Flora of North America species comparison

Clarkia franciscana is an endangered species (designated rare by the California Native Plant Society), restricted to serpentine soils in coastal grass and shrub communities. The only known localities for it are the Presidio in San Francisco County, and the Oakland Hills in Alameda and Contra Costa counties.

Geographic distribution and petal color pattern suggest that Clarkia franciscana may be a self-pollinating derivative of C. rubicunda. If true, enzyme studies indicate that the origin is not recent.

Clarkia franciscana is in the Center for Plant Conservation’s National Collection of Endangered Plants.

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

Clarkia lassenensis is found primarily in the northeastern counties of California, south-central counties of Oregon, and northwestern counties of Nevada, with a few outlier collections from Alpine and Placer counties in the Sierra Nevada, and from northern Mendocino and Glenn counties in the North Coast Ranges.

Clarkia lassenensis is morphologically most similar to C. arcuata and C. gracilis. At one time, C. lassenensis was considered a probable parent of the tetraploid C. gracilis but cytogenetic and molecular sequence data indicate that an unknown related species, presumably now extinct, was involved. Clarkia lassenensis can be distinguished readily from C. arcuata by flower size, position of the stigma, and pubescence of the immature capsule, and from C. gracilis by having immature capsules with eight grooves rather than four.

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