''Calochortus excavatus'' is a species of flowering plant in the
lily family known by the common name Inyo County star-tulip.
[Calflora taxon report, ''Calochortus excavatus'' E. Greene, Inyo County star tulip ]
/ref>
Distribution
The flowering plant is endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...
to eastern California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
, where it is known from several reduced and threatened populations in Mono
Mono may refer to:
Common meanings
* Infectious mononucleosis, "the kissing disease"
* Monaural, monophonic sound reproduction, often shortened to mono
* Mono-, a numerical prefix representing anything single
Music Performers
* Mono (Japanese b ...
and Inyo Counties. It occupies grassy habitats in alkaline Shadscale scrub Shadscale scrub is a plant community and vegetation type that occurs in upper elevations of the Mojave Desert and lower elevations of the Great Basin ecoregion or biome, characterized by salt tolerant plants— halophytes.
It is located at higher ...
plant communities, alongside ''Atriplex
''Atriplex'' () is a plant genus of about 250 species, known by the common names of saltbush and orache (; also spelled orach). It belongs to the subfamily Chenopodioideae of the family Amaranthaceae ''s.l.''.
The genus is quite variable and w ...
'' and other playa
Playa (plural playas) may refer to:
Landforms
* Endorheic basin, also known as a sink, alkali flat or sabkha, a desert basin with no outlet which periodically fills with water to form a temporary lake
* Dry lake, often called a ''playa'' in the so ...
halophyte flora, primarily in Owens Valley
Owens Valley (Numic
Numic is a branch of the Uto-Aztecan language family. It includes seven languages spoken by Native American peoples traditionally living in the Great Basin, Colorado River basin, Snake River basin, and southern Great Pl ...
.[
The species is listed as endangered, threatened by the loss of local ]groundwater
Groundwater is the water present beneath Earth's surface in rock and soil pore spaces and in the fractures of rock formations. About 30 percent of all readily available freshwater in the world is groundwater. A unit of rock or an unconsolidate ...
.
Description
''Calochortus excavatus'' is a perennial
A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...
bulb, growing a slender unbranched stem to about in maximum height.[
The ]inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed o ...
bears 1 to 6 erect bell-shaped flowers in a close cluster. Each flower has three sepal
A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined b ...
s which lack spotting, and three white petal
Petals are modified Leaf, leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often advertising coloration, brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''c ...
s. The petals may have green striping on their outer surfaces and generally have a red-purple blotch at the base. The anther
The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10
Morphology and terminology
A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filam ...
s are reddish to purple.[Flora of North America]
/ref>Jepson Manual Treatment for ''Calochortus excavatus''
/ref>
See also
*
*
* Shadscale scrub plant community
* Saltbush scrub plant community
References
External links
USDA Plants Profile of ''Calochortus excavatus'' (Inyo County star-tulip)''Calochortus excavatus'' — Calphotos Photo gallery, University of CaliforniaCalifornia Native Plant Society, Bristlecone Chaper, ''Calochortus excavatus'', “Inyo County Star-tulip”
photo and range iniformation
excavatus
Endemic flora of California
Flora of the California desert regions
Flora of the Great Basin
Natural history of Inyo County, California
Owens Valley
{{Liliales-stub