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round-leaf catchfly

Douglas' campion, Douglas' catchfly, Douglas' silene, mountain navarretia, seabluff catchfly

Habit Plants perennial; taproot stout, fleshy; caudex branched. Plants perennial; taproot stout; caudex branched, woody.
Stems

several, straggling to erect, freely branched, 2–7 cm, pilose and glandular, sparsely so proximally.

several–many, ascending from decumbent base, usually unbranched, slender, 10–40(–70) cm, with short, fine, dense, retrorse or curled grayish white hairs, rarely subglabrous, typically not glandular but occasionally somewhat glandular distally.

Leaves

basal leaves withered at time of flowering, distal sessile, proximal petiolate, largest on mid to distal stem;

blade subrotund to broadly ovate-lanceolate, 3–10 cm × 20–70 mm, base cuneate into petiole, apex short-acuminate, sparsely short-pilose.

2 per node, finely retrorse;

blade with no visible lateral veins, midrib distinct, oblanceolate, elliptic to linear, 2–10 cm × 1.5–13 mm, apex acute, puberulent to glabrous;

basal leaves numerous, blade spatulate;

cauline in 1–8 pairs, distal ones sessile.

Inflorescences

cymose, open, few-flowered, leafy, bracteate;

bracts resembling distal leaves.

typically cymose, occasionally with reduced lateral cymes, 1- or 3-flowered, open, bracteate, grayish white retrorse-puberulent, typically not glandular, rarely with few stipitate glands;

bracts narrowly lanceolate, 2–10 × 0.5–2 mm, herbaceous, puberulent.

Pedicels

1–3(–4) cm, viscid, with long septate-glandular hairs.

ascending, straight, 0.5–4 cm.

Flowers

calyx indistinctly veined, tubular, broadened distally, constricted towards base around carpophore, ± umbilicate, 20–25 × 5–8 mm, herbaceous, glandular-pilose, lobes triangular, 3–4 mm, margins narrow, membranous, ciliate;

corolla scarlet, clawed, claw equaling calyx, limb deeply 2-lobed, 10–15 mm, lobes lanceolate, sometimes with 2 smaller lateral teeth, ciliate, appendages saccate, 1–1.5 mm, with clear area abaxially;

stamens shortly exserted;

styles 3, shortly exserted.

calyx green, sometimes suffused with purple, prominently 10-veined, tubular in flower, campanulate and ± inflated in fruit, occasionally somewhat constricted near base, 12–15 × 3–10 mm, papery, grayish white retrorse-puberulent and eglandular, often ciliate, rarely glabrous or with few stipitate glands, veins parallel, green, forked and connate between lobes, lobes 5, erect, ovate-triangular, 2–3 mm, margins membranous, apex blunt;

corolla creamy white, often greenish and occasionally tinged with dark pink, clawed, to 2 times calyx, claw slightly longer than calyx, limb obovate-lanceolate, deeply 2-lobed, 4–11 mm, lobes oblong, rounded, margins entire to erose, appendages 1–2(–3) mm;

stamens equaling corolla claw;

styles 3–5, 1–11/2 times corolla claw.

Capsules

narrowly ellipsoid, not distending calyx, included within it, opening by 6 teeth;

carpophore 6–8 mm.

ovoid-ellipsoid, 11/3 times calyx, opening by 3–5 ascending to spreading teeth;

carpophore 3–4 mm.

Seeds

gray, broadly reniform, plump, ca. 1 mm, shallowly papillate.

rusty brown, broadly reniform, sides flat, 1.2–1.5 mm, margins coarsely papillate, verrucate-tuberculate.

2n

= 48.

Silene rotundifolia

Silene douglasii

Phenology Flowering late spring–summer.
Habitat Woodlands, partially shaded cliffs and bluffs
Elevation 200-600 m (700-2000 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; GA; KY; OH; TN; WV
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; ID; MT; NV; OR; UT; WA; WY; BC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Silene rotundifolia is clearly related to S. laciniata but is a well-marked species of the deciduous forest region.

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

Varieties 3 (3 in the flora).

Silene douglasii is usually readily recognized by its characteristic short, retrorse, grayish-white, eglandular pubescence on the calyx and pedicels. This, together with the usual absence of lateral teeth on the petals, appears to be the only reliable character separating it from S. parryi. However, intermediates between the two species occur, and it is probable that the occasional plants of S. douglasii with stipitate-glandular hairs in the inflorescence (e.g., var. rupinae and some plants that have been referred to var. monantha) have arisen through gene exchange with S. parryi, although it should be noted that A. R. Kruckeberg (1961) reported that such hybrids, when artificially produced, were sterile.

