23Sept2011DeanW.Taylor,Ph.D.

Eriogonumursinumassessment:TrinityCountysites
Summary:newlydocumentedTrinityCountyandShastaCountyEriogonumursinumsitesaredeterminedasEriogonumursinum var.erubescens,aCNPSRAREtaxon. EriogonumursinumisendemictoCalifornia:E.ursinumvar.ursinumisknownfrom>100sitesintheCascadeRangesandnorthern SierraNevada(basedonCCHherbariumspecimendatabase).Bycontrast,E.ursinumvar.erubescensisconsideredanarrow endemic(CNPSList1B.3)reportedinliteraturetobelimitedtoGunsightPeakvicinity,Siskiyoucounty,withanoutlieronTrinity Mountain,ShastaCounty(Reveal&Knorr2004).Recently,severalnewoccurrencesofE.ursinumwerelocatedinTrinityandShasta Countieswhichpromptedreviewofthetaxonomiccircumscriptionofthetheseentities.Thisreviewprovidesassessmentofthe taxonomicfeaturesofTrinityCountyandwesternShastaCountyoccurrenceswhichshowtheyexhibitcharacteristicsconsistentwith therareE.u.var.erubescens,andthattheoriginalcircumscriptionofE.ursinumvar.erubescens(Reveal&Knorr2004)incorrectly characterizedthattaxonashavingumbellateinflorescences. Circumscription(Reveal&Knorr2004) TheprotologofE.ursinumvar.erubescensstates(quotingtheabstract):
...differsfromvar.ursinum...inhavinganumbellate(notbiumbellate)inflorescence,longerpeduncles(525vs.25mm)infruit, involucres(4.58vs.3.54.5mm),matureflowers(59vs.56mm)andachenes(5.58mmvs.35mm).

and;theLatindiagnosis(Reveal&Knorr2004)circumscribesvar.erubescensas:
avar.ursinoinflorescentiisumbellatis(neebiumbellatis)divisisdiffert. RevealandKnorr(2004,p.164)alsostate: AsaresulttheinflorescenceinEriogonumursinumvar.erubescensisasingleumbelwhereasitistypicallybranchedtwice(or biumbellate)invar.ursinum...

Reveal(2005)separatestheinfrataxaofEriogonumursinumonthefollowingbasis,anddoesnotkeythetwotaxabasedon inflorescencearchitecture: Flowers59mm,perianthcream(rarelyyellow);achenes(5)5.58mm........................var.erubescens Flowers46mm,perianthpaleyelloworrarelyyellow;achenes33.5mm.........var.ursinum Reveal(2011inpress)separatestheinfrataxaofEriogonumursinumonthefollowingbasis,alsowithoutreferencetoinflorescence architecture: Fls59mm,cream(oryellow);fr(5)5.58mm;KR...........................................................................................var.erubescens Fls46mm,paleyellow(oryellow);fr33.5mm;sCaR,nSN...............................................................................var.ursinum ThereisnospecificinconsistencyinthetwoRevealkeys,therearecharactersmentionedspecificallyintheprotologofvar. erubescenssuchas:Reveal(2005,p.358)characterizesE.u.var.ursinumperianth...becomingsuffusedwithblushofpinkishred tomaroon.:whilevar.ursinum...notsuffusedwithblushofcolor.Table1encapsulatestheputativedifferencesasdescribed above.
Table1.Characterstatesforaqualitativecharacter,andmeasurementsforquantitativecharactersgivenforE.ursinumvar.ursinumandE.u. var.erubescensinReveal&Knorr(2004).

