The green links below add additional plants to the comparison table. Blue links lead to other Web sites.
enable glossary links

big-pod mariposa, big-pod mariposa lily, white mariposa lily, wide-fruit mariposa lily

clay mariposa, clay mariposa lily

Habit Plants bulbose; bulb coat membranous.
Stems

not branching, straight, 1–5 dm.

not branching, 4–6 dm.

Leaves

basal persistent, subtended by inflorescence, 1–3 dm × 5–25 mm;

blade flat, tapering toward both ends, becoming involute.

basal withering, 2–3 dm;

blade linear.

Inflorescences

subumbellate, 1–5-flowered;

bracts 2 or more, narrowly lanceolate to linear, long-attenuate, unequal, 1–5 cm.

subumbellate, 1–4-flowers;

bracts 2–8 cm.

Flowers

erect;

perianth open, campanulate;

sepals ovate to lanceolate, usually much shorter than petals, glabrous, apex acute to acuminate;

petals creamy white to lavender, with conspicuous median red-purple adaxial blotch, obovate, invested near gland with few long, flexuous hairs, base cuneate, apex rounded or acute;

glands triangular-lunate, slightly depressed, bordered proximally by comparatively narrow, deeply fringed membrane, distally often by narrower, crenate membranes, enclosed surface densely covered with long yellowish hairs, which, with membrane fringe, are often inconspicuously papillose;

filaments slightly longer than anthers;

anthers oblong, apex obtuse.

erect;

perianth open, campanulate;

sepals lanceolate, 2–4 cm, apex acute to acuminate;

petals white to purple, with median red blotch often surrounded by pale yellow, obovate to cuneate, rounded, 2–4 cm, with a few short hairs near gland, apex retuse to obtuse;

glands arched, transversely oblong to weakly lunate or ± rectangular, not depressed, densely covered with short hairs;

filaments 7–9 mm;

anthers lanceolate-linear to oblong, 8–10 mm, apex acute to obtuse.

Capsules

erect, 3-winged, ellipsoid-oblong.

erect, narrowly lanceoloid, stout, 4–6 cm.

Seeds

light beige.

light beige, lanceolate, flat, 5–6 mm.

2n

= 20.

= 14.

Calochortus eurycarpus

Calochortus argillosus

Phenology Flowering summer. Flowering late spring–mid summer.
Habitat Grasslands and open coniferous forests Hard clay soil of volcanic or metamorphic rock
Elevation 700–2700 m (2300–8900 ft) 0–400 m (0–1300 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
ID; MT; NV; OR; WA; WY
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Source FNA vol. 26. FNA vol. 26, p. 134.
Parent taxa Liliaceae > Calochortus Liliaceae > Calochortus
Sibling taxa
C. albus, C. amabilis, C. ambiguus, C. amoenus, C. apiculatus, C. argillosus, C. aureus, C. bruneaunis, C. catalinae, C. clavatus, C. coeruleus, C. concolor, C. coxii, C. dunnii, C. elegans, C. excavatus, C. flexuosus, C. greenei, C. gunnisonii, C. howellii, C. indecorus, C. invenustus, C. kennedyi, C. leichtlinii, C. longebarbatus, C. luteus, C. lyallii, C. macrocarpus, C. minimus, C. monanthus, C. monophyllus, C. nitidus, C. nudus, C. nuttallii, C. obispoensis, C. palmeri, C. panamintensis, C. persistens, C. plummerae, C. pulchellus, C. raichei, C. simulans, C. splendens, C. striatus, C. subalpinus, C. superbus, C. tiburonensis, C. tolmiei, C. umbellatus, C. umpquaensis, C. uniflorus, C. venustus, C. vestae, C. weedii, C. westonii
C. albus, C. amabilis, C. ambiguus, C. amoenus, C. apiculatus, C. aureus, C. bruneaunis, C. catalinae, C. clavatus, C. coeruleus, C. concolor, C. coxii, C. dunnii, C. elegans, C. eurycarpus, C. excavatus, C. flexuosus, C. greenei, C. gunnisonii, C. howellii, C. indecorus, C. invenustus, C. kennedyi, C. leichtlinii, C. longebarbatus, C. luteus, C. lyallii, C. macrocarpus, C. minimus, C. monanthus, C. monophyllus, C. nitidus, C. nudus, C. nuttallii, C. obispoensis, C. palmeri, C. panamintensis, C. persistens, C. plummerae, C. pulchellus, C. raichei, C. simulans, C. splendens, C. striatus, C. subalpinus, C. superbus, C. tiburonensis, C. tolmiei, C. umbellatus, C. umpquaensis, C. uniflorus, C. venustus, C. vestae, C. weedii, C. westonii
Synonyms C. nitidus var. eurycarpus Mariposa argillosa
Name authority S. Watson: Botany (Fortieth Parallel), 348. (1871) (Hoover) Zebell & P. L. Fiedler: Madroño 39: 306. (1992)
Web links