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little reddish Indian paintbrush, purple alpine paintbrush, purple paintbrush, Wallowa alpine paintbrush

cobwebby Indian paintbrush, cobwebby paintbrush, cotton paintbrush

Habit Herbs, perennial, 0.5–1.5 dm; from a woody caudex; with a taproot. Herbs, perennial, 0.6–2(–3) dm; from branched, sometimes elongate, creeping basal stems; with a taproot.
Stems

several, decumbent, or ascending, unbranched, hairs moderately dense, spreading, short and long, soft, eglandular and glandular.

solitary or few to many, decumbent-ascending, unbranched, sometimes branched, hairs dense, reflexed-spreading, matted, long, soft, unbranched, eglandular, white-woolly.

Leaves

green to purple, linear to narrowly lanceolate, 0.7–3.2 cm, not fleshy, margins plane, slightly involute, 3–5-lobed, apex narrowly acute to acuminate;

lobes ascending-spreading, narrowly linear to filiform, often curling, often short, apex acute or obtuse.

green to purple or steel gray, lanceolate-linear or narrowly lanceolate, (1–)2–4(–6) cm, not fleshy, margins plane, involute, 3(–5)-lobed, apex acute;

lobes spreading, linear to lanceolate, apex acute to rounded.

Inflorescences

2.5–6 × 1–2 cm;

bracts purple, deep burgundy, or lavender throughout, rarely pink or yellowish white throughout, sometimes pink or dull whitish on distal margins and apices, oblong, 3–5(–7)-lobed;

lobes spreading, linear, medium length, proximal lobes arising below mid length, center lobe apex rounded to obtuse, lateral ones acute to obtuse.

erect to ascending, 3–12 × 1–2.5 cm;

bracts proximally greenish to dull reddish brown, rarely dull red or dull orange, distally dull red, deep rusty red, or yellow to pale yellow, sometimes deep pink, dull rose, pale salmon, or dull light orange, rarely green, dull reddish, or dull orange throughout, aging browner and/or more orange, lanceolate or elliptic-lanceolate to obovate, (0–)3–5-lobed;

lobes usually ascending, linear, lanceolate, oblanceolate, or spatulate, long, arising near or below mid length, central lobe apex rounded to truncate, others obtuse to rounded.

Corollas

straight, 12–15 mm;

tube 14–16 mm;

abaxial lip and beak exserted;

beak adaxially green, 5–6 mm;

abaxial lip colored as distal portion of bracts, prominent, pouches 3, central one grooved, pouches not strongly inflated, 4–5 mm, 80–100% as long as beak;

teeth erect, appressed to beak, colored as distal portions of bracts, 1.5–2.5 mm.

straight or ± curved, 12–20 mm;

tube 9–15 mm;

beak subequal to calyx or slightly exserted, adaxially green or yellow-green, (2–)3–5 mm, ± densely puberulent, hairs often crisped;

abaxial lip yellow, greenish, pink, or red-violet, moderately conspicuous, exserted to barely included in calyx;

pouches shallow, prominent, 2–4 mm, ca. 100% as long as beak;

teeth erect, red, pink, or pale yellow, 1 mm.

Calyces

colored as bracts, 10–12 mm; all 4 clefts subequal, 3.5–6.5 mm, 35–55% of calyx length;

lobes broadly linear or linear-triangular, apex obtuse to acute.

colored as bracts, proximal part sometimes paler, (10–)12–19 mm;

abaxial and adaxial clefts 4–8(–10) mm, 33–50% of calyx length, all 4 clefts subequal;

lobes linear to lanceolate, apex acute.

Stigmas

green.

2n

= 24.

Castilleja rubida

Castilleja arachnoidea

Phenology Flowering Jul–Aug. Flowering (May–)Jun–Aug(–Sep).
Habitat Rocky slopes, ledges, dry to moist gravelly flats and ridges, alpine, limestone, rarely on river cobbles at lower elevations. Pumice flats, sandy, gravelly, or rocky slopes, ridges and open summits.
Elevation 2200–3000 m. (7200–9800 ft.) 1300–3300 m. (4300–10800 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
OR
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; NV; OR
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Castilleja rubida is a rare alpine species endemic to a few limestone peaks in the Wallowa Mountains of northeastern Oregon, entirely within the Eagle Cap Wilderness Area. It is likely derived from the C. nana complex, found in the mountains of eastern California and Nevada, but it is amply distinct. Due to its very limited range and small population numbers, C. rubida is a species of conservation concern.

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

Castilleja arachnoidea is a remarkably variable species in form and color, but inflorescence colors are often uniform within a population. It is sometimes confused with C. schizotricha, but the two differ in stature, lobing of the leaves and bracts, bract coloration, and inflation of the abaxial lip. They are easily separated by the simple hairs and pale yellow to brick red inflorescences of C. arachnoidea, compared to the pink-purple to deep purple inflorescences and branched hairs of C. schizotricha.

The names Castilleja eastwoodiana and C. filifolia represent yellow color forms of C. arachnoidea. A race on the pumice plains of Mt. Shasta in the Cascade Range in California is distinctive.

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

Source FNA vol. 17, p. 653. FNA vol. 17, p. 590.
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. litoralis, 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. 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. 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. 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
Synonyms C. arachnoidea subsp. shastensis, C. eastwoodiana, C. filifolia, C. payneae, C. pumicicola
Name authority Piper: Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 27: 398. (1900) — (as Castilleia) Greenman: Bot. Gaz. 53: 510. (1912)
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