Flora of North America species comparison

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Ivesia santolinoides

Ivesia sect. Stellariopsis

mouse tail ivesia, Sierra mousetail, silver mousetail, stellariopsis
Habit Plants ± grayish to silvery. Plants tufted, not forming hanging clumps, not aromatic; taproot ± stout, not fusiform or fleshy.
Stems

ascending to erect, (1–)1.5–4 dm.

(1–)1.5–4 dm.
Basal leaves

mousetail-like (individual leaflets scarcely distinguishable), 3–10 cm; sheathing base densely strigose abaxially;

petiole 0.5–1.5 cm;

leaflets 60–80 per side, 0.6–1.5 mm, lobes (0–)3–5, obovate to oval, densely villous.

very tightly cylindric (mousetail-like);

stipules present;

leaflets tightly overlapping, individually scarcely distinguishable, lobed to base, sometimes entire, densely hairy;

terminal leaflets indistinct.
Cauline leaves

1–3, not paired;

blade relatively well developed.
Inflorescences

(10–)30–200-flowered, 3–8(–30) cm diam.

open, flowers arranged individually.
Pedicels

5–30 mm.

remaining ± straight.
Flowers

5–8 mm diam.;

epicalyx bractlets oblong to broadly ovate or orbiculate, 0.2–0.5 mm;

hypanthium 0.5–1.5 × 2–3 mm;

sepals 1–2 mm, apex obtuse to acute;

petals white, broadly obovate to orbiculate, 2–2.5 mm;

stamens 15, filaments 1.2–1.8 mm, anthers purple, broadly obcordate to pouch-shaped, 0.3–0.4 mm;

carpels 1, styles 2–3 mm.

hypanthium shallowly campanulate;

petals not medially reflexed, white, short-clawed, apex rounded;

stamens 15, anthers shorter than wide, dehiscing by subterminal pores to short lateral slits;

carpels 1.
Achenes

mottled grayish brown, 1.7–2 mm.

vertical, smooth, not carunculate.
2n

= 28.

Ivesia santolinoides

Ivesia sect. Stellariopsis
Phenology Flowering summer.
Habitat Dry sandy granitic soil, decomposed granite accumulations, ledges and outcrops, in montane and subalpine conifer woodlands
Elevation 1500–3600 m (4900–11800 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA
Discussion

Ivesia santolinoides is found on loose granitic substrates in the Sierra Nevada, Transverse Ranges, and San Jacinto Mountains from El Dorado to Riverside counties. The species is easily recognized by its silvery mousetail-like leaves and erect, diffuse inflorescences with small, plumlike flowers.

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

Species 1.

P. A. Rydberg (1898) recognized Stellariopsis at the generic level primarily on the basis of the obcordate anthers, which apparently open by terminal pores, as well as the single carpel, mousetail-like leaves, diffuse inflorescence, and flowers intermediate between Ivesia and Potentilla. J. Soják (2008) argued that the anther character alone justifies generic status. Examination of a series of flowers shows that porelike dehiscence is largely a result of the extreme shortness of the anthers relative to width, such that longer-than-average anthers approach a more typical dehiscence mode. The single carpel and mousetail-like leaves are consistent within the taxon, although both are found elsewhere in the genus (albeit not in the same species). The relatively large, maroon-tipped stipitate glands of the inflorescence branches, including the pedicel and hypanthium, are otherwise unknown in Ivesia.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 9, p. 246. FNA vol. 9, p. 245.
Parent taxa Rosaceae > subfam. Rosoideae > tribe Potentilleae > Ivesia > sect. Stellariopsis Rosaceae > subfam. Rosoideae > tribe Potentilleae > Ivesia
Sibling taxa
I. aperta, I. argyrocoma, I. arizonica, I. baileyi, I. callida, I. campestris, I. cryptocaulis, I. gordonii, I. jaegeri, I. kingii, I. longibracteata, I. lycopodioides, I. muirii, I. multifoliolata, I. paniculata, I. patellifera, I. pickeringii, I. pityocharis, I. pygmaea, I. rhypara, I. sabulosa, I. saxosa, I. sericoleuca, I. setosa, I. shockleyi, I. tweedyi, I. unguiculata, I. utahensis, I. webberi
Subordinate taxa
Synonyms Potentilla santolinoides, Stellariopsis santolinoides Potentilla section Stellariopsis, section Stellariopsis
Name authority A. Gray: Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 6: 531. (1865) (Baillon) Ertter & Reveal: Novon 17: 317. (2007)
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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