An official website of the state of Utah.

Official Utah websites use utah.gov in the browser's address bar.
A Utah.gov website belongs to an official government organization in the state of Utah.

Be careful when sharing sensitive information.
Share sensitive information only on secure official Utah.gov websites.

Field Guide


Marcus Jones' Penstemon

Marcus Jones' Penstemon (Penstemon marcusii)
(Tap or click to view all images.)
Photo by zharkikh; Ty Harrison; springlake1; springlake1
Andrey Zharkikh; Ty Harrison; springlake1; springlake1

Penstemon marcusii

NatureServe conservation status

Global (G-rank): G2
State (S-rank): S2

Utah Wildlife Action Plan status

  • SGCN

External links


General information

Penstemon marcusii or Marcus Jones’ penstemon is a perennial blue-violet flowered herb endemic to the Navajo Basin in Utah. 

Description

Penstemon marcusii or Marcus Jones’ penstemon is a perennial herb arising from a branched caudex and taproot with ascending to erect stems reaching 12-26 cm tall. Herbage is puberlent and leaves are both basal and cauline. Leaves are linear-lanceol

Species range

Penstemon marcusii is endemic to the Navajo Basin in Utah and can be found in Carbon, Emery, and Grand counties.

Map

Range of Marcus Jones' Penstemon (Penstemon marcusii)

Threats or limiting factors

The main threats to this species are habitat loss due to expansion of urban footprint and energy development. Some occurrences (on BLM) are in grazing allotments. Drought is also likely impacting this species. Frates Feb. 2020 (UNPS accessed 2024): the Jerry's Point occurrence (see Sego Lily articles by Ty Harrison of July 2016 and later by Normam Anderson Fall 2019) is currently being disturbed by a bulldozer, plants have been directly impacted, and this occurrence may soon be lost. Harrison reported that the type location at the Price City cemetery had been destroyed by a new city park and BMX facility.

Taxonomy

No, this species does not have taxonomic discrepancies