Pedicularis contorta |
Pedicularis howellii |
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coil-beak lousewort, coiled lousewort, coiled pedicularis, curve-beak lousewort, curved-beak lousewort, white coiled-beak lousewort |
Howell lousewort, Howell's lousewort, Howell's pedicularis |
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Habit | Plants 10–50 cm. | Plants 15–40 cm. | ||||||||
Leaves | basal 3–10, blade lanceolate, 30–100 x 5–30 mm, 1- or 2-pinnatifid, margins of adjacent lobes nonoverlapping, entire or serrate, surfaces glabrous; cauline 2–10, blade elliptic or triangular to lanceolate, 5–70 x 10–25 mm, 1-pinnatifid, margins of adjacent lobes nonoverlapping, entire or serrate, surfaces glabrous. |
basal 1–4, blade elliptic to lanceolate, 20–60 x 15–40 mm, undivided or 1-pinnatifid, margins of adjacent lobes nonoverlapping or slightly overlapping distally, serrate, surfaces glabrous; cauline 10–12, blade ovate to lanceolate, 25–60 x 15–40 mm, undivided or 1-pinnatifid, sometimes auricled, margins of adjacent lobes nonoverlapping or slightly overlapping distally, entire or serrate to crenate, surfaces glabrous or scattered woolly along main vein. |
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Racemes | simple, 1–6, exceeding basal leaves, each 12–40-flowered; bracts trullate to obtrullate, 5–18 x 2–15 mm, pinnatifid, margins entire, surfaces glabrous. |
simple, 1–8, exceeding basal leaves, each 15–40-flowered; bracts trullate to cordate, 6–8 x 4–8 mm, undivided, proximal margins entire, distal entire, surfaces glabrous or tomentose. |
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Pedicels | 1.5–5.5 mm. |
2.5–3 mm. |
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Flowers | calyx 5–9 mm, glabrous, lobes 5, triangular, 1–3 mm, apex entire, glabrous; corolla 7–13 mm, tube white or cream to yellowish or pink to pinkish purple, 4–7 mm; galea white or cream to yellowish with purple spots at base, or pink to pinkish purple, 2–5.5 mm, beaked, beak coiled, 5–9 mm, base curving, margins entire medially and distally, apex surrounded by abaxial lip, axis of coil nearly vertical; abaxial lip surrounding beak, white or cream to yellowish, or pink to pinkish purple, 5–8 mm. |
calyx 6–6.5 mm, tomentose, lobes 5, triangular, 1.5–2 mm, apex entire, ciliate; corolla 10–13 mm, tube white, 6–8 mm; galea white, apically sometimes tinged with red to violet, 3.5–5 mm, beaked, beak straight, 1–2 mm, margins entire medially and distally, apex extending beyond abaxial lip; abaxial lip white, 1.5–2 mm. |
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Pedicularis contorta |
Pedicularis howellii |
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Phenology | Flowering Jun–Aug. | |||||||||
Habitat | Alpine forest clearings and edges. | |||||||||
Elevation | 1100–2000. | |||||||||
Distribution |
CA; ID; MT; OR; UT; WA; WY; AB; BC
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CA; OR
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Discussion | Varieties 3 (3 in the flora). The coiled beak that extends directly downward from the top of the galea is distinctive in Pedicularis contorta. Seen from the side, the large, upward-expanded, lateral lobes of the abaxial lip surround the beak, concealing it from view. The flowers of P. contorta are very similar to those of P. racemosa; however, the leaves of P. racemosa are undivided, the beak curves down and to one side, and the inflorescence often branches, forming a panicle of short racemes with long internodes between flowers. Flower and calyx color and width of the subtending floral bracts delimit three varieties in Pedicularis contorta; corolla color is difficult to discern in herbarium specimens. The following key is adapted from R. N. Reese (1984). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Pedicularis howellii is found in the Siskiyou Mountains along the California/Oregon border; it has undivided distal leaves. The division of the proximal leaves into irregular and asymmetric lobes, sometimes appearing auricled, is a unique feature of this species. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
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Key |
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Source | FNA vol. 17, p. 519. | FNA vol. 17, p. 523. | ||||||||
Parent taxa | Orobanchaceae > Pedicularis | Orobanchaceae > Pedicularis | ||||||||
Sibling taxa | ||||||||||
Subordinate taxa | ||||||||||
Name authority | Bentham: in W. J. Hooker, Fl. Bor.-Amer. 2: 108. (1838) | A. Gray: Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 20: 307. (1885) | ||||||||
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