach is at the edge of the shore,...
in loose sand
Sand
Sand is a naturally occurring granular material composed of finely divided rock and mineral particles.The composition of sand is highly variable, depending on the local rock sources and conditions, but the most common constituent of sand in inland continental settings and non-tropical coastal...
just above the high tide
High Tide
High Tide was a band formed in 1969 by Tony Hill , Simon House , Peter Pavli and Roger Hadden .-History:...
line, the on West Coast of the United States
West Coast of the United States
West Coast or Pacific Coast are terms for the westernmost coastal states of the United States. The term most often refers to the states of California, Oregon, and Washington. Although not part of the contiguous United States, Alaska and Hawaii do border the Pacific Ocean but can't be included in...
.
Many plants that grow in this area are endemic to the strand. The community has low species diversity because so few plants can tolerate the harsh conditions of high winds, battering salt spray, and extreme high temperatures in the summer. Plants must also be adapted to sandy saline soils, with extremely low nutrient loads, and low water holding capacity.
Plants that grow along the coast are very tolerant of the winds and salt and sand loaded ocean spray. Many species are succulent, storing salty water in their leaves. The leaves are often light colored or grey-green to reflect sunlight and reduce desiccation. Hairy leaves may reduce evapotranspiration
Evapotranspiration
Evapotranspiration is a term used to describe the sum of evaporation and plant transpiration from the Earth's land surface to atmosphere. Evaporation accounts for the movement of water to the air from sources such as the soil, canopy interception, and waterbodies...
, may help gather moisture from the air, and may reflect a small portion of incoming solar radiation thereby reducing the plants internal temperature. They are often very low in height with prostrate stems and spread by rooting at the nodes and may have deep tap roots, both rooting systems helping to anchor the shifting sands as the plants colonize the beach above high tide.
Pacific Coastal strand plants
- AsteraceaeAsteraceaeThe Asteraceae or Compositae , is an exceedingly large and widespread family of vascular plants. The group has more than 22,750 currently accepted species, spread across 1620 genera and 12 subfamilies...
(Sunflower Family):- Ambrosia chamissonisAmbrosia chamissonisAmbrosia chamissonis is a species of ragweed known by the common names Silver Burr Ragweed, Silver Beachweed and Beach Bur....
, greene beach-bur - Solidago spathulata subsp. spathulata, coast goldenrod
- Tanacetum camphoratumTanacetum camphoratumTanacetum camphoratum is a species of flowering plant in the aster family known by the common names camphor tansy and dune tansy. It is native to the Pacific Coast of North America from British Columbia to California, where it grows in sand dunes and other coastline habitat...
, dune tansy - Gnaphalium bicolor, (everlasting)
- Erigeron glaucusErigeron glaucusErigeron glaucus is a species of flowering plant in the daisy family known by the common name seaside fleabane, beach aster, or seaside daisy....
, seaside daisy
- Ambrosia chamissonis
- BrassicaceaeBrassicaceaeBrassicaceae, a medium sized and economically important family of flowering plants , are informally known as the mustards, mustard flowers, the crucifers or the cabbage family....
(Mustard Family)- Erysimum insulareErysimum insulareErysimum insulare is a species of wallflower known by the common name island wallflower. It is endemic to coast of southern California, including the Channel Islands. Erysimum insulare grows on coastal bluffs and sand dunes.-Description:...
- Erysimum insulare
- CaryophyllaceaeCaryophyllaceaeThe Caryophyllaceae, commonly called the pink family or carnation family, is a family of flowering plants. It is included in the dicotyledon order Caryophyllales in the APG III system, alongside 33 other families, including Amaranthaceae, Cactaceae and Polygonaceae...
(Pink Family)- Cardionema ramosissimumCardionema ramosissimumCardionema ramosissimum is a beach-dwelling plant of the pink family, Caryophyllaceae, which is known by the common name sandcarpet. This is a flat or clumping mat-forming perennial plant which grows along the coastline of western North America, as well as Chile...
- Cardionema ramosissimum
- FabaceaeFabaceaeThe Fabaceae or Leguminosae, commonly known as the legume, pea, or bean family, is a large and economically important family of flowering plants. The group is the third largest land plant family, behind only the Orchidaceae and Asteraceae, with 730 genera and over 19,400 species...
(Legume Family)- Lupinus arboreusLupinus arboreusLupinus arboreus is a species of lupine native to the western United States in California, where it is widely distributed among coastal scrub and sand dunes...
