Erythronium albidum
Erythronium mesochoreum
white fawnlily, white trout-lily
midland fawnlily, prairie trout-lily, white fawnlily
ovoid, 15–30 mm;
stolons 1–3, mostly on 1-leaved, nonflowering plants; flowering plants reproducing vegetatively by offshoots or droppers.
ovoid to ± globose, 10–25 mm;
stolons absent; flowering plants reproducing vegetatively by droppers or offshoots.
8–22 cm;
blade green, irregularly mottled, elliptic-lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate or elliptic, ± flat, glaucous, margins entire.
5–14 cm;
blade green, usually not mottled, elliptic-lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate, conduplicate, glaucous, base and margins sometimes purple-brown, margins even.
7–20 cm.
5–15 cm.
1-flowered.
1-flowered.
tepals strongly reflexed at anthesis, white, tinged pink, blue, or lavender abaxially, with yellow adaxial spot at base, lanceolate, 22–40 mm, auricles absent;
stamens 10–20 mm;
filaments yellow, lanceolate;
anthers yellow;
pollen yellow;
style white, 15–25 mm;
stigma lobes recurving, 1.5 mm.
tepals spreading at anthesis, white, tinged pink, blue, or lavender abaxially, with yellow adaxial spot at base, lanceolate, 15–30 mm, auricles absent;
stamens 8–15 mm;
filaments yellow, lanceolate;
anthers yellow;
pollen yellow;
style white, 7–10 mm;
stigma lobes recurving, 1–1.5 mm.
held erect at maturity, obovoid, 10–22 mm, apex rounded to faintly apiculate or umbilicate.
resting on ground at maturity due to reclining peduncle, obovoid, 10–15 mm, apex rounded to faintly apiculate or umbilicate.
= 44.
= 22.
Erythronium albidum
Erythronium mesochoreum
Erythronium albidum often forms extensive colonies in which nonflowering, 1-leaved plants far outnumber flowering, 2-leaved ones. It is very widespread in eastern North America, more common in the central states than E. americanum and often occurs in slightly drier sites.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Because stolons are absent in Erythronium mesochoreum, most plants in a population produce flowers; nonflowering plants may sometimes appear after flowering plants have flowered. This species is well adapted to prairie fires. The seeds have elaiosomes, and ants may act as dispersal agents (Great Plains Flora Association 1986). C. C. Deam et al. (1941) reported E. mesochoreum from Indiana, but an examination of the specimens cited, now at IND, showed that these are E. albidum. E. L. Braun (1967) reported that many populations of E. albidum in southwestern Ohio indicate introgression with “the Ozarkean var. mesochoreum.” However, personal observation by K. R. Robertson of several Ohio populations in flower confirmed that these plants are true E. albidum, although they occur in prairies and have more or less conduplicate leaves.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
IL Wildflowers
KS Wildflowers
LA Plants
MD Biodiversity
MI Flora
MN Wildflowers
MO Plants
WildflowerSearch
iNaturalist
USDA Plants Database
