Thysanocarpus laciniatus
Thysanocarpus curvipes
mountain fringepod, narrow leaf lacepod
common fringe pod, lace-pod, sand fringe-pod, sand lacepod
1–6 dm.
1–6(–8) dm.
blade oblanceolate to elliptic, 1–6 cm, margins often pinnatifid with narrow lobes (lobes 0.5–1.5 mm), sometimes sinuate-dentate or subentire, surfaces usually glabrous, rarely sparsely hirsute, trichomes whitish, 0.3–0.4 mm.
blade oblanceolate to obovate, 1–6(–13) cm, margins subentire to sinuate-dentate, surfaces often hirsute, sometimes glabrous, (trichomes white, 0.3–0.6 mm).
blade linear to narrowly elliptic, widest near middle or equally wide throughout, base not auriculate or with small, inconspicuous auricles (not extending around stem).
blade lanceolate, widest at base, base auriculate-clasping, auricles extending around stem (at least some leaves).
internodes (1.5–)2–4.5 mm in fruit.
internodes 3–6(–9) mm in fruit.
smoothly recurved or straight and stiffly spreading, (proximal) 3–6(–10) mm.
smoothly recurved, (proximal) 3–7(–12) mm.
flat or plano-convex, obovate to nearly orbicular, (2.5–5 mm wide);
valves often glabrous, sometimes pubescent, trichomes clavate, 0.05–0.4 mm;
wing entire or deeply crenate, rays absent or indistinct.
flat or plano-convex, obovate to nearly orbicular, [3–6(–9) mm wide];
valves pubescent or glabrous, trichomes clavate and 0.2–0.4 mm, or pointed and ± 0.2 mm;
wing entire, perforate, or incised, rays absent or distinct, (0–)0.2–0.5 mm wide.
Thysanocarpus laciniatus
Thysanocarpus curvipes
Varieties 3 (3 in the flora).
Thysanocarpus laciniatus presents some of the same problems as does T. curvipes. Variety laciniatus contains both diploids and tetraploids (M. D. Windham, unpubl.) and varies in fruit characters, pubescence, and basal leaf shape. Specimens with sinuate-dentate basal leaf margins and small auricles on cauline leaves can be difficult to distinguish from T. curvipes. Preliminary molecular phylogenetic analyses support the distinction between T. curvipes and T. laciniatus var. laciniatus, but suggest that tetraploid populations of the latter may have arisen through hybridization between T. curvipes and a diploid member of the T. laciniatus clade (P. Alexander, unpubl.). Varieties hitchcockii and rigidus are distinctive diploids (Windham, unpubl.) with restricted ranges and may deserve specific rank. Variety rigidus (known to us from only four collections) can be difficult to distinguish from the more purplish specimens of var. laciniatus, but the latter have at least some recurved pedicels and often have pinnatifid leaves.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Thysanocarpus curvipes is the most widespread and variable species in the genus. Variants have been named as varieties or species, but they grade into each other imperceptibly. Notable among these are var. elegans, a form with incised or perforate fruit wings, and var. eradiatus, a form with rayless, entire wings. Some of these may be the result of hybridization with other taxa. For instance, var. elegans has large fruits and occurs in the vicinity of T. radians, the largest-fruited member of the genus. Furthermore, fruits of var. elegans often have pointed hairs like those usually found on fruits of T. radians; such hairs are not found on fruits of any other members of the genus. Thysanocarpus curvipes includes both diploid and tetraploid populations (M. D. Windham, unpubl.), but these do not appear to segregate into recognizable groups. Although the variation in T. curvipes is considerable, its great complexity prevents recognition of infraspecific taxa at this time.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
1. Fruit valves pubescent, trichomes 0.05-0.1 mm. | var. hitchcockii |
1. Fruit valves usually glabrous, or trichomes 0.2-0.4 mm | → 2 |
2. Foliage usually greenish throughout, sometimes purplish basally; basal leaf blade margins pinnatifid or sinuate-dentate; fruiting pedicels smoothly recurved. | var. laciniatus |
2. Foliage purplish throughout; basal leaf blade margins subentire to sinuate-dentate; fruiting pedicels straight or nearly so. | var. rigidus |
- Local floras:
BC, 
CA, 
OR, 
WA - Local Web sites: CalFlora, CalPhotos,
Flora NW, 
PNW Herbaria, Turner Photog. 
WildflowerSearch
iNaturalist (observations)
USDA Plants Database- LBJ Wildflower Center
- SEINet
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- Encyclopedia of Life
- Wikipedia
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