Antennaria pulchella
Beautiful pussy-toes, beautiful pussy-toes, beautiful pussy-toes
(c) Don Loarie, some rights reserved (CC BY) · licence
Family: Asteraceae · Type: Herb · Native
Conservation status: CNPS 4.3
Antennaria pulchella (Beautiful pussy-toes) is a native California herb in the Asteraceae family, recognized by glandular herbage and dark phyllaries.
Beautiful pussy-toes is a California native perennial ranked 4.3 by CNPS, found in the Sierra Nevada and northern eastern Sierra Nevada (Sweetwater Mountains) in mountain meadows, snow basins, and ridges at elevations of 2,800 to 3,700 meters. Flowering from July to August, this plant produces white flowers in small clusters of 4 to 6 heads with narrow, acute phyllaries that are often dark brown-black at the tips. Growing with multiple matted stolons and short stems 3 to 12 centimeters tall, it forms dense, low-growing mats across alpine landscapes. Its basal leaves are 6 to 12 millimeters long, linear to spoon-shaped, densely woolly, and often purple-glandular, while its cauline leaves remain narrow and linear. The plant's distinctive glandular herbage and compact growth form help it survive in harsh, high-elevation alpine environments.
Identification and appearance
Key characters: 10 sympatric species - glandular herbage and dark phyllaries
Habitat and range
Habitat: Meadows, snow basins, ridges
Elevation: 2800-3700 m
Outside California: Nevada
Bloom period
Antennaria pulchella blooms Jul-Aug.
Conservation status
CNPS 4.3
How to tell it apart
vs Pseudognaphalium: Antennaria forms low cushions with persistent basal rosettes; Pseudognaphalium grows erect to 200 cm without basal rosettes.; vs Eriogonum: Antennaria has papery-bracted flower heads in the Asteraceae; Eriogonum has showy flowers with papery bracts in the buckwheat family.; vs Anaphalis: Antennaria maintains its basal leaf rosette during flowering; Anaphalis has withered basal leaves with longer, uniform stem leaves.; vs Centaurea: Antennaria has tiny woolly heads (3-9mm) in low cushions; Centaurea has much larger flower heads (15-40mm) on tall stems.; vs Petrophytum: Antennaria has papery-bracted flower heads; Petrophytum has dense spikes of small rose-family flowers with 5 separate petals.
Frequently asked questions
Is Antennaria pulchella native to California?
Yes. Antennaria pulchella is native to California (recorded as native).
When does Antennaria pulchella bloom?
Antennaria pulchella blooms Jul-Aug.
What plant family does Antennaria pulchella belong to?
Antennaria pulchella is in the Asteraceae family, genus Antennaria.
Is Antennaria pulchella rare or endangered?
Antennaria pulchella carries California Rare Plant Rank 4.3, state rank S4.
What habitat does Antennaria pulchella grow in?
Antennaria pulchella grows in Meadows, snow basins, ridges.
Related species
Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.
Sources: Jepson eFlora · CNPS Rare Plant Inventory · Index of California Plant Names · CalPhotos · CDFW CNDDB
Last updated 2026-10-07
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Cal-IPC, and more.