''Navarretia leucocephala'' is a species of flowering plant in the phlox family known by the common name whitehead pincushionplant, or whitehead navarretia. It is native to North America, including much of the western United States and central Canada. It generally grows in wet or moist terrestrial habitat such as

vernal pool Vernal pools, also called vernal ponds or ephemeral pools, are seasonal pools of water that provide habitat for distinctive plants and animals. They are considered to be a distinctive type of wetland usually devoid of fish, and thus allow the safe ...

s. It is an annual herb producing a slender, hairy stem. The plant's appearance is variable, and there are several subspecies that differ slightly. The appearance of the plant also depends on the amount of water available in its habitat. The leaves are divided into many needlelike lobes. The

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphology (biology), Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of sperma ...

is a head of flowers lined with leaflike bracts. Each tubular flower is up to a centimeter long. The flowers vary in color from white to blue. Two rare

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

subspecies are federally listed as endangered species in the United States. Subspecies: *''N. l.'' ssp. ''bakeri'' (Baker's navarretia) - an uncommon subspecies limited-

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 else ...

to California north of the Bay Area *''N. l.'' ssp. ''leucocephala'' - can be found in central California and

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. T ...

*''N. l.'' ssp. ''minima'' (least navarretia) - the most widespread subspecies *''N. l.'' ssp. ''pauciflora'' (few-flowered navarretia) - endangered plant known from about 10 occurrences endemic to California north of the Bay Area *''N. l.'' ssp. ''plieantha'' (many-flowered navarretia) - endangered plant known from about 10 occurrences endemic to the same range as ssp. ''pauciflora''

External links

Jepson Manual TreatmentPhoto gallery
leucocephala Flora of the Western United States Flora of Western Canada Flora of California Flora of Oregon Flora of the Sierra Nevada (United States) Natural history of the California chaparral and woodlands Natural history of the Central Valley (California) Endangered flora of the United States Flora without expected TNC conservation status {{Polemoniaceae-stub