Manual of California Vegetation
First published in 1995, the CNPS Manual of California Vegetation (MCV) serves as California’s standard vegetation classification for biological consulting firms, planners, and state and federal agencies, including the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Forest Service, National Park Service, and U.S. Geological Survey.
Now available online, the MCV is based upon 30 years of rigorous surveying, analysis, description, and vegetation mapping, providing a refined picture of the state’s diverse vegetation patterns. Because of its breadth, it also offers a significant source of California natural history and biogeographic information for plant lovers.
Visit the Manual of California Vegetation website
About the MCV
More than 450 Descriptions of Vegetation Types
Within each vegetation detail, you’ll find:
- life history strategies
- quantitatively-based rules to distinguish between types
- remarks on plant taxonomy
- fire characteristics and other natural processes that shape each type’s ecology, and
- regional distribution information.
Each alliance description is accompanied by a range map and a complete list of known plant associations.
How it's Structured
The MCV is arranged in three main categories with vegetation characterized by trees, by shrubs, or by herbaceous vegetation. At the front of each section is an ecological key to the vegetation types, followed by their descriptions arranged in alphabetical order.
The format of the vegetation descriptions and other information in the manual were developed following consensus by the CNPS Vegetation Committee and were written with extensive review by over 100 ecologists and botanists. The descriptions reflect in-depth literature review and synthesis of all available information on California vegetation and are put into context of their rarity and conservation value by relating them to the Natural Diversity Data Base rarity coding system.
CNPS and our partners at CDFW VegCAMP works to continually improve and update the information in the classification. As part of this effort, we have conducted two scientific forums, symposia sponsored by the Association of American Academy of Sciences, which have provided feedback to our committee regarding the usefulness of the classification.
The MCV is designed to be a flexible and adaptable tool. As new information comes in via CNPS chapters, private organizations, and agency inventory and mapping efforts, we will enter the information into a standardized statewide database with updates to the online MCV occurring on a regular basis.
Please note: The CNPS Vegetation Program would greatly appreciate your data contributions. We’ll enter the data into our database, archive the information, and use it for future analyses. If requested, we can send you a hard copy database report summarizing the data you’ve provided.
Please send photocopies/scanned copies via post or email to:
Julie Evens, Vegetation Program Director
2707 K Street, Suite 1
Sacramento, CA 95816
E-mail: jevens@cnps.org
