Ephedra funerea |
Ephedra coryi |
|
---|---|---|
Death Valley Ephedra, Death Valley jointfir, funera Mormon tea |
Cory's Ephedra, Cory's jointfir |
|
Habit | Shrubs erect, 0.25–1.5 m. | Shrubs rhizomatous, forming clumps, erect, 0.25–1.5 m, 3–5 m diam. |
Bark | gray, slightly cracked and irregularly fissured. |
red-brown, cracked and irregularly fissured. |
Branches | alternate or whorled, rigid, angle of divergence about 60°. |
alternate or whorled, becoming rigid, angle of divergence about 25°. |
Twigs | gray-green, becoming gray with age, glaucous, slightly scabrous, with numerous very fine longitudinal grooves; internodes 2–6 cm. |
bright green, becoming yellow-green with age, not viscid, ridges between longitudinal grooves papillate, slightly scabrous; internodes 2–5 cm. |
Leaves | in whorls of 3, 2–6 mm, connate to 2/3–3/4 their length; bases splitting at margins, persistent, forming black, thickened collar; apex acute. |
opposite, 2–5 mm, connate to 1/2–3/4 their length; bases thickened, brown, persistent, becoming hard, enlarged, and black; apex acute. |
Pollen cones | 1–3 at node, narrowly ellipsoid, 5–8 mm, on very short, scaly peduncles (rarely sessile); bracts in 6–9 whorls of 3, light yellow, ovate, 3–4 × 2–3 mm, membranous, base short-clawed; bracteoles equaling bracts; sporangiophores 3–5 mm, exserted to 1/3 their length, with 3–7 sessile to short-stalked microsporangia. |
2–several at node, obovoid, 4–6 mm, on very short, scaly peduncles (rarely sessile); bracts opposite, 5–9 pairs, light yellow, ovate, 2–4 × 2–3 mm, membranous, slightly connate at base; bracteoles slightly exceeding bracts; sporangiophores 2–4 mm, 1/4 exserted, with 5–7 sessile to short-stalked (less than 1 mm) microsporangia. |
Seed(s) | cones 1–3 at node, lance-obovoid, 8–15 mm, on short, scaly peduncles (rarely sessile); bracts in 6–9 whorls of 3, obovate, 4–8 × 3–5 mm, papery, yellow-translucent with green-yellow center and base, base broadly clawed, margins slightly dentate. |
cones 2–several at node, obovoid to nearly globose, 7–15 mm, on smooth peduncles, 5–25 mm, with 1 pair of basal and 1 pair of nearly terminal bracts, at least in early cones; bracts opposite, 3–4 pairs, ovate to circular, 5–8 × 5–12 mm, inner pairs becoming fleshy (at least centrally) and orange at maturity. |
Terminal | buds conic, 1–4 mm, apex acute. |
buds conic, 1–3 mm. |
Ephedra funerea |
Ephedra coryi |
|
Phenology | Coning March–April. | Coning March–April. |
Habitat | Sandy, dry soil and rocky scrub areas | Sandy, semiarid areas |
Elevation | 500–1500 m (1600–4900 ft) | 500–2300 m (1600–7500 ft) |
Distribution |
CA; NV
|
NM; TX |
Discussion | Of conservation concern. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
In New Mexico Ephedra coryi occurs only in an isolated population in the San Andreas Mountains and represents the shorter extreme (5–10 mm) in the range of peduncle length. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 2. | FNA vol. 2. |
Parent taxa | Ephedraceae > Ephedra | Ephedraceae > Ephedra |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | E. californica var. funerea | |
Name authority | Coville & C. V. Morton: J. Wash. Acad. Sci. 25: 307. (1935) | E. L. Reed: Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 63: 351. (1936) |
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