Flora of North America species comparison

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Diplacus mephiticus

Diplacus graniticola

foul odor monkeyflower, skunky monkeyflower

granite-crack monkeyflower
Habit Herbs, annual. Herbs, annual, herbage usually drying dark.
Stems

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

erect, 60–120(–150) mm, nodes 4–15(–20), internodes shorter than leaves, glandular-villous with gland-tipped hairs 1–1.6 mm.
Leaves

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.

usually cauline, relatively even-sized;

petiole weakly delimited;

blade usually lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate, 20–40 × 4–12 mm, margins entire, rarely toothed, plane, apex rounded to obtuse or acute, surfaces: proximals often glabrate abaxially, distals glandular-villous.
Pedicels

1–3 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

glabrous or sparsely glandular-puberulent.

glandular-puberulent.
Corollas

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.

nearly white or pale lavender to pinkish or pale to dark magenta, each lobe with a dark medial line extending nearly to tip, throat with a dark red or purple splotch at junction of each abaxial lobe and adjacent lateral lobe, throat floor sometimes with 2 adjacent white splotches at lateral lobe bases, palate ridges yellow, tube-throat 15–20 mm, limb 10–16 mm diam., bilabiate.
Calyces

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.

symmetrically attached to pedicels, not inflated in fruit, 8–12 mm, glandular-villous, tube strongly plicate, lobes triangular, subequal, apex acute, ribs narrow, darkened, blackish, thickened, strongly raised, intercostal areas green to purple, not membranous.
Capsules

5–8 mm.

6–10 mm.
Anthers

exserted, short-hirsute.

included, ciliate.
Stigmas

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

included, lobes unequal, abaxial 1.5 times adaxial.
2n

= 16.

Diplacus mephiticus

Diplacus graniticola
Phenology Flowering (May–)Jun–Aug(–Sep). Flowering Apr–Sep.
Habitat 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. Granite cracks and crevices.
Elevation 1300–3700 m. (4300–12100 ft.) 300–2100 m. (1000–6900 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
CA; NV
[WildflowerSearch map]
from FNA
CA
[WildflowerSearch map]
Discussion

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.)

Diplacus graniticola occurs in the Sierra Nevada from Tuolumne County to northern Tulare County. These plants previously were identified within D. layneae, with which they are partially sympatric; where these two occur together, D. layneae often grows in granite-derived sand and gravel immediately adjacent to the granite rock habitat of D. graniticola.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 17, p. 441. FNA vol. 17, p. 438.
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. 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
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. jepsonii, D. johnstonii, 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
Synonyms Mimulus mephiticus, M. coccineus, M. coccineus var. wolfii, M. densus, M. nanus var. mephiticus, M. reifschneiderae, M. stamineus, M. washoensis, M. wolfii
Name authority (Greene) G. L. Nesom: Phytoneuron 2012-39: 29. (2012) Schoenig: Phytoneuron 2017-24: 1, figs. 1, 3–10. (2017)
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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