Flora of North America species comparison

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Calochortus tolmiei

Calochortus ambiguus
Calochortus tolmiei

hairy star tulip, pussy ears, Tolmie star-tulip, Tolmie's cat's ear, Tolmie's mariposa-lily

doubting mariposa lily
Habit Plants often bulbose; bulb coat membranous.
Stems

± slender, usually branching, 1–4 dm.

usually branching, straight.
Leaves

basal persistent, 1–4 dm;

blade lanceolate, tapering at base, flat;

cauline bractlike.

basal withering;

blade linear-attenuate.
Inflorescences

± umbellate, 1–several-flowered.

subumbellate, 1–4-flowered.
Flowers

erect or spreading;

perianth open, campanulate;

sepals 10–15 mm;

petals white to pinkish or purplish, obovate, 12–25 mm, adaxial surface densely hairy, margins ciliate;

glands bordered proximally by ciliate membrane, distally by short hairs;

anthers lanceolate, apex acute to apiculate.

erect;

perianth pinkish or bluish gray, infrequently with longitudinal gray stripe, open, campanulate;

sepals invested near gland, with yellowish, distally enlarged or branching, gland-tipped hairs, base sometimes marked with dull purple, apex acuminate;

petals with median blotch usually surrounded by yellow zone, ± equaling sepals, base sometimes marked with dull purple;

glands round to lunate, depressed, surrounded with narrow, deeply fringed membrane, densely covered with short, distally branching hairs;

filaments shorter than anthers;

anthers oblong-lanceolate, apex obtuse to acute.
Capsules

nodding, winged, oblong, 2–3 cm.

erect, linear-oblong, 3-angled, apex acute.
Seeds

deep purple, dark brown in age, irregular.

flat.
2n

= 20.

= 18.

Calochortus tolmiei

Calochortus ambiguus
Phenology Flowering mid spring–mid summer. Flowering late spring–summer.
Habitat Open grassy slopes or in woods, often on poor, dry soil Dry soils
Elevation 0–2000 m (0–6600 ft) 1100–2700 m (3600–8900 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CA; OR; WA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AZ; NM; UT
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Source FNA vol. 26, p. 124. FNA vol. 26.
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. 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. umbellatus, C. umpquaensis, C. uniflorus, C. venustus, C. vestae, C. weedii, C. westonii
C. albus, C. amabilis, 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
Synonyms C. watsonii var. ambiguus
Name authority Hooker & Arnott: Bot. Beechey Voy., 398. (1840) (M. E. Jones) Ownbey: Ann. Missouri Bot. Gard. 27: 505. (1940)
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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