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sticky Indian paintbrush, sticky paintbrush

Mexican Indian paintbrush, Mexican paintbrush

Habit Herbs, perennial, 0.5–3(–4) dm; from a woody caudex; with a taproot. Herbs, annual or short-lived perennial, 0.6–3 dm; from a woody caudex; with a slender taproot.
Stems

several, ascending to erect, decumbent at base, unbranched, sometimes branched, hairs spreading, long, soft, mixed with shorter stipitate-glandular ones.

solitary or few, erect to erect-ascending, sometimes slightly curved at base, branched at base or unbranched, hairs spreading, long, stiff to soft, mixed with shorter stipitate-glandular ones.

Leaves

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.

brown or purplish, sometimes green, linear to narrowly oblong, 1–5 cm, not fleshy, margins wavy, mostly involute, to flat, 3–5-lobed, apex acute;

lobes spreading, linear, apex acute to obtuse.

Inflorescences

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.

2–17 × 1.5–6.5 cm;

bracts greenish throughout, narrowly lanceolate (ovate in outline), 3–5(–7)-lobed;

lobes spreading, linear to narrowly oblong, long, arising from 1/3–2/3 blade length, wavy-margined, apex rounded or obtuse to acute.

Corollas

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.

straight proximally, conspicuously decurved distally, 35–60 mm;

tube 26–46 mm;

abaxial lip, beak, and majority of tube exserted;

beak yellow to yellowish green, sometimes purplish tipped or drying pinkish, 9–15 mm;

abaxial lip light yellow to whitish, prominent, not inflated, 4–8 mm, 50–75% as long as beak;

teeth spreading-ascending, yellowish, 3–6 mm.

Calyces

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.

proximally brownish green, purplish, or green, lobes tipped with same color as bracts, 18–28 mm;

abaxial and adaxial clefts 6–14 mm, 33–50% of calyx length, deeper than laterals, lateral 1.5–6 mm, 8–20% of calyx length;

lobes lanceolate to narrowly triangular, abaxials wider than adaxials, apex acute.

2n

= 24, 72.

= 24.

Castilleja viscidula

Castilleja mexicana

Phenology Flowering Jun–Aug. Flowering Feb–Oct.
Habitat Dry to mesic sagebrush steppes, rocky slopes, ledges, open woodlands, montane to subalpine. Dry rocky slopes, grasslands, pinyon-juniper stands.
Elevation 2000–3200 m. (6600–10500 ft.) 1200–2100 m. (3900–6900 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
ID; NV; OR
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
TX; Mexico (Aguascalientes, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Durango, Nuevo León, San Luis Potosí, Tamaulipas, Zacatecas)
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

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.)

Castilleja mexicana occurs in the northern third of Mexico and reaches the flora area only in southwestern Texas. Its conspicuous corollas can be either yellow or, less commonly, white. In both cases, the flowers turn soft pink-purple with age. Texas populations of this species are yellow flowered, and the white-flowered morph appears to occur only in northeastern Mexico. There is some indication of additional morphological differences between these color morphs that may justify varietal segregation. Castilleja mexicana is sometimes confused with the closely related C. sessiliflora, due to their conspicuous, distally curved, usually strongly exserted corollas, but the two species remain distinct.

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

Source FNA vol. 17, p. 664. FNA vol. 17, p. 626.
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. 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
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. 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 Orthocarpus mexicanus, C. tortifolia
Name authority A. Gray: in A. Gray et al., Syn. Fl. N. Amer. 2(1): 297. (1878) — (as Castilleia) (Hemsley) A. Gray: Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 21: 404. (1886) — (as Castilleia)
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