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Bearded Cryptantha (Cryptantha barbigera)

Description

Cryptantha barbigera var. fergusoniae is synonymous with C. barbigera in the 1993 Jepson Manual, but is synonymous with C. intermedia at USDA Plants. To try to resolve this discrepancy in Whitewater Canyon, at the southeast end of the San Bernardino Mountains, I analyzed specimens of C. barbigera var. fergusoniae and C. intermedia. These two taxa are clearly distinct here. Specimens of C. intermedia from Whitewater Canyon are essentially identical in floral measurements to more coastal specimens of that species. Except for its much bigger corollas, C. barbigera var. fergusoniae is very similar to specimens of C. barbigera var. barbigera from the Borrego Desert. Thus the alignment of C. barbigera var. fergusoniae with C. barbigera var. barbigera is strongly supported by these specimens.

Taxonomic tree

  • Domain: Eukarya

    • Kingdom: Plantae

      • Phylum: Magnoliophyta

        • Class: Magnoliopsida

          • Order: Boraginales

            • Family: Boraginaceae

              • Genus: Cryptantha