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hairy bird's-beak

desert bird's-beak

Stems

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

erect or ascending, 10–80 cm, puberulent, glabrescent.

Leaves

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.

puberulent, sometimes scabrous;

proximal 10–40 mm, margins 3–7-lobed, lobes 1 mm wide;

distal 5–25 × 1 mm, margins entire.

Inflorescences

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.

capitate spikes, 3–14-flowered;

bracts 5–10, 5–20 mm, margins 5–7-lobed, lobes purple or yellow-green, linear to filiform.

Pedicels

bracteoles 15–20 mm, margins entire or toothed.

bracteoles 10–20 mm, margins entire.

Flowers

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.

calyx 10–20 mm, tube 1–3 mm, apex entire or 2-fid, cleft 0–0.5 mm;

corolla pink to lavender-pink, usually spotted with purple, 10–20 mm, throat 4–6 mm diam., abaxial lip pink or yellow, 3–6 mm, shorter than and appressed to adaxial;

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

Capsules

oblong-ovoid, 6–10 mm.

oblong-lanceoloid, 7–10 mm.

Seeds

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

10–15, pale brown, ovoid, 1.5–2 mm, reticulate.

2n

= 28.

Cordylanthus pilosus

Cordylanthus eremicus

Distribution
from FNA
CA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Subspecies 2 (2 in the flora).

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

Subspecies 2 (2 in the flora).

Cordylanthus eremicus is similar to C. wrightii, which also has relatively short, dense spikes and inflorescence bracts palmately three- to seven-lobed. Cordylanthus eremicus can be distinguished from C. wrightii by its gray to white hairs.

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

Key
1. Inflorescence bracts entire.
subsp. pilosus
1. Inflorescence bracts 3-lobed.
subsp. trifidus
1. Bracts: lobes purple distally, apices rounded to retuse; calyx tubes 2–3 mm; filaments hairy throughout.
subsp. eremicus
1. Bracts: lobes green to yellow-green distally, apices acute; calyx tubes 1 mm; filaments hairy distally.
subsp. kernensis
Source FNA vol. 17, p. 674. FNA vol. 17, p. 671.
Parent taxa Orobanchaceae > Cordylanthus Orobanchaceae > Cordylanthus
Sibling taxa
C. capitatus, C. eremicus, C. kingii, C. laxiflorus, C. nevinii, C. nidularius, C. parviflorus, C. pringlei, C. ramosus, C. rigidus, C. tenuis, C. wrightii
C. capitatus, C. kingii, C. laxiflorus, C. nevinii, C. nidularius, C. parviflorus, C. pilosus, C. pringlei, C. ramosus, C. rigidus, C. tenuis, C. wrightii
Subordinate taxa
C. pilosus subsp. pilosus, C. pilosus subsp. trifidus
C. eremicus subsp. eremicus, C. eremicus subsp. kernensis
Synonyms Adenostegia eremica, C. ramosus subsp. eremicus
Name authority A. Gray: Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 7: 382. (1868) (Coville & C. V. Morton) Munz: Man. S. Calif. Bot., 483, 601. (1935)
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