Potentilla cottamii
Potentilla modesta
Cottam's cinquefoil, pilot range cinquefoil
modest cinquefoil
usually not sheathed with marcescent whole leaves.
0.4–1.7 dm.
ascending to nearly erect, (0.3–)0.5–1.5(–2.5) dm.
ternate, (1.5–)2–6(–8) cm;
petiole 0.8–5(–7) cm, long hairs sparse to abundant, usually ± spreading, sometimes ascending, 0.5–1 mm, weak to ± stiff, glands sparse to common;
leaflets 3, central obovate-cuneate, (0.2–)0.5–1(–1.5) × 0.2–1 cm, scarcely petiolulate, distal 1/2–2/3 of margins evenly incised 1/3–1/2 to midvein, teeth (1–)2–3(–4) per side, surfaces green, long hairs sparse to common, 0.5–1 mm, glands sparse to abundant.
usually palmate, rarely also ternate on same plant or subpalmate, 2–6(–8) cm;
petiole 0.5–3.5(–5) cm, long hairs common to abundant, ± ascending to almost spreading, 1–2 mm, weak to ± stiff, scarcely to ± verrucose, short and/or crisped hairs common to abundant, cottony hairs absent, glands sparse to common;
leaflets (3–)5, proximalmost separated by 0–1 mm, central obovate to oblanceolate-elliptic, 0.5–2(–2.5) × 0.5–1(–1.5) cm, petiolules 1 mm, distal 3/4 to nearly whole margin incised 1/2–3/4 to midvein, teeth 2–5 per side, (1–)2–5 mm, apical tufts 0.5–1 mm, abaxial surfaces white, long hairs common to abundant, cottony-crisped hairs dense, short hairs and glands absent or obscured, adaxial grayish green, long hairs common to abundant, 0.5–1.5 mm, ± stiff, rarely soft, short and/or crisped hairs sparse to common, cottony hairs absent, glands sparse to common.
1–2.
1–4-flowered.
(1–)3–10-flowered, congested or ± elongating in fruit, branch angle 20–35°.
0.5–2(–4) cm.
0.2–0.5 cm, proximal to 1.2 cm.
epicalyx bractlets sometimes paired, narrowly elliptic, 1.5–2(–2.5) × 0.5–1 mm 1/2–3/4 as long as sepals;
hypanthium 2–3 mm diam.;
sepals 2.5–4 mm, apex broadly acute;
petals ± paler abaxially, bright yellow adaxially, ± obcordate to broadly obovate, (2–)3–4 × 2–3 mm;
filaments 1–1.5 mm, anthers 0.3–0.5 mm;
carpels 10–25, styles 1–1.5 mm.
epicalyx bractlets narrowly elliptic, 1.5–3 × 0.5–1 mm;
hypanthium 3–4 mm diam.;
sepals 2.5–4 mm, apex ± acute, glands abundant, usually not obscured;
petals yellow, ± overlapping, 3.5–5 × 3–4 mm, slightly longer than sepals;
filaments 1 mm, anthers 0.3–0.7 mm;
carpels 20–40, styles 1 mm.
1.3 mm, smooth to lightly rugose.
1 mm.
hairs not well differentiated from long hairs, absent or sparse throughout.
Potentilla cottamii
Potentilla modesta
Of conservation concern.
Potentilla cottamii is known only from the Pilot Range, Elko County, Nevada, and in northwestern Utah from the Deep Creek, Raft River, and Stansbury mountains. Plants of P. cottamii can form dense clumps to 4 dm across. Except for the short style, which led Holmgren to associate the species with P. hyparctica and P. robbinsiana in sect. Aureae, P. cottamii fits well in sect. Subviscosae.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Potentilla modesta is the dominant component of what has previously been called P. rubricaulis in the Intermountain Region (for example, N. H. Holmgren 1997b, including illustration). This and other species of alpine Potentilla often grow in mixed populations, which contributes to confusion and mistaken identifications. In general, P. modesta has a more compact inflorescence and more consistently palmate basal leaves than sympatric members of the section. Intergrades with P. jepsonii (sect. Pensylvanicae) can also be problematic, though leaves of the latter are generally subpinnate and abaxially grayish rather than white.
The epithet modesta is misapplied in the combination Potentilla concinna var. modesta, which S. L. Welsh et al. (1993) used for plants mostly placed here in P. concinna var. divisa (sect. Concinnae).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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