Mimulus glaucescens
Encyclopedia
Mimulus glaucescens is a species of monkeyflower
known by the common name shieldbract monkeyflower.
, where it is known only from the foothills of the southernmost Cascade Range
and adjacent northernmost Sierra Nevada. It grows in moist areas, such as seeps
.
. The inflorescence
is a raceme
of flowers with a distinctive pair of bract
s completely fused around the stem to form a rounded disc up to 4.5 centimeters wide. The flowers are up to 3.5 centimeters long, spreading at the mouth into an upper lip with two notched lobes and a lower lip with three. The flower often has red spotting in the mouth.
Mimulus
Mimulus is a diverse plant genus, the monkey-flowers and musk-flowers. The about 150 species are currently placed in the family Phrymaceae. The genus has traditionally been placed in Scrophulariaceae. The removal of Mimulus from that family has been supported by studies of chloroplast DNA first...
known by the common name shieldbract monkeyflower.
Distribution
It is endemic to CaliforniaCalifornia
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, where it is known only from the foothills of the southernmost Cascade Range
Cascade Range
The Cascade Range is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as the North Cascades, and the notable volcanoes known as the High Cascades...
and adjacent northernmost Sierra Nevada. It grows in moist areas, such as seeps
Seep (hydrology)
A Seep is a moist or wet place where water, usually groundwater, reaches the earth's surface from an underground aquifer.-Description:Seeps are usually not of sufficient volume to be flowing beyond their above-ground location. They are part of the limnology-geomorphology system...
.
Description
Mimulus glaucescens is an annual herb varying in maximum height from 6 to 80 centimeters. The stem is hairless and waxy. The oval to rounded leaves are up to 7 centimeters long and are sometimes borne on petiolesPetiole (botany)
In botany, the petiole is the stalk attaching the leaf blade to the stem. The petiole usually has the same internal structure as the stem. Outgrowths appearing on each side of the petiole are called stipules. Leaves lacking a petiole are called sessile, or clasping when they partly surround the...
. The inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
is a raceme
Raceme
A raceme is a type of inflorescence that is unbranched and indeterminate and bears pedicellate flowers — flowers having short floral stalks called pedicels — along the axis. In botany, axis means a shoot, in this case one bearing the flowers. In a raceme, the oldest flowers are borne...
of flowers with a distinctive pair of bract
Bract
In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, especially one associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis, or cone scale. Bracts are often different from foliage leaves. They may be smaller, larger, or of a different color, shape, or texture...
s completely fused around the stem to form a rounded disc up to 4.5 centimeters wide. The flowers are up to 3.5 centimeters long, spreading at the mouth into an upper lip with two notched lobes and a lower lip with three. The flower often has red spotting in the mouth.