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Heller's bird's beak, King's bird's-beak

hairy bird's-beak

Stems

erect, 10–80 cm, puberulent, pubescent, or densely villous.

erect or ascending, 10–90(–120) cm, densely puberulent and glandular-puberulent, and pilose.

Leaves

glandular-pubescent;

proximal 10–40 mm, margins 3–5-lobed, lobes linear to filiform, 1–3 mm wide;

distal 10–25 × 1 mm, margins entire.

puberulent and pilose;

proximal 15–40 mm, margins 3-lobed, lobes 0.1–0.5 mm wide;

distal 10–25 × 0.1–0.3 mm, margins entire.

Inflorescences

capitate spikes, 2–12-flowered, or flowers solitary;

bracts 1–6, 10–40 mm, margins 3-lobed, lobes purple distally, narrowly lanceolate, linear, or filiform.

spikes, 2- or 3-flowered, or flowers solitary;

bracts 1–4, 10–20 mm, margins entire or 3-lobed, lobes green or purple distally, linear-lanceolate.

Pedicels

bracteoles 10–40 mm, margins pinnately lobed.

bracteoles 15–20 mm, margins entire or toothed.

Flowers

calyx 15–30(–40) mm, tube 1–2.5 mm, apex 2-fid, cleft 2–3 mm;

corolla lavender-pink to purple-red or yellow with purple veins and markings, 15–25(–30) mm, throat 5–7 mm diam., abaxial lip 5–10 mm, ca. equal to and appressed to adaxial;

stamens 4, filaments hairy, fertile pollen sacs 2 per filament, equal.

calyx 15–20 mm, tube 0–1 mm, apex 2-fid, cleft 0.5–1 mm;

corolla pale yellow to yellow-green, streaked and spotted with maroon, 15–20 mm, tube 5–10 mm, throat 5–8 mm diam., abaxial lip 5–10 mm, ca. equal to and appressed to adaxial;

stamens 4, filaments hairy, fertile pollen sacs 2 per filament, equal.

Capsules

oblong-lanceoloid, 6–12 mm.

oblong-ovoid, 6–10 mm.

Seeds

15–20, light brown, ovoid to reniform, 2–2.5 mm, reticulate and papillate.

10–18, dark brown, ovoid, 1.5–2.5 mm, striate.

2n

= 28.

Cordylanthus kingii

Cordylanthus pilosus

Distribution
from FNA
CA; NV; UT
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Subspecies 3 (3 in the flora).

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

Subspecies 2 (2 in the flora).

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

Key
1. Bracts 3–6, lobes narrowly lanceolate to linear.
subsp. helleri
1. Bracts 1–3, lobes linear to filiform.
→ 2
2. Corollas 15–25 mm; stems puberulent to pubescent; spikes 20–40 mm, 3–5(–8)-flowered.
subsp. kingii
2. Corollas 25–30 mm; stems densely villous; spikes 40–50 mm, 8–12-flowered.
subsp. densiflorus
1. Inflorescence bracts entire.
subsp. pilosus
1. Inflorescence bracts 3-lobed.
subsp. trifidus
Source FNA vol. 17, p. 672. FNA vol. 17, p. 674.
Parent taxa Orobanchaceae > Cordylanthus Orobanchaceae > Cordylanthus
Sibling taxa
C. capitatus, C. eremicus, C. laxiflorus, C. nevinii, C. nidularius, C. parviflorus, C. pilosus, C. pringlei, C. ramosus, C. rigidus, C. tenuis, C. wrightii
C. capitatus, C. eremicus, C. kingii, C. laxiflorus, C. nevinii, C. nidularius, C. parviflorus, C. pringlei, C. ramosus, C. rigidus, C. tenuis, C. wrightii
Subordinate taxa
C. kingii subsp. densiflorus, C. kingii subsp. helleri, C. kingii subsp. kingii
C. pilosus subsp. pilosus, C. pilosus subsp. trifidus
Name authority S. Watson: Botany (Fortieth Parallel), 233, 460, plate 22, figs. 3–6. (1871) A. Gray: Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 7: 382. (1868)
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