Index of Species Information
SPECIES: Hesperocyparis bakeri
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| A stand of Modoc cypress in Shasta County, California. Photo used with permission of Timothy D. Ives. |
Introductory
SPECIES: Hesperocyparis bakeri
AUTHORSHIP AND CITATION :
Esser, Lora. 1994. Hesperocyparis bakeri. In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online].
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station,
Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available:
https://www.fs.usda.gov/database/feis/plants/tree/hesbak/all.html [].
Revisions:
17 October 2013: Scientific name changed from Cupressus bakeri
to Hesperocyparis bakeri; references 34-37 added.
22 June 2017: Common name changed from Baker cypress to Modoc cypress.
ABBREVIATION :
HESBAK
SYNONYMS :
Callitropsis bakeri (Jeps.) D.P. Little [37]
Cupressus bakeri Jeps. [10,19,36]
Cupressus bakeri subsp. bakeri Jeps., Baker or Modoc cypress
Cupressus bakeri subsp. matthewsii Wolf, Siskiyou cypress [10,19,25]
Neocupressus bakeri (Jeps.) de Laub. [35]
NRCS PLANT CODE :
HEBA5
COMMON NAMES :
Modoc cypress
Baker cypress
Siskiyou cypress
TAXONOMY :
The currently accepted scientific name of Modoc cypress is Hesperocyparis bakeri (Jeps.) Bartel [28,34].
Dodd [5,6] and Rafii [21,22] assert that population studies of
morphological and chemical diversity in Modoc cypress do not support
subspecies status.
LIFE FORM :
Tree
FEDERAL LEGAL STATUS :
See OTHER STATUS
OTHER STATUS :
No entry
DISTRIBUTION AND OCCURRENCE
SPECIES: Hesperocyparis bakeri
GENERAL DISTRIBUTION :
Modoc cypress is restricted to northern California and southern Oregon.
Modoc cypress occurs in Modoc, Plumas, Shasta, and Siskiyou counties
in California [18,25]. Siskiyou cypress has disjunct populations in
the Siskiyou Mountains of Josephine County, Oregon, and on Goosenest
Mountain in Siskiyou County, California [18,29]. The Bureau of Land
Management administers the Modoc Cypress Natural Area and Timbered
Crater Modoc Cypress Natural Area, both in Siskiyou and Modoc counties,
California [16].
ECOSYSTEMS :
FRES20 Douglas-fir
FRES21 Ponderosa pine
FRES23 Fir - spruce
FRES26 Lodgepole pine
FRES28 Western hardwoods
FRES34 Chaparral - mountain shrub
STATES :
CA OR
BLM PHYSIOGRAPHIC REGIONS :
1 Northern Pacific Border
4 Sierra Mountains
KUCHLER PLANT ASSOCIATIONS :
K005 Mixed conifer forest
K007 Red fir forest
K008 Lodgepole pine - subalpine forest
K010 Ponderosa shrub forest
K012 Douglas-fir forest
K026 Oregon oakwoods
K030 California oakwoods
K033 Chaparral
K034 Montane chaparral
SAF COVER TYPES :
207 Red fir
211 White fir
218 Lodgepole pine
233 Oregon white oak
234 Douglas-fir - tanoak - Pacific madrone
243 Sierra Nevada mixed conifer
244 Pacific ponderosa pine - Douglas-fir
246 California black oak
247 Jeffrey pine
248 Knobcone pine
SRM (RANGELAND) COVER TYPES :
NO-ENTRY
HABITAT TYPES AND PLANT COMMUNITIES :
Modoc cypress is a component of the northern interior cypress forest.
This habitat type is an open, fire-maintained, scrubby forest similar to
the knobcone pine (Pinus attenuata) forest. It is associated with
serpentine chaparral, and intergrades on less severe sites with upper
Sonoran mixed chaparral, montane chaparral, or knobcone pine forest
community types. On more mesic sites, the northern interior cypress
forest intergrades with mixed evergreen forest or montane coniferous
forest [11]. Modoc cypress rarely forms pure stands [31]. The Timbered
Crater grove is associated with yellow pine (Pinus ponderosa and P.
jeffreyi) forest and suggests a transition zone between several plant
communities, including northern juniper woodland, yellow pine forest,
and sagebrush scrub. High elevation groves of Modoc cypress in Plumas
County, California, are associated with red fir (Abies magnifica)
forest [29].
