Flora of North America species comparison

The green links below add additional plants to the comparison table. Blue links lead to other Web sites.
enable glossary links

Castilleja rubida

Castilleja viscidula

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

sticky Indian paintbrush, sticky paintbrush
Habit Herbs, perennial, 0.5–1.5 dm; from a woody caudex; with a taproot. Herbs, perennial, 0.5–3(–4) dm; from a woody caudex; with a taproot.
Stems

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

several, ascending to erect, decumbent at base, unbranched, sometimes branched, hairs spreading, long, soft, mixed with shorter stipitate-glandular ones.
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 brown, linear, linear-lanceolate, lanceolate, or oblong (narrowly ovate nearing inflorescence), 1–4(–5) cm, not fleshy, margins wavy, flat or involute, (0–)2(–5)-lobed, apex acute;

lobes ascending-spreading, oblong to narrowly lanceolate, apex acute or obtuse.
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.

2–14 × 1–3.5 cm;

bracts proximally greenish to greenish brown, distally pale yellow, cream, or yellow-green, sometimes yellow-orange or red (sometimes gradually differentiated from proximal coloration), lanceolate, broadly lanceolate, or oblong, 3(–5)-lobed, proximal wavy-margined;

lobes ascending, linear to narrowly lanceolate, long, arising near or above mid length, sometimes wavy-margined, apex acute 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, 16–22(–25) mm;

tube 10–15 mm;

beak exserted, straight to sometimes curved, adaxially green to yellow, 5–8(–9) mm;

abaxial lip green or yellow, sometimes deep purple, reduced, inconspicuous, often visible in abaxial cleft, 1–2 mm, 20% as long as beak;

teeth erect, green to white, sometimes yellow or pink, 0.5–1 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 or proximally paler, (10–)14–18 mm;

abaxial and adaxial clefts (4–)5–9 mm, 30–40% of calyx length, deeper than laterals, lateral (1–)2–6 mm, ca. 25% of calyx length;

lobes narrowly ovate to lanceolate, linear, or narrowly lanceolate, apex acute to obtuse.
Stigmas

green.

2n

= 24, 72.

Castilleja rubida

Castilleja viscidula
Phenology Flowering Jul–Aug. Flowering Jun–Aug.
Habitat Rocky slopes, ledges, dry to moist gravelly flats and ridges, alpine, limestone, rarely on river cobbles at lower elevations. Dry to mesic sagebrush steppes, rocky slopes, ledges, open woodlands, montane to subalpine.
Elevation 2200–3000 m. (7200–9800 ft.) 2000–3200 m. (6600–10500 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
OR
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
ID; 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 viscidula is a member of the complex including C. applegatei and C. martini, centered in California. Castilleja viscidula favors isolated mountain ranges, from the Wallowa and, possibly, the Blue mountains of northeastern Oregon, eastward into southwestern Idaho, and southward into central Nevada. Most populations are greenish yellow, but in one portion of the Wallowa Mountains, reddish bracted plants are common. Many yellowish bracted populations in the same mountain range surround this reddish population. Intermediate color forms are rarely encountered. Most ranges where C. viscidula occurs have generated slightly differing local races, demonstrating some reproductive isolation and divergence. In addition, hybrid swarms between this species and C. nana are known from several mountain ranges in central and northern Nevada, and an apparent hybrid with C. flava var. flava is known from the Independence Mountains of northern Nevada.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 17, p. 653. FNA vol. 17, p. 664.
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. 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. 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. wightii, C. wootonii, C. xanthotricha
Name authority Piper: Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 27: 398. (1900) — (as Castilleia) A. Gray: in A. Gray et al., Syn. Fl. N. Amer. 2(1): 297. (1878) — (as Castilleia)
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).



Type/paste one or more Latin names into the boxes above; matching taxa will show up below the box as you type. You can use the up/down arrow keys to move through the list.

(If the plant you're looking for doesn't show up in the auto-complete list, that means it either isn't described in Flora of North America yet, or it's listed under a synonym. And please note that Flora of North America is still missing several plant families, including Fabaceae, Apiaceae, Boraginaceae, and Polemoniaceae.)

Choose a data source: Flora of North America, OregonFlora

The species comparison tool is brought to you by:
Northwest Wildflowers