FNA: Corispermum nitidum vs. Corispermum pacificum

	Corispermum nitidum	Corispermum pacificum
	shiny bugseed, slender bugseed	common bugseed, Pacific bug-seed
Habit	Plants branched from base (rarely slightly above base), 10–55(–70) cm, glabrous or sparsely covered with dendroid or stellate hairs (then often becoming glabrous).	Plants usually branched from base, (5–)15–40 cm, glabrous or sparsely covered with dendroid hairs (especially when young).
Leaf	blades narrowly linear or filiform (rarely linear), usually convolute or folded (especially in mature and/or dry plants), rarely plane (when young), 2–4(–5) × 0.1–0.2 cm.	blades narrowly lanceolate, linear-lanceolate, or linear, flat or nearly so, 2–5(–7) × 0.2–0.6 cm.
Bracts	narrowly ovate-lanceolate, lanceolate, linear-lanceolate, or linear, 0.5–1.5(–2) × 0.1–0.3(–0.4) cm, (most bracts within inflorescence rather uniform, usually narrower than mature fruits).	ovate-lanceolate, narrowly ovate-lanceolate, almost ovate, or lanceolate, (1–)1.5–2.5 × 0.3–0.7(–0.9) cm.
Inflorescences	lax, usually interrupted from base to apex, rarely slightly condensed (only at apex when immature), narrowly linear or linear.	usually compact, rather dense, or sometimes ± lax, condensed only near apex, ovoid, oblong-ovate, obovate, broadly linear, or occasionally clavate.
Perianth	segments 1–3.	segment 1, sometimes absent in distal flowers.
Fruits	straw colored (yellowish brown), light brown, deep olive green, occasionally tinged with red, without spots and warts, convex abaxially, plane or slightly concave adaxially, obovate or broadly elliptic, often broadest near middle (rarely slightly above), 2.3–3.3(–3.5) × (1.8–)2–2.8 mm, shiny; wing translucent, thin, usually 0.1–0.3 mm wide, margins entire, apex rounded.	usually black (rarely deep olive green, especially when immature), sharply contrasting with greenish semitransparent wings, without spots and warts, slightly convex abaxially, flat or slightly concave adaxially, orbiculate-obovate to almost orbiculate, broadest near middle (or occasionally slightly beyond), 3–4 × 2.7–3.8 mm, shiny; wing translucent, thin, (0.2–)0.3–0.6 mm wide, margins slightly undulate or indistinctly erose-denticulate, apex rounded or occasionally indistinctly notched.

	Corispermum nitidum	Corispermum pacificum
Phenology	Flowering late summer–early fall.	Flowering late summer–fall.
Habitat	Sand dunes, sandy and gravely shores, waste places	Sandy shores, dunes
Elevation		0-500 m (0-1600 ft)
Distribution	se Europe (with small extension into w Asia) [Supposedly introduced]	ID; OR; WA [WildflowerSearch map] [BONAP county map]
Discussion	Specimens of Corispermum nitidum superficially similar to, or almost indistinguishable from, European C. nitidum in their habit (especially when immature) are fairly common in North American collections. Judging from their fruit morphology, they mostly belong to C. americanum (or probably to introgressive hybrids between the introduced C. nitidum and native C. americanum). I have not seen any unquestionably reliable specimens of C. nitidum sensu stricto from North America. More detailed comparative experimental and field studies are needed in order to clarify the complicated taxonomy of the group in North America. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)	Of conservation concern. Corispermum pacificum seems to be closely related to Siberian C. crassifolium Turczaninov and C. maynense Ignatov. The latter species occurs in the northeastern Russian Far East and may be expected to occur in Alaska. Corispermum pacificum differs from C. maynense by its usually more robust habit, and its wing rounded (rarely rounded-truncate or indistinctly emarginate, but not triangular) at apex. From C. crassifolium it may be distinguished by the constant presence of perianth segments, and more flattened black mature fruits. Corispermum pacificum probably also occurs in adjacent regions of British Columbia. Corispermum pacificum is placed in subsect. Crassifolia (S. L. Mosyakin 1997). This subsection seems to be of Siberian origin, with its central species, C. crassifolium, being closest to the hypothetic ancestral taxon. The presence of perianth segments in C. pacificum may be explained by ancient hybridization with representatives of subsect. Pallasiana. Reproductive isolation between the sympatric species of Corispermum may be achieved by different flowering periods. Occasional hybrids between C. pacificum and C. villosum are similar in their habit to C. pacificum in having usually broad leaves and rather dense inflorescences but they have mostly aborted fruits suggesting that C. pacificum and C. villosum are taxonomically distant species. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source	FNA vol. 4, p. 320.	FNA vol. 4, p. 319.
Parent taxa	Chenopodiaceae > Corispermum	Chenopodiaceae > Corispermum
Sibling taxa	C. americanum, C. hookeri, C. hyssopifolium, C. navicula, C. ochotense, C. pacificum, C. pallasii, C. pallidum, C. villosum, C. welshii	C. americanum, C. hookeri, C. hyssopifolium, C. navicula, C. nitidum, C. ochotense, C. pallasii, C. pallidum, C. villosum, C. welshii
Name authority	Kitaibel ex Schultes: Oestr. Fl. ed. 2, 1: 7. (1814)	Mosyakin: Novon 5: 345, fig. 1A. (1995)
Web links	WildflowerSearch iNaturalist (observations) USDA Plants Database LBJ Wildflower Center SEINet Plants of the World Online Encyclopedia of Life Wikipedia Google Image Search	Local floras: BC, OR, WA Local Web sites: Flora NW, PNW Herbaria WildflowerSearch iNaturalist (observations) USDA Plants Database LBJ Wildflower Center SEINet Plants of the World Online Encyclopedia of Life Wikipedia Google Image Search

Corispermum pacificum

shiny bugseed, slender bugseed

common bugseed, Pacific bug-seed

Habit

Plants branched from base (rarely slightly above base), 10–55(–70) cm, glabrous or sparsely covered with dendroid or stellate hairs (then often becoming glabrous).

