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coast paintbrush, Oregon coast paintbrush, Pacific paintbrush

alpine paintbrush, dwarf alpine Indian paintbrush, dwarf alpine paintbrush, dwarf paintbrush

Habit Herbs, perennial, 1–9 dm; from a woody caudex; with a taproot. Herbs, perennial, 0.4–1.7 dm; from a woody caudex; with a taproot.
Stems

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.

few to several, ascending to decumbent-based, unbranched, hairs spreading, long, soft to stiff, mixed with shorter stipitate-glandular ones.

Leaves

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.

green to deep purple, linear to narrowly lanceolate, (0.5–)1–2.5(–3.1) cm, not fleshy, margins plane, flat to slightly involute, 3(–7)-lobed, apex acuminate;

lobes ascending-erect, linear to filiform, apex acute to obtuse.

Inflorescences

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.

15–20 × 1.5–3 cm;

bracts greenish or deep purplish throughout, or proximally greenish or deep purplish, distally white, pink, magenta, reddish purple, purple, or pale yellow, distal coloration often limited to apices and margins, broadly lanceolate or narrowly to broadly elliptic, 0–3(–7)-lobed;

lobes spreading, linear to narrowly oblanceolate, long, arising near mid length, apex acute or obtuse.

Pedicels

0–6 mm.

Corollas

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.

straight, 10–16(–19) mm;

tube 8–13 mm, with patches of blackish coloration on either side of distal portion;

beak subequal to calyx or exserted, adaxially green, yellow, whitish, or pink, 3–5.5 mm, scarcely exceeding abaxial lip, margins brown or burgundy, sometimes pink;

abaxial lip pale yellow, white, green, or purple, inflated, pouched, 2–5 mm, 65–95% as long as beak;

teeth erect to slightly spreading, white, yellow, or pink, 0.5–2.1 mm.

Calyces

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.

green to purple, margins green, white, or pink, 10–19 mm;

abaxial, adaxial, and lateral clefts 3.5–7(–10) mm, 33–55% of calyx length, all 4 clefts subequal;

lobes linear, lanceolate-elliptic, or narrowly triangular, apex acute to rounded.

Stigmas

black.

2n

= 120, 144.

= 24.

Castilleja litoralis

Castilleja nana

Phenology Flowering (Apr–)May–Aug(–Sep). Flowering Jun–Aug.
Habitat Steep rocky slopes, headlands, ledges, sea cliffs, coastal scrub, dune swales, roadcuts. Rocky or gravelly slopes, talus, ridges, fellfields, subalpine and alpine, often over granite.
Elevation 0–200 m. (0–700 ft.) 1900–4300 m. (6200–14100 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
CA; OR; WA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; NV; UT
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

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.)

Castilleja nana is limited to high elevations in the Sierra Nevada of California and the Great Basin ranges in central Nevada and western Utah. Plants with pink to purple inflorescences were described as C. lapidicola. Localized hybrid swarms between C. nana and C. viscidula are known from several mountain ranges in central and northern Nevada. Castilleja nana is sometimes confused with higher elevation forms of C. pilosa but can usually be distinguished from that species by the blackish patches on the sides of the corolla tube. Divergent populations in the central Sierra Nevada and adjacent White Mountains deserve further study.

