Diplacus rupicola

Death valley monkeyflower, Death Valley Monkeyflower

Family: Phrymaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 4.3

Death valley monkeyflower is a rare (CNPS 4.3) California native perennial found in northern Death Valley Mountains, including Cottonwood, Funeral, Grapevine, and Panamint ranges in limestone cliff crevices at elevations of 310 to 1,830 meters. Flowering from February to June, this plant produces delicate pink to white flowers with a distinctive large magenta-purple spot at the base of each lobe, creating a striking color contrast. Growing with short, compact stems 5 to 17 centimeters tall and covered in fine soft hairs, the plant forms small, dense clusters in rocky habitats. Its leaves are oblanceolate, measuring 18 to 60 millimeters long, with a smooth margin and a pale green coloration that blends with its rocky environment. The fruit is a small, slightly curved ovoid-oblong capsule 3 to 8 millimeters long, containing just a few tiny seeds.

Habitat: Limestone cliff crevices

Bloom period: Feb-Jun

Elevation: 310-1830 m

Bioregions: n DMtns (Cottonwood, Funeral, Grapevine mtns, Last Chance, n Panamint ranges).

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