Eriogonum

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Eriogonum
Eriogonum compositum 5077.JPG
Eriogonum compositum
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Polygonaceae
Subfamily: Eriogonoideae
Genus: Eriogonum
Michx.
Species

Over 250, see text

Eriogonum is a genus of flowering plants in the family Polygonaceae. The genus is found in North America and is known as wild buckwheat. This is a highly species-rich genus, and indications are that active speciation is continuing. It includes some common wildflowers such as the California buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum).

Contents

The genus derived its name from the Greek word erion meaning 'wool' and gonu meaning 'knee or joint'. The author of the genus, Michaux, explained the name as describing the first named species of the genus (E. tomentosum) as a wooly plant with sharply bent stems ("planta lanata, geniculata"). [1] Despite sharing the common name "buckwheat", Eriogonum is part of a different genus than the cultivated European buckwheat and than other plant species also called wild buckwheat.

It came into the news in 2005 when the Mount Diablo buckwheat (Eriogonum truncatum, believed to be extinct) was rediscovered. [2]

Ecology

Eriogonum species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths). An example of a butterfly that uses this plant for food is the Lycaena heteronea . Several of these are monophagous, meaning their caterpillars only feed on this genus, sometimes just on a single taxon of Eriogonum. Wild buckwheat flowers are also an important source of food for these and other Lepidoptera. In some cases, the relationship is so close that Eriogonum and dependent Lepidoptera are in danger of coextinction.

Monophagous Lepidoptera on wild buckwheat include:

Additionally, bees of the sagebrush steppe rely on the nectar of desert buckwheats, and birds and rodents eat the seeds. [3]

Uses

Some varieties of eriogonum, such as California buckwheat were and still are used as medicinal and food crops by Native American tribes. [4] [5]

Selected species

Eriogonum hirtellum Eriogonum hirtellum 2.jpg
Eriogonum hirtellum
Talus buckwheat
Eriogonum ursinum Eriogonum ursinum 3.jpg
Talus buckwheat
Eriogonum ursinum
Eriogonum wrightii var. subscaposum Eriogonum wrightii var subscaposum 1.jpg
Eriogonum wrightii var. subscaposum
Eriogonum thymoides Eriogonum thymoides 9256.JPG
Eriogonum thymoides
Eriogonum nidularium Eriogonum nidularium 5.jpg
Eriogonum nidularium
Eriogonum inflatum Eriogonum inflatum 4.jpg
Eriogonum inflatum
Eriogonum heermannii Eriogonum heermannii var sulcatum 11.jpg
Eriogonum heermannii
Eriogonum crocatum Eriogonum crocatum.jpg
Eriogonum crocatum
Eriogonum baileyi Eriogonumbaileyi.jpg
Eriogonum baileyi
Eriogonum spergulinum Eriogonumspergulinum.jpg
Eriogonum spergulinum
Eriogonum umbellatum Eriogonum umbellatum 4663.JPG
Eriogonum umbellatum

Related Research Articles

<i>Apodemia mormo</i> Species of butterfly

Apodemia mormo is a principally Nearctic butterfly in the family Riodinidae. It is a particularly fascinating species for ecological and evolutionary research, as evidenced by its shifting taxonomic classifications. Conflicting observations of host plants utilized, distinctive morphologies, and a wide range of occupied habitats have prompted investigation into several potential subspecies. To date, two genetic studies have been done on A. mormo, with analysis revealing that disjunct populations are genetically and phenotypically distinct. These studies support a potential need for refined taxonomies, although a larger body of data is required to make clear decisions.

Eriogonum truncatum, the Mount Diablo buckwheat, is a small pink wildflower, believed to have been extinct since 1936 until its rediscovery in 2005. The species is only known to live on Mount Diablo in Contra Costa County, northern California.

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

Eriogonum nudum is a perennial shrub of the wild buckwheat genus which is known by the common name naked buckwheat or nude buckwheat.

<i>Eriogonum fasciculatum</i> Species of flowering shrub

Eriogonum fasciculatum is a species of wild buckwheat known by the common names California buckwheat and flat-topped buckwheat. Characterized by small, white and pink flower clusters that give off a cottony effect, this species grows variably from a patchy mat to a wide shrub, with the flowers turning a rusty color after blooming. This plant is of great benefit across its various habitats, providing an important food resource for a diversity of insect and mammal species. It also provides numerous ecosystem services for humans, including erosion control, post-fire mitigation, increases in crop yields when planted in hedgerows, and high habitat restoration value.

