Flora of North America species comparison

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Wyethia ×cusickii

Wyethia amplexicaulis

hybrid mule's ears, mule-ears

mule-ears, northern mule's ears, northern mule-ears, smooth dwarf sunflower
Habit Plants 25–50(–100) cm.
Basal leaves

blades (green, shining) lance-elliptic or oblong-lanceolate to lanceolate, 15–30(–40+) cm, margins usually entire, sometimes denticulate or dentate, not ciliate, faces glabrous (gland-dotted, vernicose);

cauline leaves similar, smaller distally (distalmost sessile, usually ± clasping).
Involucres

hemispheric to turbinate, 15–30 mm diam.
Ray florets

8–21(–25);

laminae 25–60 mm.
Phyllaries

18–36+, subequal or unequal, herbaceous (at least outer), margins not ciliate, faces glabrous;

outer 18–32 mm (surpassing inner).
Heads

usually 2–8 in ± corymbiform to racemiform arrays, sometimes borne singly.
Cypselae

8–9 mm, glabrous.
2n

= 38.

Wyethia ×cusickii

Wyethia amplexicaulis
Phenology Flowering May–Jul.
Habitat Wet to dry, open sites, meadows, sagebrush scrub, yellow-pine forests
Elevation 400–3000 m (1300–9800 ft)
Distribution
from USDA
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CO; ID; MT; NV; OR; UT; WA; WY
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Wyethia amplexicaulis introgressively hybridizes with W. arizonica (producing plants called W. ×magna A. Nelson ex W. A. Weber) across a broad area of central and southern Colorado. Habit of the hybrid is typical of W. amplexicaulis; the indument resembles that of W. arizonica in varying degrees. Occasionally, W. amplexicaulis hybridizes with but does not introgress with W. helianthoides.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 21, p. 102.
Parent taxa Asteraceae > tribe Heliantheae > subtribe Ecliptinae > Wyethia
Sibling taxa
W. amplexicaulis, W. angustifolia, W. arizonica, W. glabra, W. helenioides, W. helianthoides, W. longicaulis, W. mollis
W. angustifolia, W. arizonica, W. glabra, W. helenioides, W. helianthoides, W. longicaulis, W. mollis
Synonyms Espeletia amplexicaulis, W. amplexicaulis subsp. major, W. amplexicaulis subsp. subresinosa, W. lanceolata
Name authority (Nuttall) Nuttall: Trans. Amer. Philos. Soc., n. s. 7: 352. (1840)
Web links 
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Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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