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Key to families | Table of families and genera

This text currently parallels The Jepson Manual: Vascular Plants of California, Second Edition that is now available at the University of California Press.

Text appearing in blue on this page will not appear in the printed book; it will be displayed only on the Web. Specimen numbers are hyperlinked to records in the Consortium of California Herbaria data view where possible. Taxa are hyperlinked to entries in the Jepson Interchange via the "[Online Interchange]" link.

 

MYOSURUS MOUSETAIL

Alan T. Whittemore


Annual, short-lived, generally tufted.
Leaf: basal, simple, linear.
Inflorescence: scapose, 1-flowered.
Flower: sepals (3)5(8), 1.5–4 mm, alike, free, green or scarious-margined, spurred; petals 0–5, free, linear to narrowly spoon-shaped, long-clawed, white; stamens 5–25; pistils 10–400, 1–2.5 mm, ovules 1, styles thread-like.
Fruit: achene, angled, wall not veined, styles persistent, ± enlarged in fruit; receptacle elongate, generally growing and producing ovules after flower.
± 15 species: temperate worldwide. (Greek: mouse tail) [Whittemore 1997 FNANM 3:135–138]
Unabridged etymology: (Greek: mus, mouse, and oura, tail)

Key to Myosurus

1. Fr body not compressed, length ± = width, keel in depression; eastern DMtns ..... M. cupulatus

1' Fr body ± compressed laterally, length > width, keel not in depression; CA-FP, GB

2. Infl in fruit < leaves, peduncle 0–0.2 cm ..... M. sessilis

2' Infl in fruit > leaves, peduncle 0.9–13 cm

3. Fr beak erect, parallel to fruit surface, 0.05–0.4 mm ..... M. minimus

3' Fr beak ± spreading, diverging from fruit surface, 0.6–1.4 mm ..... M. apetalus

4. Fr aggregate 4–9 mm; sepal 1-veined, widely scarious-margined ..... var. borealis

4' Fr aggregate 11–26 mm; sepal 3-veined, narrowly scarious-margined ..... var. montanus

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