Species Factsheets
Paxistima canbyi
Canby's Mountain-lover
State Status: Pennsylvania Endangered (PE)
PBS Status: Pennsylvania Endangered (PE)
Federal Status:
Global Rank: G2
rank interpretation
State Rank: S1
Did You Know?
This plant works really well for soil erosion prevention, especially because it thrives in rocky soils where many other species would not be able to survive.
Description
Canby's mountain-lover (Paxistima canbyi) is a small evergreen shrub, 8-40cm high with simple, opposite, leathery leaves less than two centimeters long. Very small green flowers with four sepals and four petals arise from upper leaf axils.
Rank Justification
Critically imperiled in the nation or state because of extreme rarity (often 5 or fewer occurrences) or because of some factor(s) such as very steep declines making it especially vulnerable to extirpation from the state.
Habitat
Canby's mountain-lover occurs in rocky well-drained upland woods from Pennsylvania to Ohio, south to North Carolina and eastern Kentucky. Pennsylvania populations are found on west and northwest facing forested slopes, climbing over exposed shale and limestone formations.
Survey Dates
Flower April - May; fruit August - September
Distribution
Southern Pennsylvania is the northern limit of this species' range.
Threats
Canby's mountain-lover is rare throughout its natural range. Two of the three historical Pennsylvania locations have been located, but could be threatened by railroad and quarrying expansions. Used commercially as an ornamental ground cover, some Canby's mountain-lover being sold by nurseries may have been dug from the wild.
Management
Canby's mountain-lover is listed as a candidate species for federal listing by the USF&WS. It is also listed as Endangered in Maryland, Ohio and Tennessee and as Threatened in Kentucky and Virginia. Landowners need to be encouraged to protect the plants and habitat. Gardeners should buy only plants rooted from nursery stock.
Conservation Status Map
NatureServe. 2017. NatureServe Explorer: An online encyclopedia of life [web application]. Version 7.1. NatureServe, Arlington, Virginia. Available https://explorer.natureserve.org.
https://www.abnativeplants.com/plant/Paxistima-canbyi
- NatureServe. 2018. NatureServe Explorer: An online encyclopedia of life [web application]. Version 7.1. NatureServe, Arlington, Virginia. Available at https://www.natureserve.org/explorer
- Pennsylvania Natural Heritage Program. 2018.
- Rhoads, A.F. and W.M. Klein, Jr. 1993. The Vascular Flora of Pennsylvania. American Philosophical Society, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Rhoads, A.F. and T.A. Block.
- 2007. The Plants of Pennsylvania: An Illustrated Manual. 2nd edition. University of Pennsylvania Press, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
