| Vancouver groundcone | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Lamiales |
| Family: | Orobanchaceae |
| Genus: | Kopsiopsis |
| Species: | K. hookeri |
| Binomial name | |
| Kopsiopsis hookeri (Walp.) Govaerts | |
Kopsiopsis hookeri is a species of parasitic plant in the family Orobanchaceae known as Vancouver groundcone, small groundcone or poque. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5]
It is native to western North America from British Columbia to northern California, where it grows in wooded areas.
It is a parasite of salal bushes, which it parasitizes by penetrating them with haustoria to tap nutrients. The groundcone is visible aboveground as a purplish, brown, or yellowish cone-shaped inflorescence 3 to 6 cm (1.2 to 2.4 in) long. Pale-colored flowers emerge from between the overlapping bracts. Coastal aboriginal groups ate the potato-like stembase of Ground Cones raw, though usually as a snack and not in any quantity. [6]
Formerly considered Boschniakia hookeri, some taxonomists now place it in the genus Kopsiopsis on the basis of phylogenetic evidence. [2]
Morphological evidence indicates that this species may have exchanged genetics with Kopsiopsis strobilacea in areas where their distribution overlaps. [7]