Collinsia parryi

Annuals 10–40 cm. Stems erect to ascending. Leaf-blades ± lanceolate, margins entire or crenate. Inflorescences ± eglandular; nodes 1–3 (–5) -flowered; flowers not crowded; distalmost bracts linear, 2–3 mm. Pedicels ascending to spreading, usually longer than calyx, visible. Flowers: caly× lobes ovate, equal to capsule, ape× obtuse to subacute or obscurely rounded; corolla blue-violet to lavender, rarely white, 4–10 mm, glabrous; banner length 1 times wings, lobe base without folds; stamens: abaxial filaments glabrous, adaxials sparsely spreading-hairy, basal spur 0. Seeds 8–12, oblong, 1–1.5 mm, margins thickened, inrolled. 2n = 14.

Phenology: Flowering Apr–May(–Jun).
Habitat: Open chaparral, sagebrush scrub, mixed woodlands.
Elevation: 500–1600 m.

Calif.

Discussion

Collinsia parryi is most closely related to C. concolor, which has larger flowers arranged in tiers of whorls; their ranges are largely allopatric. Collinsia parryi occurs most commonly on the drier, leeward sides of the Peninsular and Transverse ranges. B. G. Baldwin et al. (2011) sampled chloroplast DNA, ribosomal DNA, and introns of nuclear-coding DNA and showed that many individuals of C. parryi had zero sequence-divergence from C. concolor. This result suggests a recent diversification of these taxa from an ancestor that was most like C. concolor.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa