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Castilleja mollis
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Soft-leaved Paintbrush
( Castilleja mollis )
Castilleja mollis
More Photos at CalPhotos
More Info at Jepson eFlora
Calflora
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About Soft-leaved Paintbrush (Castilleja mollis)
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Castilleja mollis
is a species of Indian paintbrush known by the common name softleaf Indian paintbrush. It is endemic to the Channel Islands of California, where it is currently known only from Santa Rosa Island. An occurrence was once noted on San Miguel Island, but the plant has not been found there since 1938. Its habitat is the coastal sage scrub around the windy sand dunes and bluffs. This wildflower is a perennial herb with many spreading, prostrate branches up to about 40 centimeters long. The plant is coated in woolly, tangled, sometimes glandular hairs that give it a gray-green tint. The leaves are 1 to 3 centimeters long and oval. The inflorescence is up to 8 centimeters long and made up of fleshy green or yellow-green bracts. Between the bracts bloom the pale to bright yellow pouched flowers. Like other Castilleja, this
Castilleja mollis
is hemiparasitic, attaching its roots to those of other plants to tap nutrients and water. The host plant for this
Castilleja species
is probably Menzies' goldenbush,
Isocoma menziesii
.
Castilleja mollis
is a federally listed endangered species. There are two known occurrences of the plant remaining on Santa Rosa Island. It has become rare due to habitat destruction, mainly from the presence of domesticated and feral ungulates such as cattle, elk (Cervus canadensis roosevelti), and deer (Odocoileus hemionus). These animals trample the soil, which compacts and degrades it. Deer also tend to use patches of the plant as bedding. Introduced plant species have also taken over the area. The cattle and most of the other non-native animals have been removed, but many weeds remain, such as ice plant. The plant depends on Menzies' goldenbush, which has also declined in the area, its habitat becoming fragmented. Invasive grasses prevent the small Castilleja plants from establishing haustoria, its connections to the roots of the goldenbush. This Castilleja may hybridize with
Castilleja affinis
. A 2008 review of the species' status indicated that the plant has rebounded somewhat since the removal of the ungulates, but it is still vulnerable enough that it will not yet be downlisted from endangered status.
Plant Description
Plant Type
Perennial herb, Annual herb
Flower Color
Cream, Yellow, Green, Brown
Wildlife Supported
Butterflies & moths hosted ( 9
likely
* )
SHOW ALL
*
Common Buckeye
Junonia coenia
Junonia coenia
*
Variable Checkerspot
Euphydryas chalcedona
Euphydryas chalcedona
*
Edith's Checkerspot
Euphydryas editha
Euphydryas editha
*
Leanira Checkerspot
Chlosyne leanira
Chlosyne leanira
*
Alfalfa Looper Moth
Autographa californica
Autographa californica
*
Verbena Bud Moth
Endothenia hebesana
Endothenia hebesana
*
Orange Tortrix Moth
Argyrotaenia franciscana
Argyrotaenia franciscana
Landscaping Information
Natural Setting
Climate
Annual Precipitation: 12.0" - 23.2", Summer Precipitation: 0.15" - 0.31", Coldest Month: 45.8" - 54.0", Hottest Month: 60.6" - 71.1", Humidity: 0.83" - 16.58", Elevation: 14" - 1092"
Alternative Names
Common Names
: Soft-leaved Indian Paintbrush, Softleaf Indian Paintbrush
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Soft-leaved Paintbrush
Castilleja mollis
Sources include:
Wikipedia
. All text shown in the "About" section of these pages is available under the
Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License
. Plant observation data provided by the participants of the
California Consortia of Herbaria
, Sunset information provided by
Jepson Flora Project
. Propogation from seed information provided by the
Santa Barbara Botanical Garden
from "Seed Propagation of Native California Plants" by Dara E. Emery. Sources of plant photos include
CalPhotos
,
Wikimedia Commons
, and independent plant photographers who have agreed to share their images with Calscape. Other general sources of information include
Calflora
,
CNPS Manual of Vegetation Online
,
Jepson Flora Project
,
Las Pilitas
,
Theodore Payne
,
Tree of Life
,
The Xerces Society
, and information provided by CNPS volunteer editors, with special thanks to Don Rideout. Climate data used in creation of plant range maps is from
PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University
, using 30 year (1981-2010) annual "normals" at an 800 meter spatial resolution.
Links:
Jepson eFlora Taxon Page
CalPhotos
Wikipedia
Calflora
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