Euphorbia curtisii |
Euphorbia macropus |
|
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Curtis' spurge, Sandhills spurge |
Huachuca Mountain spurge |
|
Habit | Herbs, perennial, with spreading rootstock. | Herbs, perennial, with thick, globose to elongated tubers, 2–8 cm. |
Stems | erect or ascending, branched, solitary or few, previous year's dead stems not persistent, 20–40 cm, usually glabrous, rarely strigose to sericeous at nodes. |
erect to ascending, branched, 10–45(–60) cm, glabrous, puberulent, or densely hirsute to setose, often with 2-layered indumentum of long hairs intermixed with short hairs. |
Leaves | alternate; stipules to 0.1 mm; petiole to (0–)1–2 mm, glabrous or strigose to sericeous; blade usually linear, occasionally elliptic, rarely ovate, proximal often greatly reduced and often scalelike, 10–30 × 1.5–6 mm, base cuneate, margins entire, occasionally sparsely ciliate, apex rounded or broadly acute, abaxial surface glabrous or sparsely strigose to sericeous, adaxial surface glabrous; venation obscure, only midvein conspicuous. |
usually opposite, occasionally whorled distally, or rarely with 1–2 alternate leaves; stipules 0.1–0.2 mm; petiole 0–18 mm, hirsute, sericeous, or strigose; blade linear to ovate or almost orbiculate, 6–54 × 2–19 mm, base rounded to attenuate, margins entire, occasionally ciliate with stiff recurved hairs, apex acute to obtuse, surfaces usually hirsute, sericeous, or strigose, occasionally glabrous adaxially; venation conspicuous. |
Involucre | campanulate, 1–1.2 × 1.3–1.5(–1.7) mm, glabrous or strigose to sericeous on distal 1/2; glands 5, green, reniform, 0.3 × 0.6 mm; appendages white, semicircular, 0.3–0.4 × 0.6–0.8 mm, entire. |
obconic to campanulate, 1.1–1.4 × 0.5–1.5 mm, glabrous or strigillose; glands 4–5, greenish, oblong, 0.2 × 0.4–0.5 mm; appendages usually yellowish or green, rarely dark purple, ovate, flabellate, semiorbiculate, or oblong, 0.3–0.9 × 0.4–1.1 mm, usually entire. |
Staminate flowers | 20–25. |
10–15. |
Pistillate flowers | ovary glabrous or sparsely strigose to sericeous; styles 0.6–1.1 mm, 2-fid at apex to 1/2 length. |
ovary glabrous, sericeous, or strigillose; styles 0.4–0.6 mm, 2-fid 1/2 length. |
Capsules | globose, 2.5–3.2 × 4.3–5.1 mm, glabrous or sparsely strigose to sericeous; columella 2.4–3.1 mm. |
oblate, 2.3–3 × 3.1–4.2 mm, glabrous, sericeous, or strigillose; columella 1.6–2.1 mm. |
Seeds | usually gray to black, occasionally brown, ovoid-globose, 2.2 × 1.8 mm, smooth; caruncle absent. |
black to light brown, broadly ovoid to subglobose, rounded in cross section, 1.5–2.3 × 1.4–1.8 mm, smooth or with low rounded tubercles; caruncle absent. |
Cyathia | in terminal pleiochasia (fertile axillary branches occasionally present); peduncle 6.5–17 mm, filiform, glabrous. |
in weakly-defined terminal dichasia; peduncle 1.4–5.8 mm, glabrous. |
Euphorbia curtisii |
Euphorbia macropus |
|
Phenology | Flowering and fruiting early spring–summer. | Flowering and fruiting summer–fall. |
Habitat | Xeric to dry oak or oak-pine scrub of sand hills, pine-oak woodlands, pine-oak savannas. | Stream banks and rocky slopes in pine-oak woodlands, sometimes with juniper, Douglas fir-pine forests. |
Elevation | 0–200 m. (0–700 ft.) | 1500–2200m. (4900–7200ft.) |
Distribution |
FL; GA; NC; SC
|
AZ; Mexico; Central America (Guatemala, Honduras) |
Discussion | Euphorbia curtisii is found in the Gulf and Atlantic coastal plains. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Euphorbia macropus is a widespread and common Mexican species just barely entering the flora area in southeastern Arizona, where most of the collections are from the Huachuca Mountains. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 12, p. 245. | FNA vol. 12, p. 248. |
Parent taxa | Euphorbiaceae > Euphorbia > sect. Alectoroctonum | Euphorbiaceae > Euphorbia > sect. Alectoroctonum |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | E. eriogonoides, Tithymalopsis curtisii, T. eriogonoides | Anisophyllum macropus, E. biformis, E. plummerae |
Name authority | Engelmann ex Chapman: Fl. South. U.S., 401. (1860) | (Klotzsch & Garcke) Boissier: in A. P. de Candolle and A. L. P. P. de Candolle, Prodr. 15(2): 52. (1862) |
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