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Castilleja oresbia

pale paintbrush, pale Wallowa Indian paintbrush, pale Wallowa paintbrush

beautiful Indian paintbrush, beautiful paintbrush, showy paintbrush

Habit Herbs, perennial, 0.9–3 dm; from a woody caudex; with a stout taproot. Herbs, perennial, 0.5–1(–2) dm; from a woody caudex; with a slender taproot.
Stems

few to several, erect or ascending, sometimes decumbent at base, unbranched or branched, hairs usually retrorse, medium length, ± soft, eglandular, mixed with very short-glandular ones, sometimes with spreading, long, soft ones.

few to several, erect or ascending, usually decumbent at base, unbranched, sometimes branched, hairs spreading, short and long, soft, mostly glandular.

Leaves

green to purple, linear to lanceolate, 2–7 cm, not fleshy, margins plane, involute, 3–5(–7)-lobed, apex acuminate to acute;

lobes spreading, linear to sometimes narrowly lanceolate, apex acute.

green to deep purple, linear to broadly lanceolate, 1–3.5(–5) cm, not fleshy, margins plane or wavy, slightly involute, (0–)3–5-lobed, apex acuminate to acute, sometimes obtuse;

lateral lobes ascending-spreading, sometimes widely spreading, narrowly lanceolate to linear, mostly short, apex acute.

Inflorescences

2.5–18 × 1–3.5 cm;

bracts pale green to yellow-green or pale, dull reddish brown throughout, or proximally so colored but changing gradually to cream or yellowish on distal margins, narrowly to broadly lanceolate, (3–)5–7(–9)-lobed;

lobes ascending, linear, long, proximal lobes arising below mid length, central lobe apex obtuse, others acute.

2–7 × 1.5–3 cm;

bracts yellow-green, yellow, pinkish, pale reddish, or purple, sometimes distal margins pale white, oblong to broadly lanceolate to ovate, 0–5-lobed;

lobes spreading, linear to narrowly lanceolate, medium length to long, usually arising above mid length, rarely from below mid length, center lobe apex rounded to truncate, lateral ones acute to obtuse.

Corollas

straight, 21–36 mm;

tube 16–20 mm;

teeth of abaxial lip often exserted, beak exserted;

beak adaxially green, 4.2–5.5 mm;

abaxial lip green to purple, distally white, conspicuous, slightly but noticeably pouched, often visible through front cleft, 3–5 mm, 67–100% as long as beak, puberulent;

teeth erect, white, 1.8–2.1 mm.

straight or slightly curved, 17–22(–25) mm;

tube 11–16 mm; subequal to calyx or beak, sometimes abaxial lip, exserted;

beak adaxially yellow to green, 4–6(–7) mm;

abaxial lip green or yellow, reduced, often visible through front cleft, prominently pouched, thickened, 3–4(–5) mm, 50–67% as long as beak;

teeth erect, white, yellow, pink, or purple, 1.5–3 mm.

Calyces

colored as bracts, 10–25 mm;

abaxial and adaxial clefts 6–7 mm, 30–60% of calyx length, deeper than laterals, lateral 5–10 mm, 40–50% of calyx length;

lobes linear, apex acute.

colored as bracts, sometimes strongly bicolored green or proximally whitish and distally as bract lobes, (12–)13–23(–25) mm;

abaxial and adaxial clefts 5–11 mm, 45–55% of calyx length, deeper than laterals, lateral (0.5–)1–3(–5) mm, 5–20% of calyx length;

lobes broadly triangular, apex obtuse to rounded, rarely acute.

2n

= 24.

