About Hazardia cana (A.Gray) Greene
Hazardia cana, with the scientific name Hazardia cana (A.Gray) Greene, is a rare North American shrub species in the Asteraceae family. Its common names are Guadalupe hazardia, San Clemente Island hazardia, or simply island hazardia. This species is native to San Clemente Island, one of California's Channel Islands, and Guadalupe Island, which is part of the State of Baja California. Hazardia cana is a bushy shrub that grows between 1.5 and 2 meters, or 4 feet 11 inches to 6 feet 7 inches, tall. Its herbage is woolly and glandular, and bears oblong leaves that are sometimes finely toothed, measuring 4 to 12 centimeters, or 1.6 to 4.7 inches, long. Cylindrical flower heads grow at the ends of its grayish stems. Each flower head has several rows of dark-colored phyllaries, and its open end exposes disc florets alongside longer protruding ray florets. The florets are yellow when young, and may turn red or purple as they age. The main threat to this species on San Clemente Island was the presence of feral goats. The goats have been removed from the island, and the plant population is now recovering.
