Atriplex covillei |
Atriplex pacifica |
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Coville's orach |
Davidson's saltbush, Pacific orach, south coast saltbush, south coast saltscale |
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Habit | Herbs, spreading, 1–4(–5) dm and as broad. | Herbs, annual, prostrate, sometimes tinged red, 1–6 dm, forming tangled masses 3–10 dm diam., lightly scurfy when young. |
Stems | terete, sparsely scurfy when young. |
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Leaves | petiole to 1/2 as long as blade (becoming subsessile distally); blade green or finally stramineous, (10–)20–50 × 6–30 mm, firm, base abruptly acute to narrowly cuneate, apex acute to attenuate, sparsely scurfy. |
numerous, sessile or proximal short petiolate; blade greenish adaxially, paler abaxially, oblanceolate to spatulate-elliptic or oval, (3–)5–18 × 1–8 mm, margin entire, more scurfy abaxially. |
Staminate flowers | in sessile glomerules in distal axils, often mixed with pistillate ones, staminate calyx deeply 5-cleft; lobes obtuse, not appendaged. |
in glomerules largely in distal bractless axils, thus short spicate; calyx 5-cleft. |
Pistillate flowers | with calyx of (1–)3(–5) hyaline sepals. |
in proximal axils. |
Seeds | dark reddish brown, 1–1.5 mm. |
light brown, 0.8–1 mm. |
Fruiting | bracteoles sessile or stipitate, 6–12 × 4–7 mm, margin mostly 3-lobed, with elongate terminal lobe triangular to lanceolate, 2 short rounded lobes at base or sides merely rounded at base, united to beyond middle. |
bracteoles subsessile or stipe to 0.3 mm, suborbiculate to obovate, 1–1.5(–2) × 1.1–1.8 mm, united to middle, margin minutely 3–5-toothed at apex, otherwise entire, apex green, faces smooth or rarely tuberculate. |
Atriplex covillei |
Atriplex pacifica |
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Phenology | Flowering summer–fall. | Flowering early spring–fall. |
Habitat | Mixed saltbush-greasewood, rabbitbrush, warm desert shrub, and salt grass communities in saline substrates | Mainly on sea bluffs |
Elevation | 800-1700 m (2600-5600 ft) | 0-100 m (0-300 ft) |
Distribution |
CA; NV; OR |
CA; Mexico (Baja California)
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Discussion | Endolepis covillei was treated within the synonymy of Atriplex phyllostegia (Torrey) S. Watson by H. M. Hall and F. E. Clements (1923). H. C. Stutz et al. (1993) placed Atriplex covillei within Endolepis, based in large part on the presence of a perianth subtending the pistil within the fruiting bracteoles and on the lack of Kranz anatomy in the leaves. The pattern of venation is, nevertheless, very similar to that in species with Kranz anatomy. The presence of perianth scales in the pistillate flowers of A. covillei has been regarded as evidence of relationship with A. suckleyi. Despite placement of these taxa within Endolepis by Stutz et al. Atriplex covillei is possibly more closely allied to the morphologically similar and partially sympatric A. phyllostegia than it is to strongly dissimilar and the distantly disjunct A. suckleyi. Stutz and his associates placed great emphasis on the presence of reduced perianth segments subtending the pistil within the fruiting bracteoles of A. covillei. Calyces per se, otherwise known only in A. suckleyi and A. pleiantha, probably have arisen independently. Their presence does not necessarily indicate a close relationship. Stutz et al. pointed to other differences aside from the calyx of the pistillate flowers, and it is apparent that the two entities can stand as distinct species. To segregate A. covillei within a separate genus and to ally it with a species to which its relationships are obscure at best, stretches logic beyond reason. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
The name Atriplex ramosissima was published by Moquin-Tandon as a synonym, based on a name on a specimen in Nuttall’s herbarium. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 4. | FNA vol. 4, p. 363. |
Parent taxa | Chenopodiaceae > Atriplex > subg. Obione > sect. Covilleiae | Chenopodiaceae > Atriplex > subg. Obione > sect. Obione > subsect. Arenariae |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | Endolepis covillei | Obione microcarpa, A. ramosissima |
Name authority | (Standley) J. F. Macbride: Contr. Gray Herb. 53: 11. (1918) | A. Nelson: Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash., 17: 99. (1904) |
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