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

Source FNA vol. 17, p. 624. FNA vol. 17, p. 633.
Parent taxa Orobanchaceae > Castilleja Orobanchaceae > Castilleja
Sibling taxa
C. affinis, C. ambigua, C. angustifolia, C. applegatei, C. aquariensis, C. arachnoidea, C. attenuata, C. brevilobata, C. brevistyla, C. campestris, C. cervina, C. chambersii, C. chlorotica, C. christii, C. chromosa, C. chrymactis, C. chrysantha, C. cinerea, C. citrina, C. coccinea, C. collegiorum, C. covilleana, C. crista-galli, C. cryptantha, C. cusickii, C. densiflora, C. dissitiflora, C. disticha, C. elata, C. elegans, C. elmeri, C. exserta, C. flava, C. foliolosa, C. fraterna, C. genevieveana, C. glandulifera, C. gleasoni, C. gracillima, C. grisea, C. haydenii, C. hispida, C. hololeuca, C. hyperborea, C. indivisa, C. integra, C. kaibabensis, C. kerryana, C. kraliana, C. lacera, C. lanata, C. lasiorhyncha, C. lassenensis, C. latifolia, C. lemmonii, C. leschkeana, C. levisecta, C. linariifolia, C. lindheimeri, C. lineariloba, C. lineata, C. lutescens, C. martini, C. mendocinensis, C. mexicana, C. miniata, C. minor, C. mogollonica, C. mollis, C. montigena, C. nana, C. nelsonii, C. nervata, C. nivea, C. occidentalis, C. oresbia, C. organorum, C. ornata, C. pallescens, C. pallida, C. parviflora, C. parvula, C. patriotica, C. peckiana, C. peirsonii, C. pilosa, C. plagiotoma, C. praeterita, C. pruinosa, C. puberula, C. pulchella, C. purpurascens, C. purpurea, C. raupii, C. revealii, C. rhexiifolia, C. rigida, C. rubicundula, C. rubida, C. rupicola, C. salsuginosa, C. scabrida, C. schizotricha, C. septentrionalis, C. sessiliflora, C. subinclusa, C. suksdorfii, C. tenuiflora, C. tenuis, C. thompsonii, C. tomentosa, C. uliginosa, C. unalaschcensis, C. victoriae, C. viscidula, C. wightii, C. wootonii, C. xanthotricha
C. affinis, C. ambigua, C. angustifolia, C. applegatei, C. aquariensis, C. arachnoidea, C. attenuata, C. brevilobata, C. brevistyla, C. campestris, C. cervina, C. chambersii, C. chlorotica, C. christii, C. chromosa, C. chrymactis, C. chrysantha, C. cinerea, C. citrina, C. coccinea, C. collegiorum, C. covilleana, C. crista-galli, C. cryptantha, C. cusickii, C. densiflora, C. dissitiflora, C. disticha, C. elata, C. elegans, C. elmeri, C. exserta, C. flava, C. foliolosa, C. fraterna, C. genevieveana, C. glandulifera, C. gleasoni, C. gracillima, C. grisea, C. haydenii, C. hispida, C. hololeuca, C. hyperborea, C. indivisa, C. integra, C. kaibabensis, C. kerryana, C. kraliana, C. lacera, C. lanata, C. lasiorhyncha, C. lassenensis, C. latifolia, C. lemmonii, C. leschkeana, C. levisecta, C. linariifolia, C. lindheimeri, C. lineariloba, C. lineata, C. litoralis, C. lutescens, C. martini, C. mendocinensis, C. mexicana, C. miniata, C. minor, C. mogollonica, C. mollis, C. montigena, C. nelsonii, C. nervata, C. nivea, C. occidentalis, C. oresbia, C. organorum, C. ornata, C. pallescens, C. pallida, C. parviflora, C. parvula, C. patriotica, C. peckiana, C. peirsonii, C. pilosa, C. plagiotoma, C. praeterita, C. pruinosa, C. puberula, C. pulchella, C. purpurascens, C. purpurea, C. raupii, C. revealii, C. rhexiifolia, C. rigida, C. rubicundula, C. rubida, C. rupicola, C. salsuginosa, C. scabrida, C. schizotricha, C. septentrionalis, C. sessiliflora, C. subinclusa, C. suksdorfii, C. tenuiflora, C. tenuis, C. thompsonii, C. tomentosa, C. uliginosa, C. unalaschcensis, C. victoriae, C. viscidula, C. wightii, C. wootonii, C. xanthotricha
Synonyms C. affinis subsp. litoralis, C. wightii subsp. litoralis C. lapidicola
Name authority Pennell: Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia 99: 183. (1947) Eastwood: Proc. Calif. Acad. Sci., ser. 3, 2: 289. (1902) — (as Castilleia)
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