Castilleja oresbia

Castilleja pulchella

Phenology Flowering May–Aug. Flowering (May–)Jun–Aug.
Habitat Dry slopes and plains, sagebrush meadows, grasslands, openings in conifer forests. Moist meadows, turf, rocky slopes and flats, talus, fellfields, subalpine to alpine.
Elevation 900–2200 m. (3000–7200 ft.) 1800–3500 m. (5900–11500 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
ID; OR
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
ID; MT; UT; WY
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Castilleja oresbia is endemic to eastern Oregon and adjacent Idaho. It is easily confused with both varieties of C. pallescens, which also occur in sagebrush habitats. Castilleja oresbia has longer calyx lobes and softer pubescence than C. pallescens var. pallescens, although some transitional specimens are found. Castilleja oresbia has a combination of longer calyx lobes, longer pubescence, and obscurely nerved bracts, which usually serve to separate it from C. pallescens var. inverta. All three have different, though somewhat overlapping, ranges. Castilleja oresbia occasionally hybridizes with C. peckiana in Grant County, Oregon.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Castilleja pulchella is a mostly alpine species of the mountains of western Montana and adjacent Idaho and northwestern Wyoming, as well as in the Uinta Mountains of northeastern Utah. It is similar to and likely shares ancestry with C. chrysantha of the mountains of northeastern Oregon. Castilleja pulchella is variable in color, with inflorescences ranging from pale yellow to purplish, often within the same population. Some lower elevation populations are known. These plants are considerably taller, and they tend to have only yellowish inflorescences. Where the two occur together, C. pulchella occasionally forms hybrids with C. nivea.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 17, p. 635. FNA vol. 17, p. 648.
Parent taxa Orobanchaceae > Castilleja Orobanchaceae > Castilleja
Sibling taxa
C. affinis, C. ambigua, C. angustifolia, C. applegatei, C. aquariensis, C. arachnoidea, C. attenuata, C. brevilobata, C. brevistyla, C. campestris, C. cervina, C. chambersii, C. chlorotica, C. christii, C. chromosa, C. chrymactis, C. chrysantha, C. cinerea, C. citrina, C. coccinea, C. collegiorum, C. covilleana, C. crista-galli, C. cryptantha, C. cusickii, C. densiflora, C. dissitiflora, C. disticha, C. elata, C. elegans, C. elmeri, C. exserta, C. flava, C. foliolosa, C. fraterna, C. genevieveana, C. glandulifera, C. gleasoni, C. gracillima, C. grisea, C. haydenii, C. hispida, C. hololeuca, C. hyperborea, C. indivisa, C. integra, C. kaibabensis, C. kerryana, C. kraliana, C. lacera, C. lanata, C. lasiorhyncha, C. lassenensis, C. latifolia, C. lemmonii, C. leschkeana, C. levisecta, C. linariifolia, C. lindheimeri, C. lineariloba, C. lineata, C. litoralis, C. lutescens, C. martini, C. mendocinensis, C. mexicana, C. miniata, C. minor, C. mogollonica, C. mollis, C. montigena, C. nana, C. nelsonii, C. nervata, C. nivea, C. occidentalis, C. organorum, C. ornata, C. pallescens, C. pallida, C. parviflora, C. parvula, C. patriotica, C. peckiana, C. peirsonii, C. pilosa, C. plagiotoma, C. praeterita, C. pruinosa, C. puberula, C. pulchella, C. purpurascens, C. purpurea, C. raupii, C. revealii, C. rhexiifolia, C. rigida, C. rubicundula, C. rubida, C. rupicola, C. salsuginosa, C. scabrida, C. schizotricha, C. septentrionalis, C. sessiliflora, C. subinclusa, C. suksdorfii, C. tenuiflora, C. tenuis, C. thompsonii, C. tomentosa, C. uliginosa, C. unalaschcensis, C. victoriae, C. viscidula, C. wightii, C. wootonii, C. xanthotricha
C. affinis, C. ambigua, C. angustifolia, C. applegatei, C. aquariensis, C. arachnoidea, C. attenuata, C. brevilobata, C. brevistyla, C. campestris, C. cervina, C. chambersii, C. chlorotica, C. christii, C. chromosa, C. chrymactis, C. chrysantha, C. cinerea, C. citrina, C. coccinea, C. collegiorum, C. covilleana, C. crista-galli, C. cryptantha, C. cusickii, C. densiflora, C. dissitiflora, C. disticha, C. elata, C. elegans, C. elmeri, C. exserta, C. flava, C. foliolosa, C. fraterna, C. genevieveana, C. glandulifera, C. gleasoni, C. gracillima, C. grisea, C. haydenii, C. hispida, C. hololeuca, C. hyperborea, C. indivisa, C. integra, C. kaibabensis, C. kerryana, C. kraliana, C. lacera, C. lanata, C. lasiorhyncha, C. lassenensis, C. latifolia, C. lemmonii, C. leschkeana, C. levisecta, C. linariifolia, C. lindheimeri, C. lineariloba, C. lineata, C. litoralis, C. lutescens, C. martini, C. mendocinensis, C. mexicana, C. miniata, C. minor, C. mogollonica, C. mollis, C. montigena, C. nana, C. nelsonii, C. nervata, C. nivea, C. occidentalis, C. oresbia, C. organorum, C. ornata, C. pallescens, C. pallida, C. parviflora, C. parvula, C. patriotica, C. peckiana, C. peirsonii, C. pilosa, C. plagiotoma, C. praeterita, C. pruinosa, C. puberula, C. purpurascens, C. purpurea, C. raupii, C. revealii, C. rhexiifolia, C. rigida, C. rubicundula, C. rubida, C. rupicola, C. salsuginosa, C. scabrida, C. schizotricha, C. septentrionalis, C. sessiliflora, C. subinclusa, C. suksdorfii, C. tenuiflora, C. tenuis, C. thompsonii, C. tomentosa, C. uliginosa, C. unalaschcensis, C. victoriae, C. viscidula, C. wightii, C. wootonii, C. xanthotricha
Name authority Greenman: Bot. Gaz. 48: 147. (1909) Rydberg: Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 34: 40. (1907)
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