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Castilleja rupicola

cliff Indian paintbrush, cliff paintbrush

hairy Indian paintbrush, tomentose paintbrush

Habit Herbs, perennial, (0.8–)1–2(–3) dm; from a woody caudex; with a taproot. Herbs or subshrubs, perennial, 1.3–5 dm; from a woody caudex; with a taproot.
Stems

many, decumbent to ascending, unbranched, sparsely pubescent, hairs spreading, wavy, fairly short, soft, eglandular, sometimes glabrous proximally.

few to many, ascending to erect, unbranched or branched, with short, leafy axillary shoots, moderately lanate, hairs prostrate to spreading, whitish, unbranched, short, fairly soft, eglandular.

Leaves

purple to green, narrowly, rarely broadly, lanceolate, 1.4–4 cm, not fleshy, margins plane, flat to involute, (0–)3–5(–7)-lobed, apex acute to acuminate;

lobes divergent, spreading-ascending, linear, long, not much narrower than mid blade, often with secondary lobes, creating little frilly fans, apex acute or obtuse.

green, linear to narrowly lanceolate, (0.8–)3–5 cm, not fleshy, margins plane, strongly involute, 0–3(–5)-lobed, apex acute to rounded;

lobes spreading, linear, short, apex acute.

Inflorescences

2–6 × 2–3.5 cm;

bracts proximally greenish or deep purple near base, distally red, scarlet, or crimson to red-orange, rarely orange, salmon, pink, or yellowish white, ovate to orbicular in outline, 5(–9)-lobed;

lobes spreading, linear to linear-lanceolate, long, arising below mid length, apex acute to rounded.

5–20 × 0.5–2.5 cm;

bracts proximally dull brownish to deep greenish purple, distally red, red-orange, or orange, lanceolate or oblong to obovate, deeply 3(–5)-lobed;

lobes ascending, linear to lanceolate, long, arising below mid length, central lobe apex rounded to obtuse, others acute.

Corollas

straight or slightly curved, 25–35(–45) mm;

tube 9–15 mm;

beak exserted, adaxially green, purplish, or yellow-green, 14–22 mm;

abaxial lip deep green, reduced, 0.5–2 mm, 6–12% as long as beak;

teeth incurved to erect, green, 0.5 mm.

straight or slightly curved, 12–20 mm;

tube 13–15 mm;

beak exserted or ± equal to calyx, adaxially pale green, 8–11.5 mm;

abaxial lip green or red-violet, inconspicuous, slightly pouched, 1.5–2 mm, ca. 10–20% as long as beak;

teeth incurved, pink to pale yellow or deep green, 1 mm.

Calyces

proximally purple, green, or whitish, distally colored as bract lobes, 15–25 mm;

abaxial and adaxial clefts 8 mm, ca. 40–50% of calyx length, deeper than laterals, lateral 1–5 mm, 10–20% of calyx length;

lobes triangular, apex obtuse or acute.

colored as bracts, (10–)13–19 mm;

abaxial and adaxial clefts 4–8(–11) mm, 33–50% of calyx length, deeper than laterals, lateral 5–7 mm, ca. 25% of calyx length;

lobes linear to lanceolate, apex acute.

Castilleja rupicola

Castilleja tomentosa

Phenology Flowering (May–)Jun–Sep. Flowering Jun–Oct.
Habitat Sunny rocky slopes, scree, talus, ledges, fellfields, subalpine to alpine. Dry Chihuahuan grasslands.
Elevation (200–)1000–2500 m. ((700–)3300–8200 ft.) 1300–1700 m. (4300–5600 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
OR; WA; BC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
NM; Mexico (Sonora)
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Castilleja rupicola is usually found in the subalpine and lower alpine zones in the Cascade Range from extreme southern British Columbia south to northern Douglas County, Oregon. Though it can be numerous where it occurs, the species as a whole is uncommon. One atypical population occurs in a moist, shaded, mossy, north-facing ravine on the Oregon side of the Columbia River Gorge, at less than 250 m. These plants often bear secondary divisions on deeply dissected leaves and bracts.

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

In the United States, Castilleja tomentosa is known from a number of recently discovered populations in and near the southern Animas Valley, Hidalgo County, where it is found in Bouteloua gracilis and Sporobolus airoides grasslands. All known populations are small, and this species should be considered globally endangered. The only recorded Mexican station was the type locality from 1851 near Mabibi in adjacent northern Sonora. A. Eastwood (1909) believed C. tomentosa was a synonym of C. integra, but that species has mostly entire bracts, while the bracts of C. tomentosa are deeply lobed; the two also have different patterns of coloration and pubescence. T. I. Chuang annotated the holotype sheet of C. tomentosa as C. lanata, but C. tomentosa calyces have fairly deep lateral lobes, unlike the emarginate to very shallowly notched lobes of C. lanata.

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

Source FNA vol. 17, p. 653. FNA vol. 17, p. 661.
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. rubida, 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. uliginosa, C. unalaschcensis, C. victoriae, C. viscidula, C. wightii, C. wootonii, C. xanthotricha
Name authority Piper: Erythea 6: 45. (1898) — (as Castilleia) A. Gray: in W. H. Emory, Rep. U.S. Mex. Bound. 2(1): 118. (1859)
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