Eryngium vaseyi
Coyote-thistle
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Family: Apiaceae · Type: Herb · Native
Eryngium vaseyi (Coyote-thistle) is a native California herb in the Apiaceae family.
Coyote-thistle is a California native perennial found in open grasslands and rocky areas. Flowering from June to September, this plant produces white flowers in dense, spherical heads 8 to 13 millimeters wide, surrounded by spiny linear bracts. Growing with decumbent to erect stems 15 to 50 centimeters tall that branch near the base, it develops from a rosette with distinctive foliage. Its leaves are deeply pinnately lobed, with blades 8 to 24 centimeters long, significantly longer than their 1 to 4 centimeter petioles. The fruit is small, about 2 to 2.5 millimeters long, covered with dense, somewhat unequal ovate or awl-like scales.
How to tell it apart
vs Navarretia: Eryngium has compact button-like heads; Navarretia has looser clusters with spine-tipped bracts radiating outward.; vs Dipsacus: Eryngium flower heads are round or cylindrical when young; teasel heads are elongated egg-shaped from the start.; vs Cirsium: Eryngium leaves are firm and waxy; thistle leaves are softer with white woolly undersides.; vs Plantago: Eryngium grows in wetlands with spiny bracts under each flower; plantain has ribbed leaves and lacks spiny bracts.; vs Sanicula: Eryngium has a single bract under each flower and a thistle-like appearance; Sanicula lacks individual bracts.
Frequently asked questions
Is Eryngium vaseyi native to California?
Yes. Eryngium vaseyi is native to California (recorded as native).
What plant family does Eryngium vaseyi belong to?
Eryngium vaseyi is in the Apiaceae family, genus Eryngium.
Related species
Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.
- Eryngium vaseyi var. vallicola — Coyote thistle
- Eryngium vaseyi var. vaseyi — Coyote thistle
- Eryngium alismifolium — Alisma-leaved button-celery
- Eryngium aristulatum — California eryngo
- Eryngium aristulatum var. aristulatum — California eryngo
- Eryngium aristulatum var. hooveri — Hoover's button-celery
- Foeniculum sp.
- Foeniculum vulgare — Fennel
Sources: Jepson eFlora · Index of California Plant Names · CalPhotos
Last updated 2026-10-07
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Cal-IPC, and more.