Calochortus plummerae

Plummer's mariposa lily

Family: Liliaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 4.2

Plummer's mariposa lily is a California native perennial found in southern California, Transverse Ranges, and Peninsular Ranges in dry, rocky chaparral and yellow-pine forest at elevations below 1,700 meters. Flowering from May to July, this lily produces pale pink to rose flowers that dry purplish, with widely bell-shaped perianths 30 to 40 millimeters long, featuring distinctive long yellow hairs in a wide central band and orange-bordered nectaries. Growing 30 to 60 centimeters tall with slender, generally branched stems, the plant emerges from a fibrous bulb. Its basal leaves are linear and elongated, reaching 20 to 40 centimeters long, while cauline leaves become progressively narrower and reduced toward the stem's upper portions. The fruit is an erect, linear capsule 4 to 8 centimeters long, producing flat seeds with a fine net-like surface.

Habitat: Dry, rocky chaparral, yellow-pine forest

Bloom period: May-Jul

Elevation: < 1700 m

Bioregions: SCo, TR, PR.

California counties: Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino, Ventura, Orange, Calaveras

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