Russian Wilderness - Flora and Fauna

Flora and Fauna

There are several stands of conifers that are rare for California, including subalpine fir and Engelmann spruce in the wilderness. The region gained prominence amongst botanists in the 1970s when Dale Thornburgh and John Sawyer began conducting studies in Sugar Creek. In addition to discovering the first stands of subalpine fir in California, the diversity of other conifers they found here was reason for pause and then return studies. In all, after several years of research, they discovered 17 species of conifers in one square mile—of varied terrain—below the peak. Those conifers are: foxtail pine, whitebark pine, western white pine, Jeffrey pine, ponderosa pine, lodgepole pine, sugar pine, white fir, Shasta fir, subalpine fir, Engelmann spruce, Brewer spruce, mountain hemlock, Douglas-fir, incense-cedar, common juniper, and Pacific yew. An 18th conifer, the western juniper, was documented and reported by Richard Moore in 2013.

Rare perennials include the Siskiyou fireweed (Epilobium siskiyouense), and several types of lousewort (Pedicularis). The rare annual Siskiyou phacelia ( Phacelia leonis), was observed by John O. Sawyer and J. Smith in 1988. Siskiyou phacelia has bell-shaped blue-purple flowers, blooms in summer, and grows in serpentine soils.

The wilderness protects habitats for American black bear, deer, Douglas squirrel, California quail and rattlesnakes. Less common animals include the fisher, marten, wolverine, pileated woodpecker, beaver, coyote and mountain lion. Rainbow trout, eastern brook trout and brown trout are found in the lakes and streams.