Taxon
E.ursinumvar.ursinum E.urisnumvar.erubescens

Inflorescence Branching biumbellate umbellate

Peduncle Length(mm) 2 5mm 5 25mm

Involucrelength (mm) 3.5 4.5mm 4.5 8mm

Flowerlength (mm) 5 6mm 5 9mm

Flowers nonblushing blushing

Achene length (mm) 3 5mm 5.5 8mm

Inthesummerof2011,plantsofEriogonumursinumlocatedfromTrinityandShastaCountieswereinitiallythoughtnottobeE. ursinumvar.erubescensbasedonthelackofasimplyumbellateinflorescence.ThepurposeofthisnoteistoindicatethatbothE. ursinumvar.ursinumandE.ursinumvar.erubescenshaveacompoundumbellateinflorescencestructure(contrarytoReveal& Knorr2004,latercorrectedinReveal2005itshouldbenoted),andtohighlightthecircumscriptionoftherareE.ursinumvar. erubsecens.

Thetabulationbelowprovidesmeasurements/assessmentofTrinityCountyoccurrences:achenelengthwasnotdeterminedfor mostsitesasseedswerenotyetripeatthetimeofmeasurement.
Table2.Measuredsizesof10involucres,pedunclesorachenesand30flowers(mm).

Site
TrinityMountain(paratype) MikesPeak NForkSaltCreek OnionCreek WofBurksPeak NearTrinityCenter(#21135) YubaRiver(typelocality)

Taxon erubescens erubescens erubescens erubescens erubescens erubescens ursinum

Peduncle Length(mm)
5.481.8 range3.87.5 9.92.4 range6.312.8 7.90.5 range6.88.9 9.22.4 range6.213.6 10.52.5 range6.115.0 6.81.5 range4.58.8 4.130.7 range3.05.5

Involucre length (meanS.D.) 6.10.4 5.80.5 6.10.3 5.10.3 5.80.8 5.90.3 4.060.44

Flowerlength (meanS.D.)
6.150.57 range5.47.2 5.490.67 range3.66.5 6.450.41 range5.67.7 4.010.53 range3.15.1 6.440.44 range4.97.2 5.250.62 range3.76.2 4.460.17 range2.95.5

Flowercolor aging embarrassed blushing blushing blushing blushing blushing forward

Achene length (meanS.D.) Notripe Notripe 4.70.6 Notripe 4.00.4 Notripe 3.30.3

Definitions:embarrassedblushingpriortooratanthesis;forward,blushingonlyrarelyandthenatgreatage GeneralFeaturesoftheseplants ThetwotaxaofEriogonumursinumaredistinct:nospecimenshavebeenseenwhichsuggestanysignificantdegreeofintermediacy. Generally,var.erubescensisabout50%largerinallaspectsoftheinflorescenceandflowerscomparedtovar.ursinum(seeFig.3 below).Tobesure,thesizedifferenceissuch,giventheoverallprevailingviewpointwithrespecttoclassificationofEriogonum,the twomightwellbeconsideredseparatespecies.AsnotedbyReveal&Knorr(2004),thepeduncles,involucreandflowersarelarger invar.erubescensthanvar.ursinum.Anothersignificantdifferenceistheoverallsizeoftheinflorescenceitself,whichismuch largerinvar.erubescensbyvirtueofthegenerallylonger1storderand2ndordersegmentsoftheinflorescence(seeattached specimenscans).OneaspectoftheoverallsizedifferencebetweenthetwoinfrataxaofEriogonumursinumisthatvar.erubescens hasmuchlongerscapesthandoesvar.ursinum,alsobyaboutafactorof50%.Thescapesofvar.erubescenscanbeuptonearly5 dmtall,whilethoseofvar.ursinumareusuallynotover3dmtall(again,seeattachedspecimenscans).Thisfeaturewasnotusedin thekey. Blushing E.ursinumvar.erubescensflowersquicklyblushatandjustafteranthesissuchthatmostinflorescencesappearreddish(seeFig.3 &5),whileE.ursinumvar.ursinumflowersaremoreforwardinthesensethattheysomedoblusheventually,butnottothe rapidityanddegreeinvar.erubescens(seeFig3&7).SomeoftheTrinityCountyoccurrencesofEriogonumursinumvar.erubescens blushafteranthesis,whileoneoccurrence(MikesPeak)Iwillcharacterizeasembarrassedasplantsatthissiteblushbefore anthesis. PeduncleLength InEriogonum,apeduncleisbydefinitionthatinflorescence structuresubtendinganinvolucre.InEriogonumursinum, variationinpedunclelengthisevident,thevariationresultant fromtwofactors:1)var.erubescenshasintrinsicallylonger peduncles,and2)variabilitysuggestiveofdifferentialgene expressionduringinflorescencedevelopment.Fig.1(left) showsaninflorescenceofE.ursinumvar.erubescenswith differentialexpressionofinflorescencebranchinggenes. Typically,apeduncleisathirdorderstructure,thatis,they aresubtendedbytwoordersofbranching.Inthis inflorescence,thecentral(terminaluponthemeristem) inflorescencesegmentisunbranched(thatis,comparedto neighbors,lackstwodivisions)andthereforehasapeduncle about20mmlong.Othersegmentsoftheinflorescencelack onebranchingorder,andthushavepedunclesthatcanbe

