Castilleja cryptantha |
Castilleja litoralis |
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Mt. Rainier or obscure paintbrush, obscure Indian paintbrush, obscure paintbrush |
coast paintbrush, Oregon coast paintbrush, Pacific paintbrush |
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Habit | Herbs, perennial, (0.8–)1–1.9 dm; from a woody caudex; with a taproot. | Herbs, perennial, 1–9 dm; from a woody caudex; with a taproot. |
Stems | few to several, erect or ascending, unbranched, hairs spreading, long, soft, eglandular, mixed with short stipitate-glandular ones. |
few to many, usually decumbent proximally, becoming ascending-erect, sometimes ascending, branched, sometimes with small, leafy axillary shoots, glabrate or ± pubescent distally, hairs sparse to moderately dense, spreading to ± appressed, short, soft, sometimes mixed with short-glandular ones below inflorescence. |
Leaves | green, often with brown or purple veins, narrowly to broadly lanceolate, 1.5–4 cm, not fleshy, margins plane, ± involute, 0–3-lobed, apex acute to acuminate; lobes spreading-ascending, narrowly lanceolate, apex acute to ± obtuse. |
green, lanceolate to oblong or narrowly ovate, (0.5–)3–8 cm, sometimes thickened, not fleshy, margins plane, sometimes ± wavy, flat to involute, 0(–3)-lobed, apex acute to rounded; lobes ascending or spreading, linear, narrowly lanceolate to oblong or triangular, short, apex acute to obtuse. |
Inflorescences | (2.5–)3–6 × 1–2 cm; green to dull brown or dull reddish purple throughout, or proximally green to dull brown or dull reddish purple, distally yellow on apices, broadly lanceolate to ovate, (0–)3-lobed; lobes ascending, narrowly lanceolate, long or short, arising near mid length, apex acute or acuminate. |
2.5–21 × 3–5 cm; bracts proximally green, distally bright red to crimson or orange-red, sometimes orange or pale yellow-orange, oblong to narrowly ovate or narrowly obovate, (0–)3–5-lobed, sometimes with a pair of small teeth; lobes ascending, linear to oblong, medium length, arising in middle 1/3, central lobe apex obtuse to rounded or truncate, lateral ones ± acute. |
Pedicels | 0–6 mm. |
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Corollas | straight, 14–16 mm; tube 11–14 mm; whole corolla included within calyx; beak adaxially pale yellow, 1–2 mm; abaxial lip deep green, slightly inflated, 4–5 mm, 67% as long as beak; teeth ascending, pale, 1.5–2 mm. |
straight or slightly curved, 23–38(–40) mm; tube 10–20 mm; abaxial lip often visible through front cleft, very rarely almost exserted, beak exserted; beak adaxially green or yellowish, 10–16 mm, surface inconspicuously puberulent; abaxial lip ascending, green, reduced, 1–2.5 mm, 10–20% as long as beak; teeth erect or incurved, green or white, 1–2 mm. |
Calyces | proximally green or pale with green veins, lobes yellow, sometimes becoming deep red with age, 12–15 mm; abaxial and adaxial clefts 3–7 mm, 25–50% of calyx length, deeper than laterals, lateral 1–3(–4) mm, 8–20% of calyx length; lobes triangular, adaxial segments longer than abaxials, apex acute or obtuse. |
colored as bracts, 17–25(–30) mm; abaxial and adaxial clefts (5–)7–15(–18) mm, 33–55% of calyx length, deeper than laterals, lateral 1–3(–5) mm, 5–10% of calyx length; lobes broadly triangular to oblong, apex obtuse to acute or rounded. |
2n | = 24. |
= 120, 144. |
Castilleja cryptantha |
Castilleja litoralis |
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Phenology | Flowering Jul–Aug. | Flowering (Apr–)May–Aug(–Sep). |
Habitat | Mesic to moist flat subalpine meadows and turf, to tree line. | Steep rocky slopes, headlands, ledges, sea cliffs, coastal scrub, dune swales, roadcuts. |
Elevation | 1500–2000 m. (4900–6600 ft.) | 0–200 m. (0–700 ft.) |
Distribution |
WA
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CA; OR; WA
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Discussion | Castilleja cryptantha is endemic to the vicinity of Mt. Rainier in the Cascade Range, with most populations found within Mt. Rainier National Park. Unlike most species of Castilleja, it is apparently self-pollinating (W. J. Duffield 1972); the small flowers are entirely enclosed within the yellowish calyces, which tend to grow deep reddish as they age. The purplish brown bracts are also unusual in the genus. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Castilleja litoralis never ranges more than one to two kilometers from the sea, from Humboldt County, California, north to Pacific County, Washington, near the mouth of the Columbia River. It is a high polyploid complex, possibly incorporating the genomes of several species, including C. affinis, C. miniata, and possibly C. hispida. The coastal C. miniata var. dixonii is very similar ecologically and morphologically but replaces C. litoralis from southwestern Washington to southern British Columbia. Compared to C. litoralis, C. miniata var. dixonii usually has somewhat longer corollas and corolla beaks, the latter with a more conspicuously puberulent surface and deeper lateral calyx clefts. Castilleja litoralis has been included as a subspecies of C. affinis by some (for example, M. Wetherwax et al. 2012), but the morphological resemblance to that species is far more tenuous than it is to C. miniata var. dixonii. Considering their very similar morphologies, along with the fact that both C. litoralis (2n = 120, 144) and C. miniata var. dixonii (2n = 96, 144) apparently combine multiple genomes, strongly suggest that they would best be treated as a single entity. Should they be combined at the species level following additional research, the name C. dixonii has priority. Castilleja litoralis is often associated with salal, Gaultheria shallon, on which it is likely parasitic. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 17, p. 600. | FNA vol. 17, p. 624. |
Parent taxa | Orobanchaceae > Castilleja | Orobanchaceae > Castilleja |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | C. affinis subsp. litoralis, C. wightii subsp. litoralis | |
Name authority | Pennell & G. N. Jones: Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 50: 208. (1937) | Pennell: Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia 99: 183. (1947) |
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