Mentzelia eremophila

Solitary blazing star, Solitary Blazing Star

Family: Loasaceae · Type: annual · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 4.2

Solitary blazing star is a California native annual found in western Mojave Desert in rocky canyons, slopes, and washes at elevations of 600 to 1,250 meters. Flowering from March to May, this plant produces bright yellow flowers with obovate petals 12 to 24 millimeters long. Growing 8 to 43 centimeters tall with erect stems that are glabrous to hairy, it has a delicate and slender structure. Its leaves vary from 1 to 15 centimeters long, with proximal leaves being lobed while distal leaves remain entire or slightly lobed. The fruit is typically curved less than 270 degrees, measuring 19 to 40 millimeters long with tan seeds that have a distinctive recurved flap over the attachment scar.

Habitat: Canyons, rocky slopes and washes, roadsides, creosote-bush scrub

Bloom period: Mar-May

Elevation: 600-1250 m

Bioregions: w DMoj.

California counties: Kern, San Bernardino, Mono, Ventura

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