The green links below add additional plants to the comparison table. Blue links lead to other Web sites.
enable glossary links

musk monkeyflower, musk-flower, sessile-leaf monkey-flower, wing-leaf monkeyflower

Geyer's monkeyflower, mimule de James

Habit Perennials, rhizomatous, sometimes rooting at proximal nodes. Perennials, rhizomatous, rooting at nodes.
Stems

prostrate, sometimes decumbent to ascending, few-branched, 20–80 cm, villous, hairs 1–2 mm, eglandular, sometimes mixed with much shorter stipitate-glandular ones, internodes evident.

decumbent-ascending to ascending or erect-ascending, branched, (3–)10–40 cm, glabrous.

Leaves

cauline, basal not persistent, often congested;

petiole 0 mm, rarely 1–2(–3) mm;

blade pinnately veined, oblong-lanceolate, 30–70 × 10–22 mm, base rounded, margins denticulate to dentate, apex acute, surfaces villous, hairs 1–2 mm, eglandular, sometimes mixed with much shorter stipitate-glandular ones.

cauline, basal not persistent;

petiole 3–10(–20) mm or 0 mm distally;

blade palmately 3–5-veined, suborbicular to depressed-ovate or broadly elliptic-ovate to reniform, 6–25 mm, relatively even-sized or largest often at mid stem, bracteal reduced, base cuneate to truncate or subcordate, margins shallowly dentate to crenate-dentate, teeth 3–7(–10) per side, apex rounded, adaxial surface of distals sparsely short villous-glandular or glabrous.

Flowers

herkogamous, 4–10, from medial to distal nodes.

plesiogamous, 2–8(–12), from distal nodes, sometimes from most nodes, very loosely racemose.

Styles

glabrous.

glabrous.

Corollas

yellow, throat with fine blackish or brownish lines on all sides, weakly bilaterally or nearly radially symmetric, weakly bilabiate or nearly regular;

tube-throat narrowly campanulate, 15–18 mm, exserted beyond calyx margin;

lobe apex rounded.

yellow, sparsely red-dotted or not, bilaterally symmetric, weakly bilabiate;

tube-throat cylindric-funnelform, 6–8 mm, exserted 1–3 mm beyond calyx margin;

limb expanded 5–8 mm.

Fruiting pedicels

(15–)22–50 mm, villous, hairs 1–2 mm, eglandular, sometimes mixed with much shorter stipitate-glandular ones.

18–30 mm, sparsely short villous-glandular or glabrous.

Fruiting calyces

wing- or plicate-angled, cylindric-campanulate, weakly inflated, 10–12 mm, villous-glandular, hairs gland-tipped, lobes distinctly spreading, strongly unequal, linear-lanceolate to narrowly triangular, 5–9 mm, apex long acuminate-apiculate.

obtriangular to broadly obtriangular or deeply cupulate, inflated, sagittally compressed, (7–)8–12 mm, sparsely short villous-glandular or glabrous, throat not closing, lateral lobes shallowly convex-mucronulate, adaxial ovate with apex rounded.

Capsules

included, 6–8 mm.

included, (4.5–)5–8 mm.

Anthers

included, finely hirtellous to hispidulous.

included, glabrous.

2n

= 30.

Erythranthe ptilota

Erythranthe geyeri

Phenology Flowering (May–)Jun–Aug. Flowering May–Aug(–Oct).
Habitat Creek banks, gravel bars, flood plains, shallow ditches and natural drainages, swales, damp banks, wet sand, moist soils in coniferous woods, marshes, bogs. Edges of flowing streams, marsh edges, drainage ditches, seepage areas, springs, muddy or moist banks.
Elevation 0–1000(–1900) m. (0–3300(–6200) ft.) 200–2500 m. (700–8200 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
CA; OR; WA; BC
[WildflowerSearch map]
from FNA
AZ; CO; IA; IL; KS; MI; MN; MO; NE; NM; OK; PA; SD; TX; WI; WY; AB; MB; ON; QC; SK; Mexico (Chihuahua, Coahuila, Distrito Federal, Durango, Hidalgo, Nuevo León, México, Querétaro, San Luis Potosí, Sonora, Veracruz, Zacatecas)
[WildflowerSearch map]
Discussion

Erythranthe ptilota is recognized by its prostrate to decumbent or decumbent-ascending habit, large, consistently sessile leaves, densely villous vestiture, long pedicels, large calyces and corollas, hispid-hirtellous anthers, and particularly by its long, strongly unequal, linear-triangular calyx lobes usually distally falcate. Leaf bases typically are truncate to rounded or subcordate. Rarely the leaves are short-petiolate, but in such cases, the distinctive leaf bases, vestiture, calyx morphology, and pubescent anthers are diagnostic. Erythranthe ptilota is widely sympatric with E. moschata but usually occurs at lower elevations and characteristically in wetter habitats. The epithet ptilota (Greek ptilotos, winged) alludes to a fancied winglike aspect of the pairs of sessile leaves.

