Botrychium pinnatum

Northwestern moonwort

Family: Ophioglossaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 2B.2

Northwestern moonwort is a rare (CNPS 2B.2) native perennial found in the Klamath Ranges, Mount Shasta area, and central Sierra Nevada High Sierra in moist fields and shrubby slopes at elevations of 1,900 to 2,800 meters. This delicate fern-like plant has a bright green, broadly ovate blade 3 to 6 centimeters long with 4 to 8 pairs of deeply lobed pinnae. Growing with a distinctive two-pinnate leaf structure, its common stalk is approximately one-third the length of its trophophore. Its leaves feature pinnules with entire to minutely crenate margins, with basal pinnae side margins converging at a unique 160 to 190-degree angle. The sporophore emerges with branches that overlap, creating a complex and intricate reproductive structure.

Habitat: Moist fields, shrubby slopes

Elevation: 1900-2800 m

Bioregions: KR (Etna Mills, Siskiyou Co.), CaRH (Mount Shasta, Domingo Lake se of Lassen Peak), c SNH (Bond Pass, Tuolumne Co.)

California counties: Siskiyou

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