Yosemite National Park — Plant Field Guide (Student Edition)
IB163LF · Plant Evolution & Global Change · UC Berkeley · Spring 2026
How to use this guide
- Species are grouped by growth form
- These ~50 species are the ones you are most likely to encounter
- Pay attention to elevation zones
| Zone | Elevation | Dominant Vegetation |
|---|---|---|
| Foothill Woodland | 600–1,200 m | Gray pine, interior live oak, redbud |
| Lower Montane | 1,200–2,000 m | Ponderosa pine, black oak, incense cedar, white fir |
| Upper Montane | 2,000–2,750 m | Red fir, Jeffrey pine, lodgepole pine |
| Subalpine | 2,750–3,350 m | Mountain hemlock, whitebark pine |
| Alpine | 3,350+ m | Cushion plants, sedges |
Conifers
Pinus lambertiana
Common name: California sugar pine
Family: Pinaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Pinus contorta ssp. murrayana
Common name: Sierra lodgepole pine
Family: Pinaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Pseudotsuga menziesii var. menziesii
Common name: coast Douglas-fir
Family: Pinaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Calocedrus decurrens
Common name: incense cedar
Family: Cupressaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Juniperus occidentalis
Common name: western juniper
Family: Cupressaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Oaks & Relatives
Quercus kelloggii
Common name: California black oak
Family: Fagaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Quercus chrysolepis
Common name: canyon live oak
Family: Fagaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Quercus wislizeni var. wislizeni
Common name: interior live oak
Family: Fagaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Chrysolepis sempervirens
Common name: bush chinquapin
Family: Fagaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Broadleaf Trees
Populus tremuloides
Common name: quaking aspen
Family: Salicaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Populus balsamifera ssp. trichocarpa
Common name: balsam poplar
Family: Salicaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Cercis occidentalis
Common name: California redbud
Family: Fabaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Shrubs
Arctostaphylos nevadensis
Common name: pinemat manzanita
Family: Ericaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Ceanothus integerrimus
Common name: deerbrush
Family: Rhamnaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Ceanothus cordulatus
Common name: whitethorn ceanothus
Family: Rhamnaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Chamaebatia foliolosa
Common name: mountain misery
Family: Rosaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Rhododendron occidentale
Common name: California azalea
Family: Ericaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Ribes nevadense
Common name: mountain pink currant
Family: Grossulariaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Wildflowers
Aquilegia formosa
Common name: crimson columbine
Family: Ranunculaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Lupinus grayi
Common name: Gray’s lupine
Family: Fabaceae
Lupinus breweri var. breweri
Common name: Brewer’s lupine
Family: Fabaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Mimulus lewisii
Common name: Lewis’ monkeyflower
Family: Phrymaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Mimulus guttatus
Common name: common monkeyflower
Family: Phrymaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Calochortus venustus
Common name: butterfly mariposa lily
Family: Liliaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Castilleja miniata ssp. miniata
Common name: giant red Indian paintbrush
Family: Orobanchaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Pedicularis attollens
Common name: little elephantshead
Family: Orobanchaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Dodecatheon jeffreyi
Common name: Sierrra shootingstar
Family: Primulaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Epilobium angustifolium ssp. circumvagum
Common name: fireweed
Family: Onagraceae
Image: Wikipedia
Achillea millefolium
Common name: bloodwort
Family: Asteraceae
Image: Wikipedia
Veratrum californicum var. californicum
Common name: California false hellebore
Family: Melanthiaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Penstemon newberryi var. newberryi
Family: Plantaginaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Gentianopsis holopetala
Common name: Sierra fringed gentian
Family: Gentianaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Ferns & Allies
Pteridium aquilinum var. pubescens
Common name: eagle fern
Family: Dennstaedtiaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Athyrium filix-femina var. cyclosorum
Common name: subarctic ladyfern
Family: Athyriaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Equisetum arvense
Common name: common horsetail
Family: Equisetaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Mycotrophic / Parasitic
Pterospora andromedea
Common name: giant bird’s nest
Family: Ericaceae
Image: Wikipedia
Brassicaceae (Mustard Family)
Arabidopsis thaliana
Common name: mouse-ear cress
Family: Brassicaceae
Image: Wikipedia
The most important model organism in plant biology. A small annual with tiny white four-petalled flowers, basal rosette of spoon-shaped leaves, and slender siliques. Found in disturbed areas and roadsides at lower elevations. Its genome was the first plant genome sequenced (2000).
Arabis repanda var. repanda
Common name: Yosemite rockcress
Family: Brassicaceae
Image: Wikipedia
A perennial endemic rockcress found on rocky slopes and crevices. Basal rosette with toothed leaves; white to pale lavender four-petalled flowers on an erect stem. Close relative of Arabidopsis — illustrates the radiation of Brassicaceae in the Sierra Nevada.
Streptanthus tortuosus var. tortuosus
Common name: shieldplant
Family: Brassicaceae
Image: Wikipedia
A distinctive biennial or perennial with urn-shaped purple to yellowish sepals and clasping, waxy blue-green stem leaves. Found on rocky, often serpentine or granitic slopes. The Streptanthus genus has undergone rapid diversification in California — a classic example of adaptive radiation in Brassicaceae.
Draba breweri
Common name: cushion draba
Family: Brassicaceae
Image: Wikipedia
A compact, cushion-forming alpine perennial with tiny yellow flowers. Found in alpine fell-fields and rocky ridges above 3,000 m. Draba is one of the most species-rich genera in Brassicaceae, with many alpine specialists worldwide.
Erysimum capitatum ssp. capitatum
Common name: western wallflower
Family: Brassicaceae
Image: Wikipedia
A showy biennial to short-lived perennial with bright orange to yellow four-petalled flowers in a dense cluster. Narrow, lance-shaped leaves. Common on dry, rocky slopes from foothill to subalpine zones. Produces cardiac glycosides (cardenolides) as an herbivore defence.
Descurainia californica
Common name: Sierra tansymustard
Family: Brassicaceae
Image: Wikipedia
An annual to biennial with finely divided, fern-like leaves and small yellow flowers. Found in open, disturbed, and post-fire habitats from montane to subalpine elevations. A native mustard — useful to contrast with the many introduced weedy mustards in the family.
Brassica nigra
Common name: black mustard
Family: Brassicaceae
Image: Wikipedia
An invasive annual from Eurasia, now widespread at lower elevations. Tall (up to 2 m) with bright yellow flowers and slender, erect siliques. Part of the Brassica “Triangle of U” — the B-genome diploid ancestor of canola and brown mustard. Dominates disturbed grasslands in California.
Capsella bursa-pastoris
Common name: shepherd’s purse
Family: Brassicaceae
Image: Wikipedia
A cosmopolitan weedy annual easily recognised by its heart-shaped (triangular) silicles. Tiny white flowers; basal rosette of lobed leaves. One of the most common plants on Earth. An allotetraploid whose genome reveals ancient hybridisation — a model for studying polyploidy in Brassicaceae.