about12mmlong.PedunclelengthdoesdifferbetweenE.u.var.ursinumandE.u.var.erubescensasintheReveal(2005)key:the salientdifferenceshouldbedeterminedonlyfrompedunclesthatarethirdorder. Distribution

Figure2.Eriogonumursinumdistribution:blackdotsarevar. ursinum;reddotsarevar.erubescens(includingnewsites reportedherein).

TheCCHspecimendistributionofEriogonumursinumis mappedhere:mostofthespecimensofvar.ursinum conformtothestatedrange(Reveal&Knorr2004,Reveal 2011inpress),withtheexceptionofoutliersinDelNorte County(opencirclesonthemap,SBBG1653andone TulareCountyspecimen,SBBG1654).Onthisbasis,the distributionofE.ursinumvar.erubescensisindeednorth andwestofthatofvar.ursinum.Thetaxonomic assignmentoftheoutliersissuspect. InShastaCounty,thegapbetweentheknownsitesforvar. ursinumandvar.erubescensisinthecanyonsofthe McCloudandPitRivers;theclosestwesternapproachof var.ursinumisonGrizzlyPeak,ShastaCounty(JEPS88652) about20airmilesfromtheeasternmostknownsitefor var.erubescens.Explorationofhighrockyridgesinthis regionshouldseektodocumentpresenceorabsenceof eithertaxonlocally.Thereportedsoutherlystationfor var.ursinum(BullyChoopMountain)isapparentlynot vouchered. ThetwopopulationcentersforE.ursinumvar.erubescensareseparatedbyabout50airmiles.Noindicationhasbeenseeninthe availablespecimensthatthetwopopulationcentersforvar.erubescensdifferinanyway. EndangermentStatus: Includingthesitesreportedherein,Eriogonumursinumvar.erubescensisknownfrom13occurrences. Conclusion:theuncertaintyoverthecircumscriptionofEriogonumursinumvar.erubescensbasedonaliteralreadingofReveal& Knorr(2004)isduetothefactthattheprotologmisstatesthedegreeofinflorescencebranching.ContrarytotheLatindescription, E.ursinumvar.erubescenshasabiumbellateinflorescence. ThekeysprovidedbyReveal(2005,2011inpress)arecorrect. ClarificationoftheproblemsassociatedwiththecircumscriptionofEriogonumursinumvar.erubescenswasneeded,beingthatitis aCNPSrareplant.ItwasnottreatedinRarePlantsofNorthernCalifornia.
References: Reveal,J.R.andJ.K,.Knorr2004.AnewvarietyofEriogonumursinum(Polygonaceae:Eriogonidae).Phytologia86(3):160168 Reveal,J.R.2005.Eriogonum,inFloraNorthAmerica,Vol.7.OxfordUniv.Press RevealJ.R.2011?Eriogonum,inJepsonManualrevision(inpress)

