Primula mistassinica
Primula rusbyi
bird's-eye primrose, Lake Mistassini primrose, Mistassini primrose, primevère du lac Mistassini
Rusby's primrose
not aromatic, indistinctly petiolate;
petiole narrowly winged;
blade without deep reticulate veins abaxially, spatulate to elliptic, 5–7 × 0.2–1.6 cm, thin, margins denticulate to almost entire, apex obtuse to acute, surfaces glabrous.
not aromatic, indistinctly petiolate;
petiole broadly winged;
blade without deep reticulate veins abaxially, lanceolate to spatulate, 4–15 × 1–2 cm, thick, margins distinctly and evenly denticulate, apex obtuse to somewhat acute, surfaces glabrous.
1–5(–10)-flowered;
involucral bracts plane, ± equal.
4–12-flowered;
involucral bracts plane, unequal.
arcuate, thin, 5–20 mm, length 2–4 times bracts, flexuous.
arcuate, moderately thick, 10–35 mm, length 1–5 times bracts, flexuous.
heterostylous;
calyx green, campanulate, 3–5 mm;
corolla lavender, tube 5–8 mm, length 1.5–2 times calyx, eglandular, limb 8–14 mm diam., lobes 4–7 mm, apex emarginate.
heterostylous;
calyx green, with white farinose ridges, cylindric to campanulate, 4–8 mm;
corolla rose-magenta, tube 5–15 mm, length 1.2–2 times calyx, glandular, limb 15–25 mm diam., lobes 7–12 mm, apex emarginate.
cylindric to ellipsoid, length 1–1.2 times calyx.
ellipsoid to ovoid, length 1 times calyx.
without flanged edges, reticulate.
without flanged edges, reticulate.
= 18.
= 44.
Primula mistassinica
Primula rusbyi
Primula mistassinica is the most widespread of the North American primroses, and one of the more polymorphic. It can vary in size, leaf morphology, and amount of farina; it is generally consistent in overall habit and floral morphology. Infraspecific taxa previously recognized include var. intercedens, a farinose form common around the Great Lakes, and var. novaeboracensis, a form without a prominent yellow eye in the corolla tube. Isolated individuals showing these characteristics appear throughout the range of the species, and an extensive examination of the complex by H. W. Vogelmann (1956, 1960) led him to conclude that it is best treated as a single, highly variable species; recent molecular analyses (A. Guggisberg et al. 2006) support this assessment. Around the Great Lakes, the presence of farina on the leaves is especially variable, and can range from extensive to nonexistent. Consequently, it seems most appropriate to recognize a single polymorphic taxon with no infraspecific designations, unless molecular analysis suggests otherwise. Although smaller forms of P. mistassinica often have been confused with other species in sect. Aleuritia, it is usually distinguishable by its relatively large heterostylous flowers with lavender corollas.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Primula rusbyi has the most southern distribution of the species in sect. Parryi, occurring in the mountains of New Mexico and Arizona, and in Mexico and probably northern Guatemala. It is well-marked by toothed leaf margins and a prominently farina-striped calyx. Typically, its corolla tube far exceeds the calyx. Some individuals from the Sandia Mountains of New Mexico have a shorter corolla tube more or less equal to the calyx; these plants have been described as P. ellisiae. A single population can include individuals of both types, and the difference probably represents only a developmental stage of the flowers or minor morphological variation in some localized populations; preliminary genetic analyses (S. Kelso and P. Beardsley, unpubl.) reveal no substantive genetic distinction between these individuals and those from elsewhere in the range.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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