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Descurainia pinnata

(Walt.) Britt.

Pinnate Tansy-mustard

G5Secure Found in 56 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
G5SecureGlobal Rank
UnknownThreat Impact
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.140201
Element CodePDBRA0X030
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVascular Plant
Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations
KingdomPlantae
PhylumAnthophyta
ClassDicotyledoneae
OrderCapparales
FamilyBrassicaceae
GenusDescurainia
Other Common Names
Moutarde-tanaisie verte (FR) western tansymustard (EN) Western Tansy-mustard (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.
Taxonomic Comments
FNA (vol. 7, 2010) narrows the concept of Descurainia pinnata, recognizing four subspecies (brachycarpa, glabra, ochroleuca, and pinnata). FNA places D. pinnata ssp. paysonii in D. incisa ssp. paysonii and elevates D. pinnata ssp. nelsonii (= D. nelsonii) and D. pinnata ssp. filipes (= D. longepedicellata) to full species level.
Conservation Status
Rank Method Rank calculation - Biotics v2
Review Date2025-01-22
Change Date1984-04-24
Edition Date2025-01-22
Edition AuthorsFellows, M., rev. N. Ventrella (2025)
Threat ImpactUnknown
Range Extent>2,500,000 square km (greater than 1,000,000 square miles)
Number of Occurrences> 300
Rank Reasons
Descurainia pinnata is an annual, biennial, or perennial forb occurring in a variety of habitat types such as roadsides and disturbed sites, woodlands, grasslands, shrublands, washes, slopes, cliffs, outcrops, streambanks, and floodplains. It is found throughout most of North America south into Mexico. There are well over 300 estimated occurrences rangewide, which are potentially threatened by development, rights-of-way maintenance, invasive species, succession and other threats in some places. Little is known about threats and trends, but with a large range extent, high number of occurrences, abundant habitat, broad habitat preferences, and no obvious intrinsic vulnerabilities, Descurainia pinnata is considered secure. The D. pinnata complex is a complicated taxonomic group in need of further study.
Range Extent Comments
Descurainia pinnata occurs in North America from the Northwest Territories east to Quebec south to Florida, west to California, and north to British Columbia in the United States and Canada (FNA 2010). It also occurs in Mexico. Range extent was estimated using herbarium specimens and photo-based observations collected between 1994 and 2025 (GBIF 2025, iNaturalist 2025, SEINet 2025). See individual entries for distribution details about subspecies.
Occurrences Comments
By applying a 1 km separation distance to herbarium specimens and photo-based observations documented between 1994 and 2025, it is estimated that there are well over 300 occurrences rangewide (GBIF 2025, iNaturalist 2025, SEINet 2025). Due to different treatments of this entity, herbarium records and photo-based observations may underrepresent true abundance.
Threat Impact Comments
Although threats are not widely documented, Descurainia pinnata is potentially threatened by development, rights-of-way maintenance, invasive species, succession and other threats in some places. However, their overall impact is likely negligible given the species' broad range, large number of occurrences, tolerance of light disturbance, and affinity for typically abundant habitats, as well as no obvious intrinsic vulnerabilities.
Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Descurainia pinnata occurs in a variety of habitats, including; roadsides, railroad tracks, embankments, abandoned fields, other disturbed sites; sagebrush, pinyon-juniper communities, scrub, oak and pine woodlands; prairies, desert grasslands; sandy fields and plains, sandy knolls, granitic sand; washes, silty flats, gravelly and stony hills and grounds, dry slopes, cliffs, foothills, open hillsides, canyon margins, and limestone outcrops; as well as streamsides, stream beds, and floodplains (FNA 2010).
Terrestrial Habitats
Forest/WoodlandForest EdgeWoodland - ConiferWoodland - MixedShrubland/chaparralGrassland/herbaceousOld field
Palustrine Habitats
FORESTED WETLANDRiparian
Other Nations (2)
CanadaNNR
ProvinceRankNative
Yukon TerritorySNRYes
British ColumbiaSNRYes
ManitobaSNRYes
OntarioSNRYes
AlbertaS4Yes
Nova ScotiaSNANo
Northwest TerritoriesSNRYes
SaskatchewanSNRYes
QuebecSNRYes
United StatesN5
ProvinceRankNative
OregonSNRYes
MaineSNANo
TennesseeSNRYes
MarylandSNRYes
MichiganSNANo
AlaskaSNRYes
WisconsinSNRYes
MinnesotaSNRYes
PennsylvaniaSNRYes
West VirginiaSHYes
South CarolinaSNRYes
MontanaS5Yes
North DakotaSNRYes
North CarolinaSNANo
New MexicoSNRYes
NevadaSNRYes
IowaS5Yes
New YorkSNRYes
MississippiSNRYes
ConnecticutSNANo
IndianaSNRYes
CaliforniaSNRYes
ArkansasSNRYes
UtahSNRYes
LouisianaSNRYes
KansasSNRYes
FloridaSNRYes
KentuckySNRYes
VirginiaS3Yes
ArizonaSNRYes
IllinoisSNRYes
IdahoSNRYes
NebraskaSNRYes
WashingtonSNRYes
MissouriSNRYes
TexasSNRYes
OklahomaSNRYes
South DakotaSNRYes
VermontS1Yes
New JerseySNRYes
MassachusettsSNRYes
OhioS2Yes
WyomingSNRYes
ColoradoS4Yes
GeorgiaSNRYes
Threat Assessments
ThreatScopeSeverityTiming
Unknown/undetermined———

