Castilleja rhexiifolia
Castilleja nana
alpine paintbrush, rhexia-leaf paintbrush, Rocky Mountain paintbrush, rosy paintbrush, split-leaf Indian paintbrush
alpine paintbrush, dwarf alpine Indian paintbrush, dwarf alpine paintbrush, dwarf paintbrush
few to several, erect or ascending, unbranched, sometimes branched, proximally glabrous to glabrate, distally sparsely hairy, hairs spreading, ± long, soft, eglandular, sometimes stipitate-glandular.
few to several, ascending to decumbent-based, unbranched, hairs spreading, long, soft to stiff, mixed with shorter stipitate-glandular ones.
green or purple-tinged, linear, narrowly to broadly lanceolate, oblong, or ovate, 3–6(–7) cm, not fleshy, margins plane, flat to slightly involute, prominently veined, 0(–3)-lobed, apex acute to rarely obtuse;
lobes ascending or spreading, linear to filiform, much smaller than mid blade, short, apex acute.
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.
2.5–15 × 1.5–4.5 cm;
bracts pink-purple, red-purple, purple, or crimson throughout, rarely reddish, yellowish, or white throughout, or proximally greenish, dull brownish purple, or deep purple, distally colored as above, broadly lanceolate to ovate or obovate, (0–)3–5(–7)-lobed;
lobes ascending to erect, linear or lanceolate-acuminate, short, arising near or above mid length, central lobe apex obtuse to broadly rounded, lateral ones acute to sometimes rounded.
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.
straight, 15–30(–36) mm;
tube (11–)12–22(–24) mm;
beak exserted, adaxially green, yellow, or tinged with red, 7–12 mm;
abaxial lip deep green, reduced, 1.5–3.5 mm, to 33% as long as beak;
teeth incurved, green or white, 0.5–2 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.
proximally green, purplish, or whitish, distally colored as bracts, 15–25 mm;
abaxial and adaxial clefts 8–12(–15) mm, 40–50% of calyx length, deeper than laterals, lateral 2–5(–8) mm, 15–25(–30)% of calyx length;
lobes oblong to triangular or ovate, apex obtuse to rounded, sometimes acute.
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.
black.
= 24, 48, 96.
= 24.
Castilleja rhexiifolia
Castilleja nana
Castilleja rhexiifolia is a characteristic and common paintbrush in the Rocky Mountains region, from central Alberta to northern New Mexico. Disjunct populations also occur in northeastern Oregon, in the Blue, Ochoco, and Wallowa mountains, as well as near the summit of Abercrombie Mountain in the Selkirk Mountains of northeastern Washington. The inflorescence colors are variable. Typical plants are red-purple. However, many other shades of pink-white, pink-purple, and crimson are common as well. Many populations contain a wide range of color variants. Intergradation is occasionally seen with C. miniata, C. occidentalis, and C. septentrionalis. However, for the most part, these four species remain distinct, and their ranges are not entirely overlapping. In the Wallowa Mountains, a recurrent and variable hybrid form between C. chrysantha and C. rhexiifolia was described as C. wallowensis Pennell. In the north Cascade Range of Washington, plants of C. elmeri with crimson inflorescences are sometimes identified as C. rhexiifolia. In Glacier National Park, Montana, in the vicinity of Logan Pass, C. rhexiifolia frequently hybridizes with C. occidentalis, creating a number of hybrid morphologies. Both of the parents are common in the area. Similar hybrids are also found in the Canadian Rocky Mountains.
(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.)
BC
OR
Flora NW
PNW Herbaria
SW CO Wildflowers
WildflowerSearch
iNaturalist
USDA Plants Database
CA
