Home/Species/ Redwood

Sequoia sempervirens

(Lamb. ex D. Don) Endl.

Redwood

G4Apparently Secure Found in 19 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →

G4Apparently SecureGlobal Rank

EndangeredIUCN

LowThreat Impact

Identity

Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.140518

Element CodePGTXO02010

Record TypeSPECIES

ClassificationSpecies

Classification StatusStandard

Name CategoryVascular Plant

IUCNEndangered

Endemicendemic to a single nation

KingdomPlantae

PhylumConiferophyta

ClassPinopsida

OrderPinales

FamilyCupressaceae

GenusSequoia

Other Common Names

redwood (EN)

Concept Reference

Kartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.

Conservation Status

Rank MethodLegacy Rank calculation - Excel v3.1x

Review Date2020-04-30

Change Date1996-11-21

Edition Date2020-04-30

Edition AuthorsMorse, Larry E. (1996); rev. R. Bittman (2013), rev. Treher (2020)

Threat ImpactLow

Range Extent20,000-200,000 square km (about 8000-80,000 square miles)

Number of Occurrences81 - 300

Rank Reasons

Sequoia sempervirens occurs on the pacific slope from southwestern Oregon to Monterey County, California. It is abundant, even dominant, in a substantial but not large geographic range. Mature trees in areas not protected as conservation lands are subject to substantial demand for timber. A large portion of the species range is on protected lands.

Range Extent Comments

Sequoia sempervirens occurs on the pacific slope of the northern half of the Coast Range of California (from Monterey Co. northward), and adjacent southwestern-most Oregon. It is generally found within 5-35 miles of the ocean, and apparently dependent on coastal humidity and fog (Griffith 1992).

Occurrences Comments

The species is frequent within its geographic range, which extends from southwestern Oregon to Monterey County, California.

Threat Impact Comments

Demand for timber on remaining private forest lands remains strong, with the wood having unique properties that make substitution difficult. Climate change is changing the environment of the north coast to be less foggy, and perhaps more prone to catastrophic fires. However, there is some evidence that there is increased tree growth (from core studies) in the past few decades, due to increased precipitation, which is also attributed to climate change.

Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

This species occurs in coastal (lowland) forests of northern and central California and southernmost Oregon.

Terrestrial Habitats

Forest/WoodlandForest - Conifer

Other Nations (1)

United StatesN4

Province	Rank	Native
Oregon	S3	Yes
California	S4	Yes

Threat Assessments

Threat	Scope	Severity	Timing
5 - Biological resource use	Small (1-10%)	Serious or 31-70% pop. decline	High (continuing)
5.3 - Logging & wood harvesting	Small (1-10%)	Serious or 31-70% pop. decline	High (continuing)
5.3.1 - Intentional use: subsistence/small scale (species being assessed is the target) [harvest]	Small (1-10%)	Serious or 31-70% pop. decline	High (continuing)
11 - Climate change & severe weather	Unknown	Unknown	High (continuing)

Plant Characteristics

DurationPERENNIAL, Long-lived, EVERGREEN

Economic Value (Genus)No

Roadless Areas (19)

California (16)

Area	Forest	Acres
Bear Mountain	Los Padres National Forest	913
Bell Quinby	Shasta-Trinity National Forest	11,556
Black Butte	Los Padres National Forest	5,116
Blue Creek Rare I	Six Rivers National Forest	12,134
Chalk Peak	Los Padres National Forest	7,472
Cow Creek	Shasta-Trinity National Forest	22,627
Kelly	Six Rivers National Forest	5,195
Little French C	Shasta-Trinity National Forest	11,529
North Fork Smith	Six Rivers National Forest	37,898
Orleans Mtn. C	Six Rivers National Forest	15,589
Packsaddle	Six Rivers National Forest	3,862
Portuguese	Klamath National Forest	18,915
Siskiyou	Klamath National Forest	54,039
Siskiyou B	Six Rivers National Forest	18,871
Skeleton Glade	Mendocino National Forest	9,237
Slide Creek	Six Rivers National Forest	11,458

Idaho (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
Bear Creek	Caribou-Targhee National Forest	118,582

Oregon (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
South Kalmiopsis	Siskiyou National Forests	104,477

Texas (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
Big Creek	National Forests in Texas	1,447

References (8)

Elias, T. S. 1980. The Complete Trees of North America Field Guide and Natural History. Van Nostrand Reinhold Co., New York, New York. 948 pp.
Flora of North America Editorial Committee (FNA). 1993a. Flora of North America north of Mexico. Vol. 2. Pteridophytes and gymnosperms. Oxford Univ. Press, New York. xvi + 475 pp.
Fowells, H.A. 1965. Silvics of Forest Trees of the United States. Division of Timber Management Research, Forest Service, USDA, Washington, D.C. 762 pages.
Griffith, R.S. 1992. <i>Sequoia sempervirens</i>. In: Fire Effects Information System. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Online. Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/ (accessed 1 Oct 2013).
Hickman, J. C., ed. 1993. The Jepson manual: Higher plants of California. University of California Press, Berkeley, CA. 1400 pp.
Kartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.
Little, E.L., Jr. 1971. Atlas of the United States trees. Vol. I. Conifers and important hardwoods. Miscellaneous Publication No. 1146. U.S. Forest Service, Washington, D.C. 200 pp.
Little, E.L., Jr. 1979. Checklist of United States trees (native and naturalized). Agriculture Handbook No. 541. U.S. Forest Service, Washington, D.C. 375 pp.

Sequoia sempervirens

Habitat

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