Burke: Cuscuta pentagona vs. Cuscuta suksdorfii

	Cuscuta pentagona	Cuscuta suksdorfii
	field dodder, five-angled dodder	mountain dodder
Habit	Parasitic, twining, annual or perennial herbs, with very slender, pinkish-yellow to white, glabrous stems, often forming large mats.	Parasitic, twining, perennial herbs, with very slender, pinkish-yellow to white glabrous stems, often forming large mats.
Leaves	Leaves reduced to tiny scales.	: Leaves reduced to tiny scales.
Flowers	Flowers in small clusters, on pedicels about equal to the calyx; calyx not fleshy, 1.5-3 mm. long, shallowly cup-shaped, the 5 lobes broadly ovate-triangular, overlapping slightly at the base; corolla equaling the calyx, persistent, the tube broadly bell-shaped, slightly longer than the 5 spreading to reflexed, lanceolate, acute lobes; stamens 5, inserted just below the sinuses of the tube, exerted, the filaments exceeding the small anthers; obovate-oblong scales covering the base of the filaments are conspicuously fringed above, joined about 1/3 their lengths; styles 2, 1 mm. long; ovary superior, 2-celled.	Flowers 2.5-3 mm. long, 4- to 5-merous, borne in few-flowered clusters on pedicles 1-3 mm. long; calyx broad, nearly equaling the corolla, its lobes ovate-lanceolate, acuminate, spreading; corolla bell-shaped with a cap-like covering, lobed about half its length, the lobes ovate-lanceolate, erect; stamens inserted just below the sinuses of the corolla; filament scales variable; styles 2,considerably shorter than the ovary; ovary 2-celled, ovoid-conic, superior.
Fruits	Capsule depressed-globose, 2.5-3 mm. long.	Capsule ovoid

	Cuscuta pentagona	Cuscuta suksdorfii
Flowering time	July-September	July-September
Habitat	Parasitic on a variety of hosts.	Parasitic on Asteraceae and Fabaceae, occasionally other families; montane pond shores, floodplains.
Distribution	Occurring chiefly east of the Cascades crest and in the Columbia River Gorge in Washington; British Columbia to California, east to the Atlantic Coast. [WildflowerSearch map] [BONAP county map]	Occurring on both sides of the Cascades crest in Washington; Washington to California. [WildflowerSearch map] [BONAP county map]
Origin	Introduced	Native
Conservation status	Not of concern	Review Group 1 in Washington (WANHP)
Sibling taxa	C. approximata, C. californica, C. campestris, C. cephalanthi, C. denticulata, C. epithymum, C. indecora, C. occidentalis, C. pacifica, C. suksdorfii	C. approximata, C. californica, C. campestris, C. cephalanthi, C. denticulata, C. epithymum, C. indecora, C. occidentalis, C. pacifica, C. pentagona
Web links	Local floras: OR, WA Local Web sites: Flora NW, PNW Herbaria WildflowerSearch iNaturalist (observations) USDA Plants Database LBJ Wildflower Center SEINet Plants of the World Online Encyclopedia of Life Wikipedia Google Image Search	Local floras: CA, OR, WA Local Web sites: CalFlora, CalPhotos, Flora NW, PNW Herbaria WildflowerSearch iNaturalist (observations) USDA Plants Database LBJ Wildflower Center SEINet Plants of the World Online Encyclopedia of Life Wikipedia Google Image Search

Cuscuta suksdorfii

field dodder, five-angled dodder

mountain dodder

Habit

Parasitic, twining, annual or perennial herbs, with very slender, pinkish-yellow to white, glabrous stems, often forming large mats.

Parasitic, twining, perennial herbs, with very slender, pinkish-yellow to white glabrous stems, often forming large mats.

Leaves

Leaves reduced to tiny scales.

: Leaves reduced to tiny scales.

Flowers

Flowers in small clusters, on pedicels about equal to the calyx;

calyx not fleshy, 1.5-3 mm. long, shallowly cup-shaped, the 5 lobes broadly ovate-triangular, overlapping slightly at the base;

corolla equaling the calyx, persistent, the tube broadly bell-shaped, slightly longer than the 5 spreading to reflexed, lanceolate, acute lobes;

stamens 5, inserted just below the sinuses of the tube, exerted, the filaments exceeding the small anthers; obovate-oblong scales covering the base of the filaments are conspicuously fringed above, joined about 1/3 their lengths;

styles 2, 1 mm. long;

ovary superior, 2-celled.

Flowers 2.5-3 mm. long, 4- to 5-merous, borne in few-flowered clusters on pedicles 1-3 mm. long;

calyx broad, nearly equaling the corolla, its lobes ovate-lanceolate, acuminate, spreading;

corolla bell-shaped with a cap-like covering, lobed about half its length, the lobes ovate-lanceolate, erect;

stamens inserted just below the sinuses of the corolla;

filament scales variable;

styles 2,considerably shorter than the ovary;

ovary 2-celled, ovoid-conic, superior.

Fruits

Capsule depressed-globose, 2.5-3 mm. long.

Capsule ovoid

Cuscuta pentagona

Cuscuta suksdorfii

Flowering time

July-September

Habitat

Parasitic on a variety of hosts.

Parasitic on Asteraceae and Fabaceae, occasionally other families; montane pond shores, floodplains.

Distribution

Occurring chiefly east of the Cascades crest and in the Columbia River Gorge in Washington; British Columbia to California, east to the Atlantic Coast.

[WildflowerSearch map]

[BONAP county map]