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

Purdy's fritillary

checker-lily, chocolate fritillary, chocolate lily, mission bells, rice-root lily

Bulb scales

large 2–8; small 0–3.

large 2–5; small 2–20 when tepals mottled, 50 or more when tepals unmottled.

Stem

1–4 dm.

1–12 dm.

Leaves

2–10, alternate, ± crowded near ground, 2.5–10 cm;

blade ovate, occasionally a few sickle-shaped.

in 1–4 whorls of 2–8 per node proximally, alternate distally, 4–16 cm, usually shorter than inflorescence;

blade linear-lanceolate to ovate;

distal leaves usually equaling proximalmost leaf.

Flowers

horizontal or nodding;

tepals white, with purple spots or lines and pink shading, 1.5–3 cm, apex often slightly recurved;

nectaries obscure, colored like tepals, broadly linear, ± equaling tepal length;

style obviously branched for 1/2 its length, branches longer than 1.5 mm.

nodding, odor not unpleasant;

tepals brownish purple to pale yellowish green, clearly mottled yellow or purple, or unmottled, oblong to ovate, 1–4 cm, apex not recurved;

nectaries yellow, dotted purple, lanceolate, 1/2–2/3 tepal length;

style obviously branched for 1/2 its length, branches longer than 1.5 mm.

Capsules

acutely angled.

widely winged.

2n

= 24.

= 24, 36, 48.

Fritillaria purdyi

Fritillaria affinis

Phenology Flowering Apr–Jun. Flowering Mar–Jun.
Habitat Dry ridges, generally on serpentine Oak or pine scrub, grasslands
Elevation 400–2100 m (1300–6900 ft) 0–1800 m (0–5900 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CA; OR
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; ID; MT; OR; WA; BC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Fritillaria affinis has one of the broadest geographical distributions of all the North American species of the genus. It is also highly variable, which has resulted in the naming of several supposedly distinct species as well as some infraspecific taxa, all but one of which are in fact only poorly differentiated, and all of which are treated here as synonyms. Among the latter, F. lanceolata var. tristulis may actually merit formal recognition as a variety, but the new combination under F. affinis remains to be made. This entity is restricted to coastal grassland in Marin County, California, and has a perianth that is scarcely if at all mottled, and more than 50 small bulb scales.

Fritillaria affinis has long been known by the name F. lanceolata, which is illegitimate because when Pursh described it, he cited Lilium camschatcense (= F. camschatcensis) as a synonym but did not adopt that epithet. Actually, his synonymic reference was based on a misidentification, even though he stated that an illustration of L. camschatcense from a specimen in Pallas’ herbarium was “an excellent figure” of his F. lanceolata.

Fritillaria affinis has been known to hybridize with F. recurva.

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

Source FNA vol. 26, p. 171. FNA vol. 26, p. 166.
Parent taxa Liliaceae > Fritillaria Liliaceae > Fritillaria
Sibling taxa
F. affinis, F. agrestis, F. atropurpurea, F. biflora, F. brandegeei, F. camschatcensis, F. eastwoodiae, F. falcata, F. gentneri, F. glauca, F. liliacea, F. micrantha, F. ojaiensis, F. pinetorum, F. pluriflora, F. pudica, F. recurva, F. striata, F. viridea
F. agrestis, F. atropurpurea, F. biflora, F. brandegeei, F. camschatcensis, F. eastwoodiae, F. falcata, F. gentneri, F. glauca, F. liliacea, F. micrantha, F. ojaiensis, F. pinetorum, F. pluriflora, F. pudica, F. purdyi, F. recurva, F. striata, F. viridea
Synonyms Lilium affine, F. lanceolata, F. lanceolata var. gracilis, F. lanceolata var. tristulis, F. multiflora, F. mutica, F. parviflora, F. phaeanthera
Name authority Eastwood: Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 29: 75, plate 6. (1902) (Schultes & Schultes f.) Sealy: Hooker’s Icon. Pl. 39: 239. (1980)
Web links