Species not already mentioned that are commonly associated with Modoc
cypress include sugar pine (Pinus lambertiana), Brewer oak (Q. garryana
ssp. breweri), Sadler oak (Q. sadleriana), incense-cedar (Calocedrus
decurrens), Brewer spruce (Picea breweriana), Pacific yew (Taxus
brevifolia), juneberry (Amelanchier pallida), greenleaf manzanita
(Arctostaphylos patula), big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata),
whitethorn ceanothus (Ceanothus cordulatus), wedgeleaf ceanothus (C.
cuneatus), deerbrush (C. integerrimus), Lemmon ceanothus (C. lemmonii),
squawcarpet (C. prostratus), snowbrush ceanothus (C. velutinus),
California redbud (Cercis occidentalis), birchleaf mountain-mahogany
(Cercocarpus betuloides), desertsweet (Chamaebatiaria millefolium), bush
chinquapin (Chrysolepsis sempervirens), low rabbitbrush (Chrysothamnus
viscidiflorus), Fremont silktassel (Garrya fremontii), western juniper
(Juniperus occidentalis), bitter cherry (Prunus emarginata), Klamath
plum (P. subcordata), western chokecherry (P. virginiana var. demissa),
skunkbush sumac (Rhus trilobata), baldhip rose (Rosa gymnocarpa)
creeping sage (Salvia sonomensis), antelope bitterbrush (Purshia
tridentata), gooseberry (Ribes spp.), buckwheat (Eriogonum spp.),
honeysuckle (Lonicera spp.), pussy paws (Calyptridium umbellatum),
larkspur (Delphinium spp.), bedstraw (Galium spp.), and goosefoot violet
(Viola purpurea) [2,5,11,27,29].
MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS
SPECIES: Hesperocyparis bakeri
IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE :
Rodents consume cypress seeds [1,18]. Cypresses are considered
undesirable forage for livestock, although young plants are browsed
[27].
PALATABILITY :
NO-ENTRY
NUTRITIONAL VALUE :
NO-ENTRY
COVER VALUE :
NO-ENTRY
VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES :
NO-ENTRY
OTHER USES AND VALUES :
NO-ENTRY
OTHER MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS :
Modoc cypress trees could be planted in the hot interior sections of
California as specimen trees, but are not feasible for windbreaks or
erosion control because of slow growth [31].
Seedlings of Modoc cypress are susceptible to damping-off fungi [29].
Modoc cypress is occasionally attacked by juniper
mistletoe (Phoradendron juniperinum ssp. juniperinum) in Plumas County,
and Siskiyou cypress has been infected by
coryneum canker (Coryneum cardinale), which can kill trees [9].
BOTANICAL AND ECOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS
SPECIES: Hesperocyparis bakeri
GENERAL BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS :
Modoc cypress is a native, evergreen tree with a single stem and narrow
crown [12]. It grows from 33 to 99 feet (10-30 m) tall [10,31].
Juvenile leaves are from 0.08 to 0.4 inches (2-10 mm) long and may be
produced on seedlings for several years. They gradually give way to
mature leaves, which are 0.08 inches (2 mm) long. Ovulate cones occur
in clusters of 15 to 30 and are 0.8 to 1.6 inches (20-40 mm) in diameter
[1]. Staminate cones are 0.08 to 0.12 inches (3-4 mm) long [10]. The
bark of Modoc cypress is partially exfoliating on the main trunk
[10,31]. A well-defined taproot and numerous lateral roots are formed
the first year [12].
RAUNKIAER LIFE FORM :
Phanerophyte
REGENERATION PROCESSES :
Modoc cypress reproduces exclusively from seed. Cone production is
abundant. Staminate cones are produced on trees that are 6 to 7 years
old [31]. Ovulate cones are produced on trees that are 14 years of age
or older and require 2 years to mature [1]. They contain from 50 to 100
seeds per cone [1,31]. The cones are closed; they persist on the tree
until opened by the heat of a fire or desiccation due to age [12,29].
Seeds are shed gradually over several months after the cones are opened
by heat [29]. Detached cones will open, but they rarely result in
seedling establishment, usually due to the lack of a suitable seedbed
[1]. Seed dispersal is primarily by wind and rain [29].
