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Taxon  Report  
Bursera microphylla  A. Gray
Elephant tree,   Littleleaf elephanttree
Bursera microphylla is a tree that is native to California, and also found in Baja California and Arizona.
California Rare Plant Rank: 2B.3 (rare, threatened, or endangered in CA; common elsewhere).
Siskiyou Del Norte Modoc Humboldt Shasta Lassen Trinity Plumas Tehama Butte Mendocino Glenn Sierra Yuba Lake Nevada Colusa Placer Sutter El Dorado Yolo Alpine Napa Sonoma Sacramento Mono Amador Solano Calaveras Tuolumne San Joaquin Marin Contra Costa Alameda Santa Cruz Mariposa Madera San Francisco San Mateo Merced Fresno Stanislaus Santa Clara Inyo San Benito Tulare Kings Monterey San Bernardino San Luis Obispo Kern Santa Barbara Ventura Los Angeles Riverside Orange San Diego Imperial
Observation Search
~63 records in California
yellowone or more occurrences
within a 7.5-minute quadrangle
DJJJASONAFMM

Bloom Period
Genus: Bursera
Family: Burseraceae  
Category: angiosperm  
PLANTS group:Dicot
Jepson eFlora section: eudicot

Communities: Creosote Bush Scrub
Name Status:
Accepted by JEF + CNPS + PLANTS + POWO
Information about  Bursera microphylla from other sources
Nursery availability from CNPLX
This plant is available commercially.
Jepson eFlora

USDA PLANTS Profile (BUMI)

Photos on Calflora

Photos on CalPhotos

Google Images

Photos on iNaturalist

ID Tips on PlantID.net

Introduction to Elephant Tree: Elephant Tree is a signature plant of the Sonoran Desert yet is uncommon in California... A photo essay from PlantID.net (link added by Bruce Homer-Smith)


Suggested Citation
Calflora: Information on California plants for education, research and conservation, with data contributed by public and private institutions and individuals. [web application]. 2025. The Calflora Database [a non-profit organization]. Available: https://www.calflora.org/   (Accessed: 05/22/2025).