Eriogonum coloradense

Last updated

Eriogonum coloradense
Status TNC G2.svg
Imperiled  (NatureServe)
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Polygonaceae
Genus: Eriogonum
Species:
E. coloradense
Binomial name
Eriogonum coloradense
Small

Eriogonum coloradense is a species of flowering plant in the buckwheat family known by the common name Colorado buckwheat. It is endemic to Colorado in the United States. [1]

This species is a mat-forming herb growing just a few centimeters tall. The leaves are located around the base of the plant. They are up to 4 or 5 centimeters long and are mostly green on top with woolly undersides. The inflorescences are borne atop flowering stems reaching up to about 10 centimeters tall. The inflorescence is a cluster of tiny white to pink flowers. [2] This species is most closely related to Eriogonum lonchophyllum , [2] [3] and some authors, including Eriogonum expert James Reveal, suspect it may be a form of that species. [3]

Most of the occurrences of this Colorado endemic plant are located in the vicinity of the Maroon Bells–Snowmass Wilderness. It has a "broad ecological range", occurring in many types of habitat. It occurs on a variety of soils, flat or sloping terrain, every aspect, and a number of landforms. It occurs in several plant communities and at a range of elevations. Considering its ability to live in a range of environmental conditions it is unclear why the plant is not more common. [3]

The main threat to this species is recreational activity in its mountain habitat. It occurs at popular recreational sites near Crested Butte. [3]

Related Research Articles

<i>Eriogonum alpinum</i> Species of wild buckwheat

Eriogonum alpinum is a species of wild buckwheat known by the common name Trinity buckwheat.

<i>Eriogonum libertini</i> Species of wild buckwheat

Eriogonum libertini is a species of wild buckwheat known by the common name Dubakella Mountain buckwheat. This uncommon plant is endemic to California where it grows in the rocky serpentine terrain of the southern Klamath Mountains and nearby ranges.

<i>Eriogonum nervulosum</i> Species of wild buckwheat

Eriogonum nervulosum is a species of wild buckwheat known by the common name Snow Mountain buckwheat. This uncommon plant is endemic to the inland North Coast Ranges of California, where it is known from only a handful of occurrences, most of which are in Lake County. It is named for Snow Mountain, a local peak.

<i>Eriogonum ovalifolium</i> Species of wild buckwheat

Eriogonum ovalifolium is a species of wild buckwheat known by the common name cushion buckwheat. It is native to western North America from California to Alberta, where it is a member of many plant communities in varied habitats, including the sagebrush steppe and alpine regions.

<i>Eriogonum wrightii</i> Species of wild buckwheat

Eriogonum wrightii is a species of wild buckwheat known by the common names bastardsage and Wright's buckwheat. It is native to the Southwestern United States, California, and northwest Mexico, where it grows in many plant communities, such as chaparral, in rocky habitats from mountains to deserts.

<i>Eriogonum ampullaceum</i> Species of wild buckwheat

Eriogonum ampullaceum is a species of wild buckwheat known by the common name Mono buckwheat.

<i>Eriogonum butterworthianum</i> Species of wild buckwheat

Eriogonum butterworthianum is a rare species of wild buckwheat known by the common name Butterworth's buckwheat. It is endemic to the Santa Lucia Mountains of central Monterey County, California, where it is known from a few occurrences in the wilderness southeast of Big Sur in the vicinity of Junipero Serra Peak. Its native habitats include oak and conifer woodlands, chaparral communities, and sandstone outcrops. Eriogonum butterworthianum is a small clumpy shrub or subshrub that grows up to about 30 centimeters tall and wide. Leaves are 2 centimeters long and reddish-green in color. They are woolly, oval in shape, and curled under at the edges. The inflorescence is a cluster of flowers up to 2 or 3 centimeters wide. Each individual flower is a few millimeters wide and dull yellowish to pinkish in color. Flowers bloom June to September.