NewlyDocumentedStationsvoucheredbyspecimens

TRINITYCOUNTY:3.5airmilesNNWofTrinityCenter,ridgedividingHatchetCreekfromBuckeyeCreekwatersheds;T37NR8W S25;Carville7USGSquadrangle;alt.3950ft.;rockymetamorphicnorthfacingslopecharacterizedbyPolystichumimbricans, brushyQuercuschrysolepis&Toxicodendron,andPseudotsugamenziesiiopencanopy.Latitude/Longitude(GPS,NAD27)41.03258/ 122.7245;Thursday,August04,2011;DeanWm.Taylor#21143withTomEngstrom,JasonPoburko(JEPS).[HinkeyTHP] TRINITYCOUNTY:MikesPeak(ca5airmilesSofLewiston);T32NR8ESection18;Lewiston7USGSquadrangle;alt.4370ft.; sparsecanopyserpentinewoodlandwithstuntedtreesofPinusponderosa,Calocedrusdecurrens,andFestucaidahoensis prominentinotherwisesparseherbaceousvegetation;steeprockyeasterlyfacingslope;Latitude/Longitude(GPS,NAD27) 40.62908/122.8064;Thursday,August04,2011;DeanWm.Taylor#21144(JEPS);Tuesday,May15,2007,#20454(JEPS). SHASTACOUNTY:0.9airmilewestofHighMountainand6.65airmileseastofHighway5andPollardFlat,alongadrawdrainingto NorthForkNorthSalkCreek;T36NR04WS11;HanlandPeak7'USGSquadrangle;alt.3300ft.;steepopenrockyslope,northwest aspect;Latitude/Longitude(GPS,NAD27)40.99185/122.28964;Thursday,July15,2011;TomHarringtons.n.(SPIherbarium) ["MissionImpossibleIITHP"] SHASTACOUNTY:SoutheasternslopeofpeakbetweenOnionCreekandStaceyCreekdrainages,~9.37airmileswestofLakehead. T35NR06WS09SW1/4oftheNW1/4.DamnationPeak7'USGSquadrangle;alt.4432ft.;Rockyopeninginforestwith0%canopy, 50%slope,Toxicodendrondiversilobum,Cercisoccidentalis,Erigeroninornatusvar.inornatus,Quercuskelloggii,Calystegia occidentalis,Achnatherumsp.,Violapurpurea,Calocedrusdecurrens,Pseudotsugamenziesii,Pinusponderosa.Latitude/Longitude (GPS,NAD27)40.90612/122.56047;19'accuracy;Thursday,July14,2011;JessicaO'Briens.n.(SPIherbarium).["MilkboneTHP"] SHASTACOUNTY:0.75airmileWofBucksPeak(ca2.2airmilesENEofLakehead);T35NR04WS05;HanlandPeak7'USGS quadrangle;alt.2625ft.;rockyclifffacesalongsideandabovedirtloggingroad,steepwesternfacingslopes,fairlybarrenwith scatteredclustersextendingupslopegrowingwithQuercuschrysolepisandLomatiumsp.,opencanopy;Latitude/Longitude(GPS, NAD27)40.91385/122.33897;Thursday,June30,2011;JessicaO'BrienandStephaniePuentess.n.(SPIherbarium)["LongTom THP"]

Photographs

Figure3ComparisonofEriogonumursinuminfrataxaUpperPair:Eriogonumursinumvar.ursinumnorthernSierrra Nevada(SierraCounty);Lower,Eriogonumursinumvar.erubescens(TrinityCountyandShastaCounty).

Photographs(continued)

Figure4Eriogonumursinumvar.erubescens,MikesPeak(#21144)

Figure5MikesPeakERUREsite(serpentine,sparselyvegetated,characterizedbysparseFestucaidahoensis)

 Figure63.5airmilesNNWTrinityCentersiteforERURE(#21134),rockyoutcropcharacterizedbythefernPolystichumimbricans

Figure7Eriogonumursinumvar.ursinum(MiddleYubaRiver,SierraNevada,topotype,#21154)showingboth'forward'(unblushed)and blushedinflorescencesonthesameclone

Figure8Eriogonumursinumvar.ursinumMiddleYubaRiver(SierraNevada,asabove)