The Origin and Genetic Makeup of a California Rare Plant: Merced Clarkia (Clarkia lingulata)
Summary
SCH Number
2022060508
Public Agency
California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Habitat Conservation Planning
(CDFW)
Document Title
The Origin and Genetic Makeup of a California Rare Plant: Merced Clarkia (Clarkia lingulata)
Document Type
NOE - Notice of Exemption
Received
Posted
6/23/2022
Document Description
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife is issuing a permit to Oscar M. VargasHernandez, Permit No. 2081(a)-22-003-RP pursuant to Fish and Game Code section 2081(a) for a project to collect Merced clarkia leaf tissue from between 6 and 24 individuals (approximately 1-2 leaves per individual), and up to 10 seeds from a single plant or from the whole population. The purpose is to identify the species origin of Merced clarkia, evaluate its genetic variability, compare it with two-lobed clarkia (C. biloba), and to germinate two voucher specimens from the seeds stored in the Vargas-Hernandez laboratory for the Humboldt Vascular Plant Herbarium. Seeds stored in the BioCore facility will be used for future germination activities to produce a plant specimen for whole genome sequencing.
Contact Information
Name
Oscar M. Vargas-Hernandez
Agency Name
California Polytechnic University, Humboldt
Job Title
Assistant Professor and Herbarium Director
Contact Types
Project Applicant
Address
Phone
Email
Name
Mariel Boldis
Agency Name
California Department of Fish and Wildlife
Job Title
Environmental Scientist
Contact Types
Lead/Public Agency
Phone
Location
Coordinates
Cities
Arcata, Merced
Counties
Humboldt, Mariposa, Merced
Regions
Countywide, Northern California
Other Location Info
Plant material collection of Merced clarkia (Clarkia lingulata) for the Project will take place in Mariposa County along the Merced River near the Ferguson Ridge along Highway 140 in the Kinsley and El Portal U.S. Geological Survey quadrangles. The approximate coordinates of the center of the entire search area are 37.66758° North, -119.84005 ° West. All leaf tissue and half of the seeds collected will be temporarily stored in a refrigerator at the Vargas-Hernandez laboratory at the Department of Biological Sciences at California Polytechnic University, Humboldt (Cal Poly Humboldt). The other half of the seeds will be temporarily stored at -80 degrees
Celsius in the BioCore facility. All germination activities will occur at the Dennis K. Walker Greenhouse. Two germinated voucher specimens will be stored at the Humboldt Vascular Plant Herbarium. Leaf tissue DNA will be extracted at the Vargas-Hernandez laboratory. A maximum concentration of 50 ng/uL of leaf tissue DNA will be
exported to Rapid Genomics (747 SW 2nd Avenue, Suite 314, Gainesville, FL 32601) for library preparation and sequencing. Phylogenomic analyses will be performed at the Cal Poly Humboldt Department of Biological Sciences computational facility.
Notice of Exemption
Exempt Status
Categorical Exemption
Type, Section or Code
Section 15306, Class 6
Reasons for Exemption
The Project consists of basic data collection and research for a genetic study to
identify the species origin of the California endangered Merced clarkia and to evaluate genetic variability of the species for conservation purposes. The permit issued by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife for the Project includes measures to ensure that existing populations of Merced clarkia are not impacted.
Attachments
Notice of Exemption
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