Palafoxia arida var. gigantea

Imperiled  (NatureServe)[1]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Genus: Palafoxia
Species:
P. arida
Variety:
P. a. var. gigantea
Trinomial name
Palafoxia arida var. gigantea
(M.E.Jones) B.L.Turner & M.I.Morris

Palafoxia arida var. gigantea, with the common name Spanish needles, is a variety of flowering plant from the sunflower family (Asteraceae).[2]

Distribution

It is found in the western and northwestern Sonoran Desert of Arizona and its Colorado Desert subregion of southeastern California,[2] and in northwestern Mexico in Sonora and Baja California states.[3]

It is most commonly found in sand dunes, and sometimes in riverine areas, including along the Colorado River, Gila River, and irrigation canals in Imperial County, California.

It is a California Native Plant Society listed Vulnerable species in California.[4]

Description

Palafoxia arida var. gigantea is an erect, slender stem grows 30–60 cm tall, branching in the lower half and is sparsely leaved.[3] It is glandular and hairy on the upper parts.[3]

It has 2-5 inch slender leaves.[5][6]

In the Yuma region of the Lower Colorado River Valley, in semi-shaded sites with annual but sparse rainfall, single plants can grow to be bushy and produce around 100 flowers.

The wind-borne seeds are dandelion-like, but larger and in a smaller quantity per flower. The plant with seed is easily identified since the seeds splay out in a flat circle until broken from the plant by strong wind. The seed is macroscopic in size, with about 10-16 seeds per circular flower-splay, each seed up to 0.6 in before the parachute.

References

  1. ↑ "NatureServe Explorer 2.0".
  2. 1 2 "USDA: Palafoxia arida var. gigantea". Archived from the original on 2006-10-13. Retrieved 2008-01-11.
  3. 1 2 3 "Jepson eFlora: Palafoxia arida var. gigantea". Archived from the original on 2016-09-27. Retrieved 2016-09-25.
  4. ↑ "California Native Plant Society Inventory of Rare and Endangered Plants (online edition, v8-02): Palafoxia arida var. gigantea". Archived from the original on 2016-09-27. Retrieved 2016-09-25.
  5. ↑ "Desertusa.com: High Res. photo of Palafoxia arida var. gigantea flower". Archived from the original on 2010-12-26. Retrieved 2008-01-11.
  6. ↑ "Desertusa.com: Wildflower Field Guide — "Purple and Blue Blooms"". Archived from the original on 2008-01-18. Retrieved 2008-01-11.
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