Burke: Pinus monophylla vs. Pinus contorta

	Pinus monophylla	Pinus contorta
		lodgepole pine
Habit		Small tree 10-30 meters tall; crown rounded and billowy to narrow and straight.
Bark		Thin, to 2-2.5 cm thick; reddish brown to gray or black, furrowed or scaly.
Leaves		Needle-like, 3-6 cm long, in fascicles (groups) of 2 born alternately along stem.
Cones		Female cones 3-6 cm long, scales with sharply pointed tip; male pollen cones to 1 cm long, reddish-green.

	Pinus monophylla	Pinus contorta
Identification notes		The only pine in our area with normally 2 needles per fascicle; cones are spine-tipped. Pinus albicaulis can look similar in appearance, but has 5 needles per fascicle, cone scales without spiny tips, and grows at high elevations.
Habitat		Dry montane forests, rocky balds, coastal bluffs and sand dunes, and sphagnum bogs.
Distribution	[WildflowerSearch map] [BONAP county map]	Occurring on both sides of the Cascades crest in Washington; Alaska to California, east to the Rocky Mountains and South Dakota. [WildflowerSearch map] [BONAP county map]
Origin		Native
Conservation status		Not of concern
Sibling taxa	P. albicaulis, P. contorta, P. monticola, P. ponderosa	P. albicaulis, P. monticola, P. ponderosa
Subordinate taxa		P. contorta var. contorta, P. contorta var. latifolia
Web links	Local floras: CA, OR 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	Local floras: BC, 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

Pinus monophylla

Pinus contorta

lodgepole pine

Habit

Small tree 10-30 meters tall; crown rounded and billowy to narrow and straight.

Bark

Thin, to 2-2.5 cm thick; reddish brown to gray or black, furrowed or scaly.

Leaves

Needle-like, 3-6 cm long, in fascicles (groups) of 2 born alternately along stem.

Cones

Female cones 3-6 cm long, scales with sharply pointed tip; male pollen cones to 1 cm long, reddish-green.

Pinus monophylla

The only pine in our area with normally 2 needles per fascicle; cones are spine-tipped. Pinus albicaulis can look similar in appearance, but has 5 needles per fascicle, cone scales without spiny tips, and grows at high elevations.

Habitat

Dry montane forests, rocky balds, coastal bluffs and sand dunes, and sphagnum bogs.

Distribution

[WildflowerSearch map]

[BONAP county map]