<i>Eriogonum eremicola</i> Species of wild buckwheat

Eriogonum eremicola is a rare species of wild buckwheat known by the common names Telescope Peak buckwheat and Wild Rose Canyon buckwheat. It is endemic to Inyo County, California, where it is known from only a few occurrences in the Inyo Mountains and Telescope Peak in Death Valley. It grows in sandy to rocky habitat in the forests and woodlands of these desert mountains. It is an annual herb producing a spreading, glandular, reddish green stem up to about 25 centimeters tall. The rounded, woolly leaves are up to about 2.5 centimeters long and are located at the base of the stem. The scattered inflorescences are small clusters of tiny flowers which are white with reddish stripes, aging to solid red, or sometimes yellow. The plant is under protection in Death Valley National Park.

<i>Eriogonum sphaerocephalum</i> Species of wild buckwheat

Eriogonum sphaerocephalum is a species of wild buckwheat known by the common names rock buckwheat and round-headed desert buckwheat. It is native to the western United States.

<i>Eriogonum callistum</i> Species of wild buckwheat

Eriogonum callistum is a rare species of wild buckwheat, known by the common name Tehachapi buckwheat.

<i>Eriogonum pelinophilum</i> Species of wild buckwheat

Eriogonum pelinophilum is a rare species of wild buckwheat known by the common name clay-loving wild buckwheat. It is endemic to the state of Colorado in the United States, where it is known from only two counties. The most recent estimates available suggest there are 12 occurrences in existence for a total of about 278,000 individual plants in Delta and Montrose Counties. At least 7 occurrences observed in the past have not been relocated but are not yet believed extirpated. This plant is federally listed as an endangered species of the United States.

<i>Lepidium barnebyanum</i> Species of flowering plant

Lepidium barnebyanum is a rare species of flowering plant in the family Brassicaceae known by the common names Barneby's pepperweed, Barneby's pepper-grass, and Barneby's ridge-cress. It is endemic to Utah, where there is a single population in Duchesne County. It is a federally listed endangered species of the United States.

<i>Astragalus limnocharis <span style="font-style:normal;">var.</span> montii</i> Subspecies of legume

Astragalus limnocharis var. montii, synonym Astragalus montii, is a rare variety of flowering plant in the legume family. It is known by the common name Monti's milkvetch. It is endemic to Utah in the United States, where there are only three known populations. Under the synonym A. montii, it is a federally listed threatened species of the United States.

<i>Eriogonum argophyllum</i> Species of wild buckwheat

Eriogonum argophyllum is a species of wild buckwheat known by the common names Sulphur Hot Springs buckwheat, Silver Lake buckwheat, and Ruby Valley buckwheat. It is endemic to Nevada in the United States, where there is only one known population.

Eriogonum codium is a species of wild buckwheat known by the common names basalt desert buckwheat and Umtanum Desert wild buckwheat. It is endemic to Washington in the United States, where it is known only from Hanford Reach National Monument in Benton County. It was discovered in 1995 during an inventory of the biodiversity of the monument and described to science in 1997.

Physaria parviflora is a species of flowering plant in the family Brassicaceae known by the common names Piceance bladderpod and frosty bladderpod. It is endemic to Colorado in the United States, where it occurs in Garfield, Mesa, and Rio Blanco Counties.

<i>Eriogonum niveum</i> Species of wild buckwheat

Eriogonum niveum is a species of flowering plant in the buckwheat family known by the common name snow buckwheat. It is native to the Pacific Northwest of North America, where it occurs in British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. It flowers late in the summer.

Eriogonum brandegeei is a species of flowering plant in the buckwheat family known by the common name Brandegee's buckwheat. It is endemic to Colorado in the United States, where it occurs in Fremont and Chaffee Counties.

<i>Eriogonum exilifolium</i> Species of wild buckwheat

Eriogonum exilifolium is a species of flowering plant in the buckwheat family known by the common name dropleaf buckwheat. It is native to Wyoming and Colorado in the United States.

<i>Eriogonum soredium</i> Species of wild buckwheat

Eriogonum soredium is a species of wild buckwheat known by the common name Frisco buckwheat. It is endemic to Utah in the United States, where it is known only from Beaver County. There are four populations, all located in the San Francisco Mountains. It is a candidate for federal protection.

References

  1. Eriogonum coloradense. NatureServe.
  2. 1 2 Eriogonum coloradense. Flora of North America.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Anderson, D.G. (2004, October 14). Eriogonum coloradense Small (Colorado buckwheat): a technical conservation assessment. [Online]. USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Region.