Flora of North America species comparison

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Diplacus johnstonii

Diplacus mephiticus

Johnston's monkeyflower

foul odor monkeyflower, skunky monkeyflower
Habit Herbs, annual. Herbs, annual.
Stems

erect, (10–)30–200(–300) mm, densely glandular-puberulent.

erect, (20–)30–150(–180) mm, glandular-pubescent and viscid-villous.
Leaves

basal and cauline, gradually reduced distally;

petiole absent, bases of larger leaves often with petiole-like extensions;

blade obovate or oblanceolate, sometimes elliptic, (4.5–)7–25(–32) × 2–12(–15) mm, margins entire, plane, apex rounded to acute, surfaces densely glandular-puberulent.

usually cauline, relatively even-sized;

petiole absent;

blade ovate to oblong or narrowly elliptic to narrowly lanceolate, narrowly oblong, or linear, 10–25 × 1–5 mm, margins entire, plane, not ciliate, apex rounded to obtuse or acute, surfaces usually glandular-pubescent and (at least along veins) viscid-villous.
Pedicels

1–4(–5) mm in fruit.

1–3 mm in fruit.
Flowers

2 per node, or 1 or 2 per node on 1 plant, chasmogamous.

2 per node, or 1 or 2 per node on 1 plant, chasmogamous.
Styles

densely glandular-puberulent distally.

glabrous or sparsely glandular-puberulent.
Corollas

magenta, darker and more reddish in throat and, often, along narrow radiating lines extending from throat onto midveins of lobes, throat usually with a large dark spot on each side of mouth on lateral walls, palate ridges and throat floor yellow with reddish spots, tube-throat 9–15 mm, limb 10–15 mm diam., not bilabiate.

of 2 color forms: (a) dark magenta, purplish, or reddish with palate ridges or whole throat floor yellow, red- or purple-dotted, lateral lobes yellowish inside and (b) yellow with red or purple spots on floor, tube-throat 8–12(–15) mm, tube 1.3–1.9 mm diam. at filament insertion, limb 5–12(–15) mm diam., bilabiate.
Calyces

symmetrically attached to pedicels, not inflated in fruit, (6–)7–11 mm, glandular-puberulent, lobes unequal, apex acute to acuminate, ribs inconspicuous, intercostal areas reddish.

symmetrically attached to pedicels, slightly inflated in fruit, (3–)4–7(–9) mm, glandular-pubescent and viscid-villous (at least along veins), lobes subequal, apex acute to acuminate, ribs dark green to purplish, intercostal areas whitish.
Capsules

7–12 mm.

5–8 mm.
Anthers

included, glabrous.

exserted, short-hirsute.
Stigmas

exserted or at opening of corolla tube-throat, lobes equal.

exserted or at opening of corolla tube-throat, lobes subequal to unequal, abaxial to 2 times adaxial.
2n

= 16.

Diplacus johnstonii

Diplacus mephiticus
Phenology Flowering May–Aug. Flowering (May–)Jun–Aug(–Sep).
Habitat Steep, unstable scree slides, talus slopes, gravel slides, cracks in granite cliffs, ridges, washes, steep sand and gravel slopes, canyon bottoms, gravelly road banks, recent burns, desert scrub, chaparral, juniper, pinyon-juniper, lodgepole pine, yellow pine, Jeffrey pine, and Jeffrey pine-western white pine-fir woodlands. Openings in sagebrush, disturbed slopes, granite outcrops, serpentine substrates, gravelly and sandy soils, sandy moraines, pumice flats, gravelly washes, meadows, shadscale and sagebrush communities, pinyon-juniper and ponderosa pine woodlands.
Elevation (1000–)1300–2900 m. ((3300–)4300–9500 ft.) 1300–3700 m. (4300–12100 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
CA
[WildflowerSearch map]
from FNA
CA; NV
[WildflowerSearch map]
Discussion

Populations of Diplacus johnstonii occur in Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino, Santa Barbara, and Ventura counties. The populations in northwestern Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, and Ventura counties were noted by D. M. Thompson (2005) to be intermediate between D. constrictus and D. johnstonii.