Plants usually branched from base, (5–)15–40 cm, glabrous or sparsely covered with dendroid hairs (especially when young).

Leaf

blades narrowly linear or filiform (rarely linear), usually convolute or folded (especially in mature and/or dry plants), rarely plane (when young), 2–4(–5) × 0.1–0.2 cm.

blades narrowly lanceolate, linear-lanceolate, or linear, flat or nearly so, 2–5(–7) × 0.2–0.6 cm.

Bracts

narrowly ovate-lanceolate, lanceolate, linear-lanceolate, or linear, 0.5–1.5(–2) × 0.1–0.3(–0.4) cm, (most bracts within inflorescence rather uniform, usually narrower than mature fruits).

ovate-lanceolate, narrowly ovate-lanceolate, almost ovate, or lanceolate, (1–)1.5–2.5 × 0.3–0.7(–0.9) cm.

Inflorescences

lax, usually interrupted from base to apex, rarely slightly condensed (only at apex when immature), narrowly linear or linear.

usually compact, rather dense, or sometimes ± lax, condensed only near apex, ovoid, oblong-ovate, obovate, broadly linear, or occasionally clavate.

Perianth

segments 1–3.

segment 1, sometimes absent in distal flowers.

Fruits

straw colored (yellowish brown), light brown, deep olive green, occasionally tinged with red, without spots and warts, convex abaxially, plane or slightly concave adaxially, obovate or broadly elliptic, often broadest near middle (rarely slightly above), 2.3–3.3(–3.5) × (1.8–)2–2.8 mm, shiny;

wing translucent, thin, usually 0.1–0.3 mm wide, margins entire, apex rounded.

usually black (rarely deep olive green, especially when immature), sharply contrasting with greenish semitransparent wings, without spots and warts, slightly convex abaxially, flat or slightly concave adaxially, orbiculate-obovate to almost orbiculate, broadest near middle (or occasionally slightly beyond), 3–4 × 2.7–3.8 mm, shiny;

wing translucent, thin, (0.2–)0.3–0.6 mm wide, margins slightly undulate or indistinctly erose-denticulate, apex rounded or occasionally indistinctly notched.

Corispermum nitidum

Corispermum pacificum

Phenology

Flowering late summer–early fall.

Flowering late summer–fall.

Habitat

Sand dunes, sandy and gravely shores, waste places

Sandy shores, dunes

Elevation

0-500 m (0-1600 ft)

Distribution

se Europe (with small extension into w Asia) [Supposedly introduced]

ID; OR; WA

[WildflowerSearch map]

[BONAP county map]

Discussion

Specimens of Corispermum nitidum superficially similar to, or almost indistinguishable from, European C. nitidum in their habit (especially when immature) are fairly common in North American collections. Judging from their fruit morphology, they mostly belong to C. americanum (or probably to introgressive hybrids between the introduced C. nitidum and native C. americanum). I have not seen any unquestionably reliable specimens of C. nitidum sensu stricto from North America. More detailed comparative experimental and field studies are needed in order to clarify the complicated taxonomy of the group in North America.

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

Of conservation concern.

Corispermum pacificum seems to be closely related to Siberian C. crassifolium Turczaninov and C. maynense Ignatov. The latter species occurs in the northeastern Russian Far East and may be expected to occur in Alaska. Corispermum pacificum differs from C. maynense by its usually more robust habit, and its wing rounded (rarely rounded-truncate or indistinctly emarginate, but not triangular) at apex. From C. crassifolium it may be distinguished by the constant presence of perianth segments, and more flattened black mature fruits. Corispermum pacificum probably also occurs in adjacent regions of British Columbia. Corispermum pacificum is placed in subsect. Crassifolia (S. L. Mosyakin 1997). This subsection seems to be of Siberian origin, with its central species, C. crassifolium, being closest to the hypothetic ancestral taxon. The presence of perianth segments in C. pacificum may be explained by ancient hybridization with representatives of subsect. Pallasiana.

Reproductive isolation between the sympatric species of Corispermum may be achieved by different flowering periods. Occasional hybrids between C. pacificum and C. villosum are similar in their habit to C. pacificum in having usually broad leaves and rather dense inflorescences but they have mostly aborted fruits suggesting that C. pacificum and C. villosum are taxonomically distant species.

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

Source

FNA vol. 4, p. 320.

FNA vol. 4, p. 319.

Parent taxa

Chenopodiaceae > Corispermum

Sibling taxa

C. americanum, C. hookeri, C. hyssopifolium, C. navicula, C. ochotense, C. pacificum, C. pallasii, C. pallidum, C. villosum, C. welshii

C. americanum, C. hookeri, C. hyssopifolium, C. navicula, C. nitidum, C. ochotense, C. pallasii, C. pallidum, C. villosum, C. welshii

Name authority

Kitaibel ex Schultes: Oestr. Fl. ed. 2, 1: 7. (1814)

Mosyakin: Novon 5: 345, fig. 1A. (1995)

Web links

Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).

Choose a data source: Flora of North America, OregonFlora, UW Burke Herbarium

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Corispermum nitidum

Corispermum pacificum

Corispermum nitidum

Corispermum pacificum