Acanthoscyphus parishii var. abramsii

Abrams' oxytheca, Abrams' oxytheca, Abrams' oxytheca

Family: Polygonaceae · Type: annual · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 1B.2

Abrams' oxytheca is a rare (CNPS 1B.2) California native annual found in southern San Rafael Mountains and Topatopa Mountains in sandy habitats at elevations of 1,700 to 2,000 meters. Flowering from June to August, this plant produces delicate flowers with distinctive dark red awns in intricate involucral clusters. Growing with slender stems 10 to 30 centimeters tall, it develops compact, branching growth with an open, airy structure. Its leaves are relatively small, ranging 1 to 3 centimeters long, with delicate, sparse branching. The plant's most distinctive feature is its involucral awns, which are 7 to 16 in number and 3 to 4 millimeters long, creating a striking dark red fringe around its reproductive structures.

Habitat: Sand

Bloom period: Jun-Aug

Elevation: 1700-2000 m

Bioregions: s SCoRO (San Rafael Mtns), WTR (Topatopa Mtns, Mount Pinos).

California counties: Santa Barbara, Ventura

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.