Micranthes nelsoniana
Micranthes gaspensis
dotted saxifrage, heartleaf saxifrage, Nelson's saxifrage, saxifrage
Gaspé saxifrage, saxifrage de gaspésie
basal;
petiole rounded, 3–30 cm;
blade reniform to round, 2–9 cm, thin or slightly fleshy, sometimes thick and fleshy, base cordate, margins deeply crenate, eciliate or sparsely short glandular-ciliate, surfaces glabrous or ± hairy.
basal;
petiole flattened, 0.7–2.5 cm;
blade obtrullate or obovate to ovate, 0.8–2.5 cm, ± coriaceous, base attenuate to ± cuneate, margins serrate to dentate on distal 2/3, ciliate, surfaces tangled, reddish brown-hairy abaxially, glabrous or glabrate adaxially.
10+-flowered, ± open, lax to congested, conic, sometimes also glomerate thyrses, 10–35 cm, tangled-hairy (pilose-arachnoid) at least distally, sometimes also purple- or brown-tipped stipitate-glandular.
3–10-flowered, subcapitate to spicate cymes or thyrses, 2–10(–15) cm, glabrate to sparsely hairy proximally, ± densely purple-tipped stipitate-glandular distally.
sepals reflexed, ± ovate;
petals white to pinkish, rarely orange-spotted, ovate to oblong, narrowly to broadly clawed, 2.5–4.5 mm, longer than sepals;
filaments distinctly club-shaped;
pistils connate 1/2–3/4 their lengths;
ovary superior (to 1/3 adnate to hypanthium).
sepals erect, reflexed in fruit, triangular to deltate;
petals white, not spotted, obovate, clawed, 1.5–2 mm, ± equaling sepals;
filaments linear, flattened;
pistils connate to 1/2 their lengths;
ovary 1/2 inferior, appearing more superior in fruit.
green to yellow and purplish tinged to dark purple, valvate.
green, becoming reddish or purplish, folliclelike.
= 40.
Micranthes nelsoniana
Micranthes gaspensis
Varieties 6 (5 in the flora).
Although sometimes reported for North America, Saxifraga nelsoniana var. aestivalis (Fischer & C. A. Meyer) H. Ohba (S. aestivalis Fischer & C. A. Meyer) is found only in Eurasia.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Of conservation concern.
Micranthes gaspensis appears to be the stabilized hybrid derivative of M. nivalis and M. tenuis (C. Gervais et al. 1995), known only from the Shickshock Mountains of the Gaspé Peninsula; the chromosome number is intermediate between that of the parents (2n = 60 and 20, respectively), and seeds are fertile. Neither parent occurs any longer in the Gaspé Peninsula, and the plants appear to self-perpetuate.
F1 hybrids of the two parent species (also 2n = 40) occur in Yukon (D. L. Krause and K. I. Beamish 1973) and possibly at other locations throughout their range of sympatry, such as northern Quebec and Labrador; such hybrids will key out with Micranthes gaspensis. Individuals called Saxifraga rufopilosa (Hultén) A. E. Porsild [S. nivalis (Linnaeus) Small var. rufopilosa Hultén] from Yukon and Alaska (W. J. Cody 2000) also will key out here. These may represent either the F1 hybrids mentioned above or stabilized hybrid populations such as those in the Gaspé. It is possible that such stabilized populations would fit under the name M. gaspensis. A systematic study is needed before a taxonomic conclusion can be reached concerning their status.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
1. Inflorescences purple- or brown-tipped stipitate- glandular. | var. nelsoniana |
1. Inflorescences tangled-hairy | → 2 |
2. Leaf blade margins 9-12-toothed; capsules 6-12 mm; mostly Queen Charlotte Islands, adjacent coastal British Columbia. | var. carlottae |
2. Leaf blade margins 12-18-toothed; capsules 3-8 mm; Oregon to Alaska and nw Canada | → 3 |
3. Inflorescences somewhat lax, hairs appressed; Coast Ranges and Cascades, British Columbia, Oregon, Washington. | var. cascadensis |
3. Inflorescences congested, hairs ascending; nw Canada, Alaska | → 4 |
4. Leaf blades thick, fleshy; pistils connate most of their lengths; Aleutian Islands, Alaska. | var. insularis |
4. Leaf blades thin, not fleshy; pistils connate to 3/4 their lengths; nw Canada, Alaska. | var. porsildiana |
- Local floras:
BC, 
OR, 
WA - Local Web sites:
Flora NW, 
PNW Herbaria 
WildflowerSearch
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USDA Plants Database- LBJ Wildflower Center
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