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

Eriogonum parvifolium is a species in the family Polygonaceae that occurs on dune formations in the coastal area of Central and Southern California. This evergreen shrub grows to a height of 30 to 100 centimeters with a spread of approximately the same dimension. This plant is an important host for a number of pollinating insects including certain endangered species. E. parvifolium occurs both on bluffs along the Pacific Ocean coast as well as Coastal Strand dunes formations, but is restricted to altitudes below 700 meters. In at least one instance within the Carbonera Creek watershed, it occurs farther inland in a Maritime Coast Range Ponderosa Pine forest. This shrub is also known by the common names dune buckwheat, coast buckwheat, cliff buckwheat, or seacliff buckwheat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Native species</span> Species indigenous to a given area in geologic time

In biogeography, a native species is indigenous to a given region or ecosystem if its presence in that region is the result of only local natural evolution during history. The term is equivalent to the concept of indigenous or autochthonous species. A wild organism is known as an introduced species within the regions where it was anthropogenically introduced. If an introduced species causes substantial ecological, environmental, and/or economic damage, it may be regarded more specifically as an invasive species.

<i>Apodemia mormo langei</i> Subspecies of butterfly

Apodemia mormo langei, the Lange's metalmark butterfly, is an endangered North American butterfly. It is a subspecies of the Mormon metalmark and belongs to the family Riodinidae. The butterfly is endemic to California, where it is known from one strip of riverbank in the San Francisco Bay Area. A 2008 count estimated the total remaining population at 131 individuals. Since 2011, this number has dropped to about 25–30.

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

Eriogonum cinereum is a species of wild buckwheat known by the common names coastal buckwheat and ashyleaf buckwheat.

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

Eriogonum umbellatum is a species of wild buckwheat known by the common name sulphurflower buckwheat, or simply sulphur flower.

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

Eriogonum tomentosum, commonly referred to as dogtongue buckwheat or dogtongue wild buckwheat, is a species in the Polygonaceae family.

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

Eriogonum kennedyi is a species of wild buckwheat known by the common name Kennedy's buckwheat.

<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.

The Bonny Doon Ecological Reserve is a nature preserve of 552 acres (2.23 km2) in the Santa Cruz Mountains of California, United States. The reserve protects several rare and endangered plant and animal species within an area known as the Santa Cruz Sandhills, an ancient seabed containing fossilized marine animals.

<i>Eriogonum corymbosum <span style="font-style:normal;">var.</span> nilesii</i> Variety of wild buckwheat

Eriogonum corymbosum var. nilesii is a rare variety of Eriogonum corymbosum, a species of Polygonaceae, commonly known as Nile's wild buckwheat, Las Vegas buckwheat, or golden buckwheat. The plant can be found in the Mojave Desert, located in the Las Vegas Valley and Muddy Mountains region of Clark County, Nevada.

<i>Callophrys dumetorum</i> Species of butterfly

Callophrys dumetorum, the coastal green hairstreak, bramble green hairstreak, or bluish green hairstreak, is a butterfly of the family Lycaenidae. It is found in the United States in coastal California and rarely in inland California. Subspecies C. d. oregonensis is known as the Oregon green hairstreak.

<i>Euphilotes rita</i> Species of butterfly

Euphilotes rita, the rita blue or desert buckwheat blue, is a species of butterfly of the family Lycaenidae. It is found in Wyoming, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico and northern Mexico. The species was first described by William Barnes and James Halliday McDunnough in 1916.

<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.

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

Eriogonum abertianum, with the common names Abert's buckwheat and Abert wild buckwheat, is a species of flowering plant in the family Polygonaceae.

<i>Eriogonum elongatum</i> Species of plant

Eriogonum elongatum, commonly known as longstem buckwheat or wand buckwheat, is a species of wild buckwheat native to coastal southern and Baja California.

References

  1. André Michaux. Flora boreali americana. 1803. volume 1. page 247, Biodiversitylibrary.org
  2. "05.24.2005 – Dainty pink Mt. Diablo buckwheat rediscovered". Berkeley.edu. Retrieved 2016-03-29.
  3. Taylor, Ronald J. (1994) [1992]. Sagebrush Country: A Wildflower Sanctuary (rev. ed.). Missoula, MT: Mountain Press Pub. Co. p. 28. ISBN   0-87842-280-3. OCLC   25708726.
  4. "Ohlone Medicine". Archived from the original on 2018-08-26. Retrieved 2018-09-13.
  5. "Plant Uses: California : Native American Uses of California Plants - Ethnobotany" (PDF). Arboretum.ucsc.edu. Retrieved 19 March 2022.
  6. 1 2 3 Grady, B. R. and J. L. Reveal. (2011). New combinations and a new species of Eriogonum (Polygonaceae: Eriogonoideae) from the Great Basin Desert, United States. Phytotaxa 24 33–38.