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large mountain monkey-flower

Habit Mat-forming perennial from well-developed, creeping rhizomes, often with stolons as well, the stems 0.5-2 dm. tall, mostly glabrous. Rhizomatous perennials, rooting at nodes nearest the base, occasionally producing runners with creeping form and small leaves, forming colonies of mats, rhizomes threadlike; stems 3-10 cm, usually prostrate or with some curving upward distally, usually massed, round or somewhat flat, branching, may be glabrous or slightly hirtellous or with stalked glands.
Leaves

Leaves opposite, mostly sessile, the blade under 2.5 cm. long, elliptic to ovate, slightly reduced upward, with a few irregular teeth, sub-palmately veined.

Leaves both basal and cauline; petiolate, proximal petioles 2-5 mm, becoming sessile distally;

blade commonly purplish beneath, orbicular to ovate to narrowly elliptic, leaves nearest base somewhat lyrate, 3-12 mm and becoming larger farther from base, palmate venation with 3 veins, base wedge-shaped, margins entire to barely finely toothed, apex obtuse, somewhat puberulent above and beneath, hairs minute and stipitate-glandular.

Flowers

Flowers few, solitary in the leaf axils, on long pedicels;

calyx 5-toothed, irregular, the upper tooth much the largest, the 2 lower ones tending to fold upward;

corolla large for the size of the plant, 2-4 cm. long, strongly bilabiate, with flaring throat, yellow with maroon dots or splotches on the pubescent lower lip;

stamens 4.

Axillary flowers 1-3, from nodes farthest from base, usually solitary; fruiting pedicels generally 10-30 mm, somewhat villous with short gland-tipped hairs, occasionally hirtellous;

calyx broadly bell-shaped, inflated, compressed along sagittal plane, 7-15 mm, glabrous or hirtellous or stipitate-glandular, throat closing, lobe pair nearest base curving upwards, other lobes 3-5 mm, prominently protruding;

corollas yellow with dark red spots, symmetric bilaterally, bilabiate;

tube-throat widely funnel-shaped to nearly cylindric, 15-18 mm, protruding beyond calyx margin; lower limb deflexed and spreading, upper limb curving upward, palate partially closed;

styles slightly hirtellous;

anthers not protruding, glabrous.

Fruit(s)

Capsule.

Capsules 4-5 mm, included.

Erythranthe tilingii

Erythranthe caespitosa

Flowering time July-September July-September
Habitat Wet meadows and wet, rocky slopes at high elevations in the mountains. Wet meadows and wet, rocky slopes at high elevations in the mountains.
Distribution
In the Cascade and Olympic Mountains of Washington; Alaska south to California, east to Montana, Colorado and New Mexico.
[WildflowerSearch map]
Occurring in the Olympics and Cascades mountains of Washington; British Columbia south to Oregon, east to Idaho.
[WildflowerSearch map]
Origin Native
Conservation status Not of concern Not of concern
Sibling taxa
E. alsinoides, E. ampliata, E. arvensis, E. breviflora, E. breweri, E. caespitosa, E. cardinalis, E. decora, E. dentata, E. floribunda, E. grandis, E. guttata, E. inflatula, E. jungermannioides, E. lewisii, E. microphylla, E. moschata, E. nasuta, E. patula, E. primuloides, E. ptilota, E. pulsiferae, E. scouleri, E. suksdorfii, E. washingtonensis
E. alsinoides, E. ampliata, E. arvensis, E. breviflora, E. breweri, E. cardinalis, E. decora, E. dentata, E. floribunda, E. grandis, E. guttata, E. inflatula, E. jungermannioides, E. lewisii, E. microphylla, E. moschata, E. nasuta, E. patula, E. primuloides, E. ptilota, E. pulsiferae, E. scouleri, E. suksdorfii, E. washingtonensis
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