A population system of Erythranthe ptilota-like plants occurs in southern California, about 480 km disjunct from the main range of the species. These plants have the prostrate habit, large leaves, long pedicels, and large corollas of E. ptilota, but the calyx lobes are variable in length and usually do not show the characteristic attenuate-apiculate apices. The southern California plants are identified here as E. moschata.

Erythranthe ptilota is a new name at specific rank for Mimulus moschatus var. sessilifolius [not E. sessilifolia (Maximowicz) G. L. Nesom].

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

Erythranthe geyeri has commonly been regarded as conspecific with E. glabrata (Kunth) G. L. Nesom (as Mimulus glabratus var. jamesii), but typical E. glabrata has a different chromosome number and distinct morphology and its range does not reach the United States. In Mexico, the two species are broadly sympatric without intermediates. An allozyme study of the M. glabratus complex (R. K. Vickery 1990) indicated that the Great Plains populations of E. geyeri are distinct from those in New Mexico and Mexico, corresponding to a difference in pedicel vestiture.

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

Source FNA vol. 17, p. 402. FNA vol. 17, p. 406.
Parent taxa Phrymaceae > Erythranthe Phrymaceae > Erythranthe
Sibling taxa
E. acutidens, E. alsinoides, E. ampliata, E. androsacea, E. arenaria, E. arenicola, E. arvensis, E. barbata, E. bicolor, E. brachystylis, E. breviflora, E. breweri, E. caespitosa, E. calcicola, E. calciphila, E. cardinalis, E. carsonensis, E. charlestonensis, E. chinatiensis, E. cinnabarina, E. corallina, E. cordata, E. decora, E. dentata, E. diffusa, E. discolor, E. eastwoodiae, E. erubescens, E. exigua, E. filicaulis, E. filicifolia, E. floribunda, E. gemmipara, E. geniculata, E. geyeri, E. glaucescens, E. gracilipes, E. grandis, E. grayi, E. guttata, E. hallii, E. hardhamiae, E. hymenophylla, E. inamoena, E. inconspicua, E. inflatula, E. jungermannioides, E. laciniata, E. latidens, E. lewisii, E. linearifolia, E. marmorata, E. michiganensis, E. microphylla, E. minor, E. montioides, E. moschata, E. nasuta, E. norrisii, E. nudata, E. palmeri, E. pardalis, E. parishii, E. parvula, E. patula, E. percaulis, E. primuloides, E. pulsiferae, E. purpurea, E. regni, E. rhodopetra, E. rubella, E. scouleri, E. shevockii, E. sierrae, E. suksdorfii, E. taylorii, E. thermalis, E. tilingii, E. trinitiensis, E. unimaculata, E. utahensis, E. verbenacea, E. washingtonensis, E. willisii
E. acutidens, E. alsinoides, E. ampliata, E. androsacea, E. arenaria, E. arenicola, E. arvensis, E. barbata, E. bicolor, E. brachystylis, E. breviflora, E. breweri, E. caespitosa, E. calcicola, E. calciphila, E. cardinalis, E. carsonensis, E. charlestonensis, E. chinatiensis, E. cinnabarina, E. corallina, E. cordata, E. decora, E. dentata, E. diffusa, E. discolor, E. eastwoodiae, E. erubescens, E. exigua, E. filicaulis, E. filicifolia, E. floribunda, E. gemmipara, E. geniculata, E. glaucescens, E. gracilipes, E. grandis, E. grayi, E. guttata, E. hallii, E. hardhamiae, E. hymenophylla, E. inamoena, E. inconspicua, E. inflatula, E. jungermannioides, E. laciniata, E. latidens, E. lewisii, E. linearifolia, E. marmorata, E. michiganensis, E. microphylla, E. minor, E. montioides, E. moschata, E. nasuta, E. norrisii, E. nudata, E. palmeri, E. pardalis, E. parishii, E. parvula, E. patula, E. percaulis, E. primuloides, E. ptilota, E. pulsiferae, E. purpurea, E. regni, E. rhodopetra, E. rubella, E. scouleri, E. shevockii, E. sierrae, E. suksdorfii, E. taylorii, E. thermalis, E. tilingii, E. trinitiensis, E. unimaculata, E. utahensis, E. verbenacea, E. washingtonensis, E. willisii
Synonyms Mimulus moschatus var. sessilifolius Mimulus geyeri, M. glabratus var. fremontii, M. glabratus var. jamesii, M. glabratus var. oklahomensis, M. jamesii, M. jamesii var. fremontii
Name authority G. L. Nesom: Phytoneuron 2017-17: 4. (2017) (Torrey) G. L. Nesom: Phytoneuron 2012-39: 43. (2012)
Web links