—

Plant Characteristics
DurationANNUAL, BIENNIAL, PERENNIAL
Economic Value (Genus)No
Roadless Areas (56)
Arizona (12)
AreaForestAcres
Black CanyonPrescott National Forest10,683
Burro CanyonKaibab National Forest19,928
Catalina St. Pk. Roadless AreaCoronado National Forest951
Cdo WsaCoronado National Forest1,955
GaliuroCoronado National Forest28,333
Lime CreekTonto National Forest42,568
Lower Romero WSRCoronado National Forest10
MazatzalTonto National Forest16,942
Middle Romero WSRCoronado National Forest60
Oracle RoadlessCoronado National Forest22,365
Upper Romero WsrCoronado National Forest150
WhetstoneCoronado National Forest20,728
California (27)
AreaForestAcres
Andrews Mtn.Inyo National Forest9,912
Barker ValleyCleveland National Forest11,940
Birch CreekInyo National Forest28,816
Black CanyonInyo National Forest32,421
Boundary Peak (CA)Inyo National Forest210,884
Cactus Springs BSan Bernardino National Forest3,106
CalienteCleveland National Forest5,953
Callahan FlowModoc National Forest6,618
Circle MountainSan Bernardino National Forest6,375
Coyote SoutheastInyo National Forest53,159
Cucamonga BSan Bernardino National Forest11,933
Fish CanyonAngeles National Forest29,886
Fox MountainLos Padres National Forest52,072
Granite PeakSan Bernardino National Forest450
LavasModoc National Forest25,864
NessieInyo National Forest830
PaiuteInyo National Forest58,712
Pyramid Peak BSan Bernardino National Forest7,194
Raywood Flat BSan Bernardino National Forest11,373
Rock Creek WestInyo National Forest3,626
Soldier CanyonInyo National Forest40,589
South SierraInyo National Forest41,853
South SierraSequoia National Forest8,008
SugarloafSan Bernardino National Forest8,206
TuleAngeles National Forest9,861
Wonoga Pk.Inyo National Forest11,272
WoodpeckerSequoia National Forest11,936
Nevada (5)
AreaForestAcres
Boundary Peak (NV)Inyo National Forest21,851
Lovell Summit SouthHumboldt-Toiyabe National Forest28,455
Pine Grove SouthHumboldt-Toiyabe National Forest88,945
PotosiHumboldt-Toiyabe National Forest5,145
Stirling - JohnnieHumboldt-Toiyabe National Forest1,449
New Mexico (4)
AreaForestAcres
El InviernoSanta Fe National Forest29,927
Last Chance CanyonLincoln National Forest8,934
LemitasSanta Fe National Forest8,129
West Face Sacramento MountainsLincoln National Forest41,176
Utah (8)
AreaForestAcres
418025Uinta National Forest32,698
418040Uinta National Forest1,702
Boulder Mtn. / Boulder Top / Deer LakeDixie National Forest110,690
Bunker CreekDixie National Forest7,474
CottonwoodDixie National Forest6,754
Fishlake MountainFishlake National Forest25,217
Hilgard MountainFishlake National Forest28,389
Pine Valley MountainsDixie National Forest57,673
References (6)
  1. Flora of North America Editorial Committee (FNA). 2010. Flora of North America north of Mexico. Vol. 7. Magnoliophyta: Salicaceae to Brassicaceae. Oxford University Press, New York. xxii + 797 pp.
  2. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). 2025. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) data portal. Online. Available: https://www.gbif.org/ (accessed 2025).
  3. iNaturalist. 2025. Online. Available: https://www.inaturalist.org (accessed 2025).
  4. 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.
  5. Kartesz, J.T. 1999. A synonymized checklist and atlas with biological attributes for the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. First edition. In: Kartesz, J.T., and C.A. Meacham. Synthesis of the North American Flora, Version 1.0. North Carolina Botanical Garden, Chapel Hill, N.C.
  6. Southwest Environmental Information Network (SEINet). 2025. Collections Databases. Online. Available: https://swbiodiversity.org/seinet/collections/index.php (accessed 2025).