#ornithostaphylos

Working at a place like @rsabg, I’m lucky enough to meet (and be a small part of preserving) endangered plants like Ornithostaphylos oppositifolia (Baja birdbrush). The Flora of North America has this to say about these stately native shrubs: “Ornithostaphylos oppositifolia is known in the United States from a single mesa and adjacent slopes in the Tijuana Hills just north of the international border with Mexico in San Diego County. Only 103 individuals have been located on the United States side of the border, and the species is listed as endangered under the California Endangered Species Act. The population has been declining due to habitat fragmentation by roads and trails and disturbance caused by illegal border crossings and Border Patrol activities, including ‘brush’ clearing. Recently, the extensive disturbance caused by the building of a double border fence has dramatically affected the population, and its long-term survival is uncertain.” Plants don’t recognize our borders, but our activities along them have a huge impact on plants and their habitat. O. oppositifolia were here long before we drew those lines across the land. Is keeping specific groups of people on specific sides of arbitrary boundaries worth the harm we do in the process? 
#Ericaceae #Ornithostaphylos #OrnithostaphylosOppositifolia #BajaBirdbush #Birdbush #california #botanicgarden #botanicalgarden #plants #southerncalifornia #SoCal #botany #botanize #livingmuseum #garden #gardening #museum #ranchosantaanabotanicgarden #science #conservation #rareplants #endangeredspecies #wildflowers (at Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden)
https://www.instagram.com/p/B8E4Z7PAzf4/?igshid=1ob1u500nqews