Array
Draba mogollonica
(Mogollon whitlowgrass)
[taxon report][distribution map][photos][line drawing]
Family: Brassicaceae
Scientific Name: Draba mogollonica Greene
Synonyms: None
Vernacular Name: Mogollon whitlowgrass
R-E-D Code: 1-1-3
Description: Winter annuals or biennials (perennial?); taproots enlarged above; stems 1 to several, usually with several branches 1.5-3.5 dm long, pubescent at base with simple trichomes, glabrous above ;leaves mostly in flat basal rosettes, denticulate to dentate, uniformly pubescent with stalked cruciform trichomes, petiolate, apex rounded to obtuse, (2)4-8(9) cm long, 1-2.5 cm wide, stem leaves 1-3, much reduced, lanceolate, entire or denticulate, usually bracteolate; inflorescences loose, 20- to 50-flowered; petals 4, bright yellow; fruiting pedicels widely spreading, glabrous, lower usually slightly longer than siliques, 1-2 cm long; siliques linear-elliptic, contorted, 7-18 mm long, glabrous or rarely sparsely pubescent with appressed branched trichomes; styles 1-2.25 mm. Flowers April to May.
Similar Species: Draba mogollonica has been confused with D. standleyi, probably because both have relatively long basal leaves, and long-styled siliques. Draba mogollonica is a winter annual or biennial, its crown does not have marcescent (withered but persistent) leaf bases, and has a flat rosette of basal leaves, whereas D. standleyi is a strong perennial whose crown has persistent leaf bases and has tufts of narrowly oblanceolate, usually ciliate basal leaves. There are also other minor differences (see following table).
|
Draba |
LONGEVITY |
CROWN/STEM |
STEM TRICHOMES |
BASAL LEAVES |
CAULINE LEAVES |
FRUITING PEDICELS |
STYLES |
|
mogollonica |
annual/ biennial |
tap rooted; no marcescent leaf bases |
simple below; glabrous above |
flat rosette; 4-9 cm long |
1-3, reduced |
widely spreading, 1-2 cm long |
1-2.25 mm |
|
petrophila |
perennial |
marcescent leaf bases; stems relatively stout |
cruciform to dendritic |
numerous; 3-8 cm long |
3-30, usually overlapping |
4-12 mm |
1.5-3 mm |
|
standleyi |
perennial |
marcescent leaf bases; stems very slender |
simple or forked & glabrous above or all glabrous |
tufted; 1.5-8 cm long |
1-8, reduced, remote |
erect to divaricately spreading, 8-13 mm |
1-2 mm |
Distribution: New Mexico, Catron, Grant, Sierra, and Socorro counties.
Habitat: Cool, moist northern slopes of mountains, ravines and canyons on volcanic rocks and soil in montane forests; 1,500-2,900 m (5,000-9,000 ft).
Remarks: Distributed in several counties in southwestern New Mexico, sometimes in large populations. The species may be more abundant than is now known because of the relative inaccessibility of its habitat.
Conservation Considerations: Current land uses apparently do not pose a threat to this species.
Important Literature (*Illustration):
Greene, E.L. 1881. New species of plants from New Mexico. Botanical Gazette 6:157.
*New Mexico Native Plants Protection Advisory Committee. 1984. A handbook of rare and endemic plants of New Mexico. University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque.
Rollins, R.C. 1993. The Cruciferae of continental North America. Stanford University Press, Stanford, California.
Information Compiled By: David Bleakly, 1999
Agency Status:
