Cryptantha pterocarya var. purpusii

Purpus' cryptantha

Family: Boraginaceae · Type: annual · Native

Purpus' cryptantha is a California native annual found in southern Sierra Nevada (eastern slope), southern Transverse Ranges, eastern Peninsular Ranges, White and Inyo Mountains, and northern Desert Mountains in sandy to gravelly desert slopes and juniper woodlands at elevations of 900 to 2,200 meters. Flowering from March to June, this delicate plant produces small white flowers with dense-strigose calyces 1.5 to 2.5 millimeters long. Growing with slender green stems that branch extensively from the base, it forms a well-developed basal rosette of linear leaves. Its distinctive leaves are arranged in a compact rosette, creating a delicate ground-hugging form with multiple thin branches. The fruit features unusual nutlets that can be slightly different within the same plant, with some having sharp-angled margins and a mottled brown or grayish coloration.

Habitat: Sandy to gravelly soils, desert slopes, generally juniper woodland

Bloom period: Mar-Jun

Elevation: 900-2200 m

Bioregions: s SNH (e slope), n SnBr, e PR, W&ampI, n DMtns

California counties: San Bernardino, Los Angeles, Inyo, Imperial, Mono, Kern, Riverside, San Diego, Tulare, San Luis Obispo

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