Calochortus excavatus

Inyo county star-tulip, Inyo County Star-Tulip

Family: Liliaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 1B.1

Inyo county star-tulip is a rare (CNPS 1B.1) California native perennial found in southwestern Sierra Nevada Mountains in grassy meadows within shadscale scrub at elevations of 1,300 to 2,000 meters. Flowering from April to May, this plant produces white flowers with distinctive dark purple bases and green stripes, widely bell-shaped and 30 to 40 millimeters long. Growing with slender stems 10 to 30 centimeters tall and featuring small bulblets, it emerges from a basal leaf cluster that remains persistent through the season. Its basal leaves reach 10 to 20 centimeters long, while cauline leaves become progressively reduced toward the stem's upper portion. The flowers are notable for their widely wedge-shaped white petals with a round nectary encircled by a fringed membrane and sparsely short-haired near the base.

Habitat: Grassy meadows in shadscale scrub

Bloom period: Apr-May

Elevation: 1300-2000 m

Bioregions: sw SNE.

California counties: Inyo, Mono, Riverside, San Benito

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