Fritillaria biflora

Chocolate lily, Mission Bells

Family: Liliaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Chocolate lily is a California native perennial found in coastal and central California mountain ranges in grasslands, oak woodlands, and serpentine areas. Flowering from March to May, this plant produces dark brown to green-purple nodding flowers with distinctive yellow-green markings, each perianth part 1.8 to 4 centimeters long. Growing 10 to 45 centimeters tall with a single stem emerging from a large underground bulb, it develops 3 to 7 alternate leaves that are often clustered near the ground. Its leaves range from linear to narrowly ovate, measuring 5 to 19 centimeters long and positioned in a loose arrangement along the stem. The plant's prominent nectary covers approximately two-thirds of the flower's length, creating an unusual and striking botanical profile.

California counties: Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Orange, Fresno, Stanislaus, Monterey, Ventura, Kern, Contra Costa, Mendocino, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Marin

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