Flora of North America species comparison

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Orthocarpus

owl's-clover, owl-clover
Habit Herbs, annual; hemiparasitic.
Stems

erect or ascending, not fleshy, glabrous or hairy.
Leaves

cauline, alternate;

petiole absent;

blade not fleshy, not leathery, margins entire or 3–7-lobed.
Inflorescences

terminal, spikes or racemes;

bracts present.
Pedicels

absent or present;

bracteoles absent.
Flowers

sepals 4, calyx symmetric, tubular, lobes triangular;

petals 5, corolla purple-pink, yellow, or white, strongly bilabiate, club-shaped, often gibbous at base of abaxial lip, abaxial lobes 0 or 3, adaxial 2, adaxial lip galeate, rounded at apex, sometimes obscurely so, opening downward;

stamens 4, didynamous, filaments glabrous or hairy;

staminode 0;

ovary 2-locular, placentation axile;

stigma linear, not expanded at apex.
Capsules

dehiscence loculicidal.
Seeds

5–35, light to dark brown or yellow, ovoid to reniform or oblong, wings absent.
x

= 7.

Orthocarpus
Distribution
from USDA
w North America
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Species 9 (9 in the flora).

Orthocarpus is related to Cordylanthus and can be distinguished by its four-lobed, tubular calyces (D. C. Tank et al. 2009). Some species placed traditionally in Orthocarpus were transferred to Castilleja and Triphysaria by T. I. Chuang and L. R. Heckard (1991).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Key
1. Bract margins 5–7-lobed; pedicels 2–3 mm; corollas: adaxial lips bearded at tip.
O. barbatus
1. Bract margins entire or 3(–5)-lobed; pedicels 0–2 mm; corollas: adaxial lips not bearded at tip.
→ 2
2. Bracts: midlobes ovate or obovate, 4–10 mm wide, apices obtuse, cuspidate.
→ 3
3. Corollas: adaxial lips not hooked at tip.
O. cuspidatus
3. Corollas: adaxial lips notably hooked at tip.
→ 4
4. Corollas 25–30 mm, adaxial lips glabrous, abaxial lobes rounded.
O. pachystachyus
4. Corollas 10–20 mm, adaxial lips puberulent, abaxial lobes triangular.
→ 5
5. Distal leaf margins entire; calyces 5–7 mm; capsules 4–5 mm, apices retuse.
O. imbricatus
5. Distal leaf margins 3–7 lobed; calyces 8–12 mm; capsules 6–7 mm, apices acute.
O. tenuifolius
2. Bracts: midlobes triangular, 0.7–4 mm wide, apices acute or acuminate, not cuspidate.
→ 6
6. Corollas: adaxial lips golden yellow, tips minutely hooked.
O. luteus
6. Corollas: adaxial lips yellow or purple-pink to white, tips notably hooked.
→ 7
7. Distal leaf margins entire; seeds 3–6; corollas: abaxial lips with triangular lobes.
O. tolmiei
7. Distal leaf margins 3-lobed; seeds 10–26; corollas: abaxial lips with lobes 0.
→ 8
8. Bracts: midlobes 3–4 mm wide, lateral lobes narrowly triangular; capsule apices retuse; seeds 10–15.
O. bracteosus
8. Bracts: midlobes 1–2 mm wide, lateral lobes linear; capsule apices cuspidate; seeds 18–26.
O. purpureoalbus
Source FNA vol. 17, p. 680. Author: Kerry A. Barringer.
Parent taxa Orobanchaceae
Subordinate taxa
O. barbatus, O. bracteosus, O. cuspidatus, O. imbricatus, O. luteus, O. pachystachyus, O. purpureoalbus, O. tenuifolius, O. tolmiei
Name authority Nuttall: Gen. N. Amer. Pl. 2: 56. (1818)
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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