DISTRIBUTION AND OCCURRENCE
SPECIES: Simmondsia chinensis | Jojoba 



GENERAL DISTRIBUTION : 
In the United States, jojoba occurs in the Sonoran Desert from west
Riverside and San Diego counties, California; east through Imperial
County, California, to southern Yavapai and Greenlee counties, Arizona;
south to Cochise, Pima, and Yuma counties, Arizona [18,23,35].  Jojoba
is also distributed throughout Baja California and Sonora, Mexico, and
is found on islands in the Gulf of California [4,5,17,23,35,38].


ECOSYSTEMS : 
   FRES30  Desert shrub
   FRES33  Southwestern shrubsteppe
   FRES34  Chaparral - mountain shrub


STATES : 
     AZ  CA  MEXICO


ADMINISTRATIVE UNITS : 
     CABR  JOTR  ORPI  SAGU  TONT


BLM PHYSIOGRAPHIC REGIONS : 
    3  Southern Pacific Border
    7  Lower Basin and Range


KUCHLER PLANT ASSOCIATIONS : 
   K027  Mesquite bosque
   K033  Chaparral
   K035  Coastal sagebrush
   K041  Creosotebush
   K042  Creosotebush - bursage
   K043  Paloverde - cactus shrub
   K044  Creosotebush - tarbush
   K058  Grama - tobosa shrubsteppe


SAF COVER TYPES : 
   242  Mesquite


SRM (RANGELAND) COVER TYPES : 
NO-ENTRY


HABITAT TYPES AND PLANT COMMUNITIES : 
Jojoba is mainly found in desert shrub habitats and lower elevations
of chaparral vegetation [37,54].  In interior chaparral associations in
Arizona, jojoba occurs with typical chaparral species on dry, open sites
with an average shrub cover of 60 to 70 percent [40].  Although it is
not listed as a dominant shrub species in available publications, jojoba
is important over some parts of its range.  Some minor associations in
the Sonoran Desert are dominated by jojoba on rocky, upland sites within
the paloverde (Cercidium spp.) type [30].  Jojoba is also dominant near
Puerto Libertad in Sonora on piedmont and bajada sites [7].

In addition to species already mentioned in DISTRIBUTION AND OCCURRENCE,
jojoba is associated in desert shrub habitats with saguaro (Carnegiea
gigantea), leatherstem (Jatropha spp.), brittle bush (Encelia farinosa),
ironwood (Olneya tesota), false-mesquite (Calliandra eriophylla),
ocotillo (Fouquieria splendens), littleleaf paloverde (Cercidium
microphyllum), catclaw acacia (Acacia greggii), desert hackberry (Celtis
pallidum), ratany (Krameria spp.), wolfberry (Lycium spp.), cholla or
prickly pear (Opuntia spp.), and yucca (Yucca spp.)  [4,7,15,31,44,51].

Jojoba is associated in southern portions of coastal sage scrub
vegetation with California buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum), sugar
sumac (Rhus ovata), white sage (Salvia apiana), common deerweed (Lotus
scoparius), and California sagebrush (Artemisia californica)
[1,15,41,47].

Jojoba is also associated with broadleaved riparian species such as
Arizona sycamore (Platanus wrightii), blue paloverde (Cercidium
floridum), hackberry (Celtis spp.), and honey mesquite (Prosopis
glandulosa var. glandulosa) in the Gila River Resource Area in eastern
Arizona [34].

Related categories for Species: Simmondsia chinensis | Jojoba