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desert mariposa, desert mariposa lily

Diogenes' lantern, golden fairy lantern

Habit Plants usually bulbose; bulb coat, when present, membranous.
Stems

usually not branching but sometimes twisted, 1–2(–5) dm.

usually branching distal to base, 1–5 dm, slightly glaucous.

Leaves

blade linear-attenuate;

basal withering, 1–2 dm;

blade channeled, glaucous.

basal persistent, 20–50 cm;

blade linear, flat, slightly glaucous.

Inflorescences

subumbellate, 1–6-flowered;

bracts 2–4 cm, bases dilated.

2–many-flowered.

Flowers

erect;

perianth open, campanulate, each member often with brown-purple blotch near base;

sepals ovate, 2–3 cm, apex acute;

petals orange to red or ± yellow, cuneate to obovate, 3–5 cm, with a few slightly enlarged hairs near gland;

glands round, depressed, surrounded by conspicuously fringed membrane, densely covered with unbranched or cleft hairs;

filaments 4–5 mm;

anthers purplish, lanceolate, 5–8 mm.

nodding;

perianth closed at apex, globular;

sepals spreading, ovate to lanceolate, 1.5–2 cm;

petals deep yellow, with brown abaxial blotch, widely lanceolate, 1.6–2 cm, densely ciliate throughout, adaxial surface glabrous or with a few hairs near gland;

glands deeply depressed, bordered distally by band of hairs;

filaments longer than anthers;

anthers oblong, apex obtuse or acute.

Capsules

erect, longitudinally striped, lanceoloid-linear, angled, 4–6 cm, apex acuminate.

nodding, winged, oblong, 2–3 cm, apex obtuse or acute.

Seeds

flat.

dark brown, irregular.

2n

=16.

= 20.

Calochortus kennedyi

Calochortus amabilis

Phenology Flowering mid spring–mid summer.
Habitat Shaded places in open woods or brush
Elevation 100–1000 m (300–3300 ft)
Distribution
from USDA
sw United States; nw Mexico
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Varieties 2 (2 in the flora).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Key
1. Petals orange to red.
var. kennedyi
1. Petals ± yellow.
var. munzii
Source FNA vol. 26, p. 138. FNA vol. 26, p. 124.
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. eurycarpus, C. excavatus, C. flexuosus, C. greenei, C. gunnisonii, C. howellii, C. indecorus, C. invenustus, 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. 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. 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
Subordinate taxa
C. kennedyi var. kennedyi, C. kennedyi var. munzii
Name authority Porter: Bot. Gaz. 2: 79. (1877) Purdy: Proc. Calif. Acad. Sci., ser. 3, 2: 119, plate 19, fig. 1. (1901)
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