Arctous alpina |
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alpine-bearberry, torpedoberry |
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Habit | Shrubs 3–20(–30) cm; twigs terete, with persistent old leaves or petioles. |
Leaves | petiole winged, 1–4 mm, ciliate on margins, or hairy; blade obovate to oblanceolate, 4–15 × 0.7–8(–20) mm, base attenuate-cuneate, decurrent onto petiole, apex acute, obtuse, or rounded, surfaces rugose, glabrous or hairy. |
Inflorescences | 2–4(–7)-flowered; bracts ovate, membranous. |
Pedicels | 0.1–0.6 mm. |
Flowers | sepals pale green or yellow, 0.8–1.2 mm, apex acute; corolla yellow, whitish, or green (pale yellowish green), 3.5–4.5 mm, lobes recurved, greenish, rounded, 0.5 mm, glabrous; stamens 1–2 mm; anthers reddish, becoming yellow, 0.6–0.7 mm, horns 0.1–0.2 mm. |
Fruits | black-purple, 6–9 mm diam. |
Pyrenes | 2.7–4.6 × 2–3.6 mm. |
2n | = 26, 28. |
Arctous alpina |
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Phenology | Flowering early summer. |
Habitat | Tundra, gravelly beach ridges, lichen heaths, open, boggy, coniferous woods, dry, wind-swept and snow-free fellfields in arctic and alpine tundra |
Elevation | 0-2500 m (0-8200 ft) |
Distribution |
AK; ME; NH; AB; BC; MB; NL; NT; NU; ON; QC; YT; Greenland; n Europe; Asia
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Discussion | In Greenland, Arctous alpina reaches 77º north latitude on the eastern coast. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 8, p. 405. |
Parent taxa | Ericaceae > subfam. Arbutoideae > Arctous |
Sibling taxa | |
Synonyms | Arbutus alpina, Arctostaphylos alpina, Mairania alpina |
Name authority | (Linnaeus) Niedenzu: Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 11: 144. 1889 , |
Web links |