Lupinus lepidus var. sellulus

Donner lake lupine

Family: Fabaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Donner lake lupine is a California native perennial found in northwestern California, the high Cascade Range, Sierra Nevada, and Great Basin in dry rocky areas and open conifer forests at elevations of 1,000 to 2,500 meters. Flowering from June to August, this plant produces flowers with a distinctive yellow to white banner that turns red, measuring 8 to 9 millimeters long. Growing with short stems 12 to 35 centimeters tall, ranging from prostrate to nearly erect, it forms a compact low-growing habit. Its leaves are predominantly basal, composed of 10 to 30 millimeter leaflets arranged in a delicate pattern. The inflorescence extends 4.5 to 11 centimeters, rising above the leaves with slender peduncles 4 to 14 centimeters long.

Habitat: dry rocks, open conifer forests

Bloom period: Jun-Aug

Elevation: 1000-2500 m

Bioregions: NW, CaRH, SNH, GB

California counties: Plumas, Placer, Nevada, Mono, Siskiyou, Alpine, El Dorado, Amador, Calaveras, Sierra, Modoc, Shasta, Tuolumne, Lassen, Butte, Mendocino, Trinity, Tehama, Glenn, Mariposa, Humboldt, Tulare, Madera, Los Angeles, Del Norte, Yuba, Inyo

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