''Fritillaria pyrenaica'' is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

in the lily

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Liliaceae,

native Native may refer to: People * Jus soli, citizenship by right of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Native Americans (disambiguation) In arts and entert ...

to the

Pyrenees The Pyrenees (; es, Pirineos ; french: Pyrénées ; ca, Pirineu ; eu, Pirinioak ; oc, Pirenèus ; an, Pirineus) is a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. It extends nearly from its union with the Cantabrian Mountains to C ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

and

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

.Cheers, G. and H. F. Ullmann. ''Botanica: The Illustrated A-Z of Over 10,000 Garden Plants and how to Cultivate Them''. Könemann im Tandem. 2004. p. 384. Common names include Pyrenean fritillary''Fritillaria pyrenaica''.
Royal Horticultural Society. and Pyrenean snake's-head. It is a

bulb In botany, a bulb is structurally a short stem with fleshy leaves or leaf basesBell, A.D. 1997. ''Plant form: an illustrated guide to flowering plant morphology''. Oxford University Press, Oxford, U.K. that function as food storage organs duri ...

ous

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 ...

growing to . The pendent, bell-shaped flowers are borne in spring. They have recurved

tepal A tepal is one of the outer parts of a flower (collectively the perianth). The term is used when these parts cannot easily be classified as either sepals or petals. This may be because the parts of the perianth are undifferentiated (i.e. of very ...

s which are purple tinged with brown and yellow. Like other species in this genus, notably ''

F. meleagris ''Fritillaria meleagris'' is a Eurasian species of flowering plant in the lily family Liliaceae. Its common names include snake's head fritillary, snake's head (the original English name), chess flower, frog-cup, guinea-hen flower, guinea flower, ...

'', they are strongly chequered.

Subspecies

Two subspecies are currently recognized: ''Fritillaria pyrenaica'' subsp. ''boissieri'' (Costa) Vigo & Valdés ''Fritillaria pyrenaica'' subsp. ''pyrenaica''

Cultivation

In cultivation in the UK ''Fritillaria pyrenaica'' has gained the

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr (Nort ...

Award of Garden Merit The Award of Garden Merit (AGM) is a long-established annual award for plants by the British Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). It is based on assessment of the plants' performance under UK growing conditions. History The Award of Garden Merit ...

. It grows in any open place, such as a flower border or meadow, in full sun. Like all the Liliaceae, it is subject to predation by the

scarlet lily beetle The scarlet lily beetle, red lily beetle, or lily leaf beetle (''Lilioceris lilii''), is a leaf beetle that eats the leaves, stem, buds, and flowers, of lilies, fritillaries and other members of the family Liliaceae. It lays its eggs most often ...

and its larvae. File:Fritillaria nigra (buds).JPG, Arising File:Fritillaria nigra (buds) 03.JPG, Flower buds File:Fritillaria nigra 003.JPG, Flower (outer side) File:Fritillaria nigra inside flower.JPG, Flower (inner side) File:Fritillaria nigra - mature seedpods.JPG, Mature seed capsules

References

pyrenaica Flora of the Pyrenees Flora of France Flora of Spain Garden plants Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus {{liliales-stub