Cryptantha fendleri

Sand dune cryptantha

Family: Boraginaceae · Type: annual · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 2B.2

Sand dune cryptantha is a rare (CNPS 2B.2) California native annual found in the Western and Inyo Mountains in Little Cowhorn Valley on sandy soils and sagebrush scrub at elevations around 2,200 meters. Flowering from June to August, this plant produces tiny white flowers less than 1.5 millimeters in diameter. Growing 10 to 50 centimeters tall with a single main stem and many stiff, spreading branches covered in dense, rough hairs, the plant has a distinctive upright structure. Its leaves are linear to narrow oblanceolate, 1 to 5 centimeters long, covered in appressed and ascending rough hairs with bulbous-based bristles. The plant produces 3 to 4 gray or mottled nutlets that are smooth, glossy, and 1.4 to 2 millimeters long with rounded margins.

Habitat: Sand dune, sandy soils, sagebrush scrub

Bloom period: Jun-Aug

Elevation: 2200 m

Bioregions: W&ampI (Little Cowhorn Valley)

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