, yellow bush lupine - LLŁ or ł, described in English as L with stroke, is a letter of the Polish, Kashubian, Sorbian, Łacinka , Łatynka , Wilamowicean, Navajo, Dene Suline, Inupiaq, Zuni, Hupa, and Dogrib alphabets, several proposed alphabets for the Venetian language, and the ISO 11940 romanization of the Thai alphabet...
. chamissonis
- Lupinus arboreus
- LamiaceaeLamiaceaeThe mints, taxonomically known as Lamiaceae or Labiatae, are a family of flowering plants. They have traditionally been considered closely related to Verbenaceae, but in the 1990s, phylogenetic studies suggested that many genera classified in Verbenaceae belong instead in Lamiaceae...
(Mint Family)- Monardella crispaMonardella crispaMonardella crispa is a rare species of flowering plant in the mint family known by the common name crisp monardella. It is endemic to California, where it is known only from the sand dunes on the coastline of San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara Counties.-Description:It is an aromatic perennial herb...
, crisp monardella
- Monardella crispa
- NyctaginaceaeNyctaginaceaeNyctaginaceae, the Four O'Clock Family, is a family of around 33 genera and 290 species of flowering plants, widely distributed in tropical and subtropical regions, with a few representatives in temperate regions...
(Four O'clock Family)- Abronia latifoliaAbronia latifoliaThe perennial flower Abronia latifolia is a species of sand-verbena known commonly as the coastal, or yellow sand-verbena. It is native to the west coast of North America, from southern California to the Canadian border....
, (sand verbena) - A. maritimaAbronia maritimaAbronia maritima is a species of sand verbena known by the common name red sand verbena. This is a beach-adapted perennial plant native to the coastlines of southern California, including the Channel Islands, and northern Baja California...
, (sand verbena) - A. umbellataAbronia umbellataAbronia umbellata is a flowering perennial plant native to the western United States. Other common names include Beach Sand Verbena and Purple Sand Verbena.-Distribution:...
, (sand verbena)
- Abronia latifolia
- OnagraceaeOnagraceaeOnagraceae, also known as the Willowherb family or Evening Primrose family, are a family of flowering plants. The family includes about 640-650 species of herbs, shrubs, and trees in 20-24 genera...
(Evening Primrose Family)- Camissonia cheiranthifolia subsp. suffruticosaCamissonia cheiranthifoliaCamissoniopsis cheiranthifolia is a species of Evening Primrose family and is native to open dunes and sandy soils of coastal California and Oregon....
, beach evening primrose
- Camissonia cheiranthifolia subsp. suffruticosa
- PolygonaceaePolygonaceaePolygonaceae is a family of flowering plants known informally as the "knotweed family" or "smartweed family"— "buckwheat family" in the United States. The name is based on the genus Polygonum and was first used by Antoine Laurent de Jussieu in 1789 in his book, Genera Plantarum. The name refers...
(Buckwheat Family)- Eriogonum latifoliumEriogonum latifoliumEriogonum latifolium is a species of wild buckwheat known by the common names seaside buckwheat and coast buckwheat. This plant is native to the coastline of the western United States from Washington to central California, where it is a common resident of coastal bluffs and scrub.-Description:This...
- Eriogonum latifolium
- PortulacaceaePortulacaceaePortulacaceae are a family of flowering plants, comprising about 20 genera with about 500 species, ranging from herbaceous plants to shrubs. The family has been recognised by most taxonomists, and is also known as the purslane family; it has a cosmopolitan distribution, with the highest diversity...
(Purslane Family)- Calandrinia maritima, seaside calandrinia
- RosaceaeRosaceaeRosaceae are a medium-sized family of flowering plants, including about 2830 species in 95 genera. The name is derived from the type genus Rosa. Among the largest genera are Alchemilla , Sorbus , Crataegus , Cotoneaster , and Rubus...
(Rose Family)- Fragaria chiloensisFragaria chiloensisFragaria chiloensis, the beach strawberry, Chilean strawberry, or coastal strawberry, is one of two species of strawberry that were hybridized to create the modern garden strawberry . It is noted for its large berries. Its natural range is the Pacific Ocean coasts of North and South America, and...
, beach strawberry
- Fragaria chiloensis
Note that common names in parentheses are common names for the genus, not the specific species.