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

Key
1. Leaf blades 3-13 mm wide, 0.3-0.7 mm thick, fleshy; calyces strongly inflated, (4-)7-10(-12) mm diam. at anthesis; petal limbs 5-11 mm wide, often with lateral tooth on each side; coastal Oregon
var. oraria
1. Leaf blades 1.5-9 mm wide, 0.1-0.5 mm thick, not fleshy; calyces not strongly inflated, (3-)5-8(-10) mm diam. at anthesis; petal limbs 1-5 mm wide, usually without lateral teeth; widespread in w North America
→ 2
2. Leaf blades 1.5-5 mm wide, typically over 15 times longer than wide, ± linear; pubescence on inflorecences and calyces often glandular; cliffs and ledges of Columbia River Gorge
var. rupinae
2. Leaf blades 2-9 mm wide, typically 5-10 times longer than wide, oblanceolate to elliptic to broadly linear; pubescence on inflorescences and calyces eglandular (very rarely with few stipitate glands); widespread in w North America
var. douglasii
Source FNA vol. 5, p. 201. FNA vol. 5, p. 182.
Parent taxa Caryophyllaceae > subfam. Caryophylloideae > Silene Caryophyllaceae > subfam. Caryophylloideae > Silene
Sibling taxa
S. acaulis, S. antirrhina, S. aperta, S. armeria, S. bernardina, S. bridgesii, S. campanulata, S. caroliniana, S. chalcedonica, S. conica, S. coniflora, S. conoidea, S. coronaria, S. csereii, S. dichotoma, S. dioica, S. douglasii, S. drummondii, S. flos-cuculi, S. gallica, S. grayi, S. hitchguirei, S. hookeri, S. invisa, S. involucrata, S. kingii, S. laciniata, S. latifolia, S. lemmonii, S. marmorensis, S. menziesii, S. nachlingerae, S. nivea, S. noctiflora, S. nuda, S. occidentalis, S. oregana, S. ostenfeldii, S. ovata, S. parishii, S. parryi, S. pendula, S. petersonii, S. plankii, S. polypetala, S. pseudatocion, S. rectiramea, S. regia, S. repens, S. sargentii, S. scaposa, S. scouleri, S. seelyi, S. serpentinicola, S. sibirica, S. sorensenis, S. spaldingii, S. stellata, S. subciliata, S. suecica, S. suksdorfii, S. thurberi, S. uralensis, S. verecunda, S. virginica, S. viscaria, S. vulgaris, S. williamsii, S. wrightii
S. acaulis, S. antirrhina, S. aperta, S. armeria, S. bernardina, S. bridgesii, S. campanulata, S. caroliniana, S. chalcedonica, S. conica, S. coniflora, S. conoidea, S. coronaria, S. csereii, S. dichotoma, S. dioica, S. drummondii, S. flos-cuculi, S. gallica, S. grayi, S. hitchguirei, S. hookeri, S. invisa, S. involucrata, S. kingii, S. laciniata, S. latifolia, S. lemmonii, S. marmorensis, S. menziesii, S. nachlingerae, S. nivea, S. noctiflora, S. nuda, S. occidentalis, S. oregana, S. ostenfeldii, S. ovata, S. parishii, S. parryi, S. pendula, S. petersonii, S. plankii, S. polypetala, S. pseudatocion, S. rectiramea, S. regia, S. repens, S. rotundifolia, S. sargentii, S. scaposa, S. scouleri, S. seelyi, S. serpentinicola, S. sibirica, S. sorensenis, S. spaldingii, S. stellata, S. subciliata, S. suecica, S. suksdorfii, S. thurberi, S. uralensis, S. verecunda, S. virginica, S. viscaria, S. vulgaris, S. williamsii, S. wrightii
Subordinate taxa
S. douglasii var. douglasii, S. douglasii var. oraria, S. douglasii var. rupinae
Synonyms Melandrium rotundifolium
Name authority Nuttall: Gen. N. Amer. Pl. 1: 288. (1818) Hooker: Fl. Bor.-Amer. 1: 88. (1830)
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