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

Diplacus mephiticus occurs in eastern California and west-central Nevada.

Various synonyms treated here are in agreement with D. M. Thompson (2005). Mimulus coccineus (mostly from Eldorado to Tulare counties, California, and, apparently, including Eunanus angustifolius Greene from Mt. Rose, Nevada) includes relatively small, tufted plants at high elevations with relatively small calyces and relatively small, dark red-purple, strongly bilabiate corollas with prominently exserted stamens. Mimulus densus (mostly in Nevada and in Lassen, Nevada, and Plumas counties, California) includes taller plants at lower elevations with a strong tendency to produce populations with all individuals with larger, yellow, nearly regular corollas with more nearly included stamens. Typical Diplacus mephiticus has moderate-sized plants at medium elevations with magenta, bilabiate corollas.

The specific epithet mephiticus alludes to the musky odor of the plants; this has also been noted in plants of Mimulus coccineus and M. densus. Diplacus nanus, in which D. M. Thompson (2005) included D. mephiticus as a variety, apparently does not produce a mephitic odor. Diplacus cusickii also produces a mephitic odor (W. L. Ezell 1971).

The later homonym Mimulus angustifolius (Greene) A. L. Grant 1925, not Hochstetter ex Richard 1850, based on Eunanus angustifolius, pertains here.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 17, p. 433. FNA vol. 17, p. 441.
Parent taxa Phrymaceae > Diplacus Phrymaceae > Diplacus
Sibling taxa
D. angustatus, D. aridus, D. aurantiacus, D. bicolor, D. bigelovii, D. bolanderi, D. brandegeei, D. brevipes, D. calycinus, D. cascadensis, D. clevelandii, D. clivicola, D. compactus, D. congdonii, D. constrictus, D. cusickii, D. cusickioides, D. deschutesensis, D. douglasii, D. fremontii, D. grandiflorus, D. graniticola, D. jepsonii, D. kelloggii, D. layneae, D. leptaleus, D. linearis, D. longiflorus, D. mephiticus, D. mohavensis, D. nanus, D. ovatus, D. parryi, D. parviflorus, D. pictus, D. pulchellus, D. puniceus, D. pygmaeus, D. rattanii, D. rupicola, D. rutilus, D. thompsonii, D. torreyi, D. traskiae, D. tricolor, D. vandenbergensis, D. viscidus
D. angustatus, D. aridus, D. aurantiacus, D. bicolor, D. bigelovii, D. bolanderi, D. brandegeei, D. brevipes, D. calycinus, D. cascadensis, D. clevelandii, D. clivicola, D. compactus, D. congdonii, D. constrictus, D. cusickii, D. cusickioides, D. deschutesensis, D. douglasii, D. fremontii, D. grandiflorus, D. graniticola, D. jepsonii, D. johnstonii, D. kelloggii, D. layneae, D. leptaleus, D. linearis, D. longiflorus, D. mohavensis, D. nanus, D. ovatus, D. parryi, D. parviflorus, D. pictus, D. pulchellus, D. puniceus, D. pygmaeus, D. rattanii, D. rupicola, D. rutilus, D. thompsonii, D. torreyi, D. traskiae, D. tricolor, D. vandenbergensis, D. viscidus
Synonyms Mimulus johnstonii Mimulus mephiticus, M. coccineus, M. coccineus var. wolfii, M. densus, M. nanus var. mephiticus, M. reifschneiderae, M. stamineus, M. washoensis, M. wolfii
Name authority (A. L. Grant) G. L. Nesom: Phytoneuron 2012-39: 29. (2012) (Greene) G. L. Nesom: Phytoneuron 2012-39: 29. (2012)
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).



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