Calyptridium pulchellum

Mariposa pussypaws

Family: Montiaceae · Type: annual · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 1B.1 · Threatened

Mariposa pussypaws is a rare (CNPS 1B.1) California native annual found in central Sierra Nevada Mountains in Mariposa, Madera, and northern Fresno counties, growing in sandy soils, chaparral, and oak woodlands at elevations of 400 to 1,100 meters. Flowering from April to May, this diminutive plant produces delicate rose-colored petals in small, head-like clusters with tiny flowers about 3 millimeters long. Growing as a low, spreading plant 2 to 7 centimeters tall with fibrous roots, it forms a compact rosette of leaves with ascending to spreading stems. Its leaves are small, ranging from 0.5 to 2 centimeters in a basal rosette, with additional smaller cauline leaves along the stem. Its tiny fruit is ovoid or round, measuring 1.5 to 2.5 millimeters long and containing one to three shiny seeds.

Habitat: Sandy soils, decomposed granite or metamorphic rocks, chaparral, gray pine, oak woodland

Bloom period: Apr-May

Elevation: 400-1100 m

Bioregions: c SN (s Mariposa, Madera, n Fresno cos.).

California counties: Madera, Mariposa, Fresno

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