Atwood's Pretty
Zach Coury 2024; Zach Coury 2024
Phacelia pulchella var. atwoodii
NatureServe conservation status
Global (G-rank): GNRT2
State (S-rank): S2
Utah Wildlife Action Plan status
- SGCN
External links
General information
Phacelia pulchella var. atwoodii is a small annual herb found in Kane County, Utah and Mohave and Coconino Counties, Arizona. This species has succulent stems and flowers with purple corollas and yellow tubes. It grows mainly on gypsum containing soils of the Moenkopi Formation among pinyon-juniper, oak, sagebrush, single-leaf ash, and serviceberry communities at 5,100-5,500 feet elevation.
Description
Phacelia pulchella var. atwoodii has a mature height of less than 10 cm tall. Stems branch from the base and are erect, succulent, brittle, and finely glandular. The leaves are entire to toothed, oblong to orbicular, and usually less than 1.8 cm lo
Phenology
Flowers April through May.
Diagnostic characteristics
Phacelia pulchella var. atwoodii is similar to var. pulchella, but differs by its mature height being less than 10 cm tall, shorter leaves, and a fruiting calyx that is only one-third of the capsule. Phaceli pulchella var. atwoodii differs from P. subulonum by having a smaller corolla and much smaller leaves.
Species range
Described in 1993 as endemic to Kane County, Utah, but re-examination of material indicates that Phacelia pulchella var. atwoodii is also present in Mohave and Coconino counties in northern Arizona (W. Fertig, pers. comm., 2007).
Map
Taxonomy
No, this species does not have taxonomic discrepancies