Flora of North America species comparison

Subspecies 6 (5 in the flora).

Pedicularis sudetica is a difficult complex. Hultén employed the degree of lobing on subtending floral bracts, length of corolla tubes, and inflorescence vestiture in recognizing eight infraspecific taxa. U. Molau and D. F. Murray (1996) emphasized presence or absence of spots on the abaxial lip, inflorescence vestiture, length of petioles and calyx, and ecological features to define four species, subsuming several of Hultén’s other subspecific taxa into these species. According to Molau and Murray, P. sudetica in the narrow sense is a morphologically distinct, disjunct taxon endemic to the Sudeten Mountains of central Europe, but part of the broader circumscription by Hultén (1961, 1964), which is treated here as the sixth subspecies.

U. Molau and D. F. Murray (1996) did not include subsp. scopulorum in their analysis, noting only that teeth are virtually absent on the galea of Pedicularis scopulorum. Presence or absence of apical teeth on the margins of the galea often distinguishes species in other Pedicularis taxa. Because teeth are sometimes present in this taxon, it is treated here as one of the five North American subspecies in the broad sense of P. sudetica. A recent molecular study confirms its close relationship to other members of the complex (B. W. Robart et al. 2015).

When comparing the two alternative taxonomies, the treatment by U. Molau and D. F. Murray (1996) is easier to apply. Close inspection of specimens identified as these species often reveals combinations of traits attributable to more than one taxon; Molau and Murray reported finding hybridization common between Pedicularis albolabiata and P. arctoeuropaea, and P. albolabiata and P. pacifica where habitats overlap, indicating that reproductive isolation is not complete. Recognition of these taxa as varieties may be more appropriate considering the broad geographic overlap where the few distinguishing features tend to intergrade. They are treated here, however, as subspecies. The following key is modified from Molau and Murray.

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

Pedicularis parviflora belongs to a complex of taxa [including P. parviflora var. macrodontis (Richardson) S. L. Welsh, and P. pennellii] that have traditionally been treated as species, subspecies, or varieties. Two features unite this group: a highly branched paniculate raceme and a tooth on each medial margin of the galea covered with pyriform glands on the inner surface. Lack of apical teeth sets P. parviflora apart from P. palustris and P. pennellii, which have both sets of teeth.

The distinction of Pedicularis macrodontis is not clear. With a galea that lacks apical teeth, it is clearly associated with P. parviflora, but there are no unique characters to set it apart as a distinct species; all foliar and floral features are very similar. A number of intermediate specimens were seen, suggesting a lack of reproductive barriers; treatment as a variety of P. parviflora, following S. L. Welsh (1974), may be warranted, but further research is required before recognizing it as a taxon.

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