Monoptilon bellioides

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Monoptilon bellioides
Monoptilon bellioides Death Valley.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Genus: Monoptilon
Species:
M. bellioides
Binomial name
Monoptilon bellioides

Monoptilon bellioides, the desert star, also called Mojave desertstar, [1] is a desert flowering plant in the family Asteraceae.

Contents

Distribution and habitat

It is native to stony and sandy plains in the Mojave Desert of California and the Sonoran Deserts of the Southwestern United States northwestern Mexico. It is and is very common in the northern, eastern, and southern parts of the desert.

Description

Monoptilon bellioides is a short annual plant; in seasons with very little rainfall, the plant may only grow to 1–2 cm, if it grows at all, while in seasons of heavy rainfall, it can grow up to 25 cm tall. The leaves are linear, 5–10 mm long, with a blunt apex.

The flowers are produced in dense inflorescences (capitula), 2 cm diameter, with white ray florets and yellow disc florets in the center. The flowers open in the morning and close in the evening.

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<i>Chaenactis fremontii</i> Species of flowering plant

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<i>Monoptilon bellidiforme</i> Species of flowering plant

Monoptilon bellidiforme is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae known by the common names daisy desertstar and small desert star. It is native to the desert southwest of the United States, where it grows in typical desert habitat such as sandy flats and washes. It is similar to the other Monoptilon, M. bellioides, but it is usually smaller. Its stem is just a few centimeters long, sometimes small enough so that the inflorescence sits at ground level. The leaves are no more than a centimeter long. The flower head has many ray florets which are usually white, sometimes purple-tinged. They are 5 to 7 millimeters long. The fruit is an achene about half a centimeter long including the pappus, which is an elongated bristle surrounded by fused scales.

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References

  1. USDA, NRCS (n.d.). "Monoptilon bellioides". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team. Retrieved 13 July 2015.