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snow douglasia, snow dwarf-primrose

Rocky Mountain dwarf-primrose

Habit Plants loosely cespitose mats with branched caudex. Plants loosely cespitose cushions with branched caudex.
Stems

prostrate to ascending, loosely covered with marcescent, gray to light brown leaves (becoming remote in age).

prostrate to ascending with marcescent, imbricate, gray to light brown leaves.

Leaves

spreading, slightly reflexed in age, thin;

blade linear to oblanceolate, 5–2 × 1.5–4 mm, margins entire or distinctly toothed, apex obtuse, surfaces densely hairy, hairs minute, branched and stellate.

spreading to erect, thin;

blade linear-subulate, 4–10 × 0.5 mm, margins entire, ciliolate, hairs simple, apex acute, surfaces glabrous.

Scapes

10–70 mm, elongating little in fruit, densely stellate-pubescent.

5–20 mm, elongating little in fruit, densely hairy, hairs branched and stellate.

Inflorescences

2–8-flowered, bracteate;

bracts 4–10, lanceolate to ovate, 3–8 × 2–3 mm, stellate-pubescent.

1–2-flowered, ebracteate or bracteate;

bracts 1–3, subulate, 2–3 × 0.5 mm, hairy, hairs simple or forked.

Pedicels

present, 1–10(–20) mm.

present, 0.5–10 mm.

Flowers

calyx 4–7 × 3–5 mm, stellate-pubescent to glabrate;

corolla rose-pink, limb 8–12 mm diam., lobes 3–5 × 1–2 mm, margins erose or entire.

calyx 4–8 × 3–5 mm, glabrous or slightly hairy, hairs branched and stellate;

corolla rose-pink, limb 6–10 mm diam., lobes 3–5 × 1–2 mm, margins erose or entire.

Douglasia nivalis

Douglasia montana

Phenology Flowering early-mid summer. Flowering early-mid summer.
Habitat Sagebrush slopes, alpine ridges, talus Foothills, open ridges, scree slopes
Elevation 700-2400 m (2300-7900 ft) 1000-3500 m (3300-11500 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
WA
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
ID; MT; WY; AB
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Previous treatments of Douglasia nivalis have recognized two varieties that differ in the degree of dentation on leaf margins. The most common is var. nivalis, with almost entire leaf blade margins, found in the Wenatchee Mountains and north to Chelan and Douglas counties. Variety dentata has more distinctly toothed leaves and is known only from the Wenatchee Mountains. Because there is a great deal of overlapping variation, particularly in the Wenatchee Mountains, those varieties are not given formal recognition here.

Presence of Douglasia nivalis in Canada is uncertain. The original collection was described by Lindley as collected on the Alberta–British Columbia border near Mount Robson; no other collections of the species from either province are known.

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

Specimens of Douglasia montana from Wyoming tend to have two flowers per inflorescence (once recognized as var. biflora); those from the northern part of the range tend to have only one. Because both one- and two-flowered inflorescences occur together on individual plants throughout the range, and no other morphological differences separate the forms, the varietal distinction is not recognized here.

In Alberta, Douglasia montana is known only from Waterton Lakes National Park near the Montana border.

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

Source FNA vol. 8, p. 267. FNA vol. 8, p. 266.
Parent taxa Primulaceae > Douglasia Primulaceae > Douglasia
Sibling taxa
D. alaskana, D. arctica, D. beringensis, D. gormanii, D. idahoensis, D. laevigata, D. montana, D. ochotensis
D. alaskana, D. arctica, D. beringensis, D. gormanii, D. idahoensis, D. laevigata, D. nivalis, D. ochotensis
Synonyms D. dentata, D. nivalis var. dentata, Primula douglasii D. biflora, D. montana var. biflora
Name authority Lindley: Quart. J. Sci. Lit. Arts [ 24]: 383. 1827 , A. Gray: Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 7: 371. 1868 ,
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