Dudleya cymosa

Dudleya cymosa
The neotype for D. cymosa, an illustration by John Gilbert Baker
Conservation status
Secure  (NatureServe)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Order:	Saxifragales
Family:	Crassulaceae
Genus:	Dudleya
Species:	D. cymosa
Binomial name
Dudleya cymosa (Lem.) Britton & Rose
Synonyms
Echeveria cymosa

Dudleya cymosa is a species complex of evergreen and deciduous succulent plants in the family Crassulaceae known by the common name: canyon liveforever. ^{[1] [2]} It is a loosely defined polyphyletic ^[3] species with a diverse number of subspecies, varying highly in morphology, distribution, and habitat. ^[4]

Description

It is a distinctive plant sending up erect red-orange stems from a gray-green basal rosette. The small yellowish-red thimble-shaped flowers top the stems in a cyme inflorescence. Some subspecies are considered threatened locally.

Subspecies

Recognized ^[5] Dudleya cymosa subspecies:

• Dudleya cymosa subsp. agourensis K.M.Nakai - (Agoura Hills dudleya)
• Dudleya cymosa subsp. crebrifolia K.M.Nakai & Verity - (San Gabriel River dudleya)
• Dudleya cymosa subsp. costatifolia Bartel & Shevock - (Pierpoint springs dudleya)
• Dudleya cymosa subsp. cymosa (Lem.) Britton & Rose - (canyon liveforever)
• Dudleya cymosa subsp. marcescens Moran - ( Marcescent dudleya)
• Dudleya cymosa. subsp. ovatifolia - (Santa Monica Mountains dudleya)
• Dudleya cymosa subsp. paniculata (Jeps.) K.M. Nakai - (Diablo range dudleya)
• Dudleya cymosa subsp. pumila (Rose) K.M. Nakai - (Transverse ranges liveforever)

The subspecies marcescens ^[6] and ovatifolia ^[7] are federally listed as threatened species of the United States.

Butterfly habitat

Dudleya cymosa is the larval host plant for the Sonoran blue butterfly, Philotes sonorensis (Lycaenidae).

Basal rosette, erect stems, and inflorescences

Notes

1. New N. Amer. Crassul. 21. 1903 Sep
2. Bull. New York Bot. Gard. 3:21. 1903 Nov
3. Yost, J. M.; Bontrager, M.; McCabe, S. W.; Burton, D.; Simpson, M. G.; Kay, K. M.; Ritter, M. (2013). "Phylogenetic relationships and evolution in Dudleya (Crassulaceae)" (PDF). Systematic Botany. 38 (4): 1096–1104. doi:10.1600/036364413X674760. S2CID   15715233.
4. McCabe, Stephen Ward (26 September 2019). "Succulent Poaching, Conservation, and the Mainland Dudleyas". Youtube. CNPS Santa Clara Valley Chapter. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21.
5. "Dudleya cymosa". Global Biodiversity Information Facility.
6. USFWS. ssp. marcescens. Species Profile.
7. USFWS. ssp. ovatifolia. Species Profile.

References

• Thomson, Paul H. (1993). Dudleya and Hasseanthus handbook. Bonsall, CA: Bonsall Publication. ISBN   978-0-9602066-5-0.
• C.Michael Hogan, ed. 2010. Dudleya cymosa. Encyclopedia of Life.

External links

• Jepson Manual Treatment: Dudleya cymosa
• USDA Plants Profile — Dudleya cymosa
• The Nature Conservancy