Modoc cypress requires bare mineral soil for germination and seedling
establishment. Seedlings of Modoc cypress have been found in areas that
do not show signs of recent fire, but the seedlings area usually in the
immediate vicinity of fallen cypress trees and along skid roads [27].
Seedling mortality is greater in shaded situations with abundant litter
because of damping-off [1,29]. Seedlings are sensitive to excessive
moisture [31].
SITE CHARACTERISTICS :
Modoc cypress is restricted to well-drained soils [1]. It occurs as
disjunct stands and isolated groves in the Sierra Nevada, the Cascade
Ranges, and the Siskiyou Mountains [21,29]. In the Siskiyou Mountains
Modoc cypress occurs on serpentine soils; in the Sierra Nevada and
Cascade Range it occurs on basic volcanic rock. Soil profiles are
almost absent. On gentle slopes trees can be found on deeper soil
profiles; where Modoc cypress is associated with red fir, a good humic
layer of dark brown soil exists [5].
Modoc cypress is generally found at elevations from 3,795 to 7,042 feet
(1,150-2,134 m) on north- to northeast-facing slopes [5,29].
SUCCESSIONAL STATUS :
Cypress seedlings are shade intolerant and survive best in full sunlight
on bare mineral soil [29]. In the Mud Lake-Wheeler Peak area of Plumas
County, Modoc cypress is being replaced by red and white (Abies
concolor) firs. Hundreds of saplings and pole-sized trees have died
with no indication of insects or disease. Competition of crowns for
light, shading of the ground, and accumulation of thick, black duff
characteristic of dense true fir stands have created an unfavorable
environment for the establishment and survival of Modoc cypress [30].
According to Armstrong [1], cypresses of southern California are very
sensitive to lack of light, losing their foliage when growing in shade.
SEASONAL DEVELOPMENT :
Cypress (Hesperocyparis spp.) shed pollen in late fall, winter, and spring.
Seeds mature 15 to 18 months after pollination. Ovulate cones ripen the
second season after pollination, but remain closed until opened by heat
or age [12,31].
FIRE ECOLOGY
SPECIES: Hesperocyparis bakeri
FIRE ECOLOGY OR ADAPTATIONS :
Modoc cypress is a fire-adapted, fire-dependent species. Reproduction
is usually restricted to burned sites [27]. The serotinous cones of
Modoc cypress persist on the trees for years. Cone-opening is erratic,
slow, and almost negligible except when cones are exposed to extreme
heat; then it is rapid and uniform [32]. When opened by the heat of a
fire, the seeds fall on exposed mineral soil, and produce thickets of
seedlings [16,31]. Most seed falls in the first few months following
fire [32]. Fires that occur in late summer and fall, followed by winter
rains, ensure seed dissemination on bare mineral substrates [27,29]. No
information was available on fire-free intervals for communities
dominated by Modoc cypress. However, Tecate cypress (Hesperocyparis
forbesii), has an average interval between fires of 25
years, ranging from 15 to 63 years [1].
FIRE REGIMES :
Find fire regime information for the plant communities in which this
species may occur by entering the species name in the FEIS home page under
"Find Fire Regimes".
POSTFIRE REGENERATION STRATEGY :
Tree without adventitious-bud root crown
Crown residual colonizer (on-site, initial community)
Initial-offsite colonizer (off-site, initial community)
FIRE EFFECTS
SPECIES: Hesperocyparis bakeri
IMMEDIATE FIRE EFFECT ON PLANT :
Modoc cypress has thin, exfoliating bark which offers little fire
protection [29]. Most fires probably kill Modoc cypress. Cones of the
California cypress open as the resin melts and boils. Rapid charring
of the thick cone scales extinguishes the flames, leaving seeds unburned
[1].
At the Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden in southern California on October
8, 1943, a severe fire killed all Siskiyou cypress trees. Some Modoc
cypress were killed from the heat even though they were not burned [31].
DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF FIRE EFFECT :
NO-ENTRY
PLANT RESPONSE TO FIRE :
NO-ENTRY
DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF PLANT RESPONSE :
NO-ENTRY
FIRE MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS :
Fires occurring too frequently in cypress groves may destroy them, as
reproduction could be eliminated before it had a chance to produce
cones. Conversely, fire suppression could threaten the species.
REFERENCES
SPECIES: Hesperocyparis bakeri
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FEIS Home Page
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