''Penstemon tracyi'' is a rare species of penstemon known by the common names Trinity penstemon and Tracy's beardtongue. The 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 Trinity County, California, where it is known from fewer than 10 occurrences in the

Trinity Alps The Trinity Alps are a mountain range in Trinity County and Siskiyou County in Northern California. They are a subrange of the Klamath Mountains located to the north of Weaverville. Geography The Trinity Alps are within the Pacific Coast Ran ...

, of the Klamath Mountains. It grows in exposed rocky outcrops and barren talus in the high mountains.

Description

''Penstemon tracyi'' is a squat

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 ...

herb In general use, herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables and other plants consumed for macronutrients, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal ...

growing no more than 12 centimeters tall. The hairless oval to rounded leaves are 1 to 2 centimeters long. 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 dense clusters of tubular pink flowers each about a centimeter long. The mouth of the flower has hairs along the floor and a tuft of hairs at the tip of the

staminode In botany, a staminode is an often rudimentary, sterile or abortive stamen, which means that it does not produce pollen.Jackson, Benjamin, Daydon; ''A Glossary of Botanic Terms with their Derivation and Accent''; Published by Gerald Duckworth & Co. ...

External links

Jepson Manual Treatment — ''Penstemon tracyi''Shasta-Trinity National Forest''Penstemon tracyi'' — U.C. Photo gallery
tracyi Endemic flora of California Flora of the Klamath Mountains Natural history of Trinity County, California Critically endangered flora of California {{Plantaginaceae-stub