E-Flora BC: Electronic Atlas of the Flora of British Columbia


	Cuscuta epithymum (L.) L. clover dodder; common dodder; thyme dodder Cuscutaceae (Dodder Family) Introduction to Vascular Plants

Distribution of Cuscuta epithymum
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Species Information

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Illustration Source: The Illustrated Flora of BC

General:
Parasitic, leafless perennial herb; stems threadlike, twining and sticking to other plants by means of suckers.

Leaves:
Reduced to tiny scales.

Flowers:
Inflorescence of several to many stalkless, often purplish-tinged flowers in clusters or globular masses; flowers 2.5-3 mm long, with 5 petals/sepals; calyx lobes longer than wide, membranous; corolla tubes longer than the calyces; stigmas long-pointed.

Fruits:
Capsules spherical, opening in an irregularly circular fashion near the base; seeds 4.

Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Climate

The climate type for this species, as reported in the: "British Columbia plant species codes and selected attributes. Version 6 Database" (Meidinger et al. 2008), is not evaluated, unknown or variable.

Habitat / Range

Parasitic, especially on legumes, in the lowland and steppe zones; infrequent in SW and SC BC; introduced from Eurasia.

Source: The Illustrated Flora of BC

Status Information

Provincial Status: SNA
BC Status (Red Blue List): Exotic
COSEWIC Status: Not listed
Origin Status: exotic or introduced species/naturalized in B.C.

BC Ministry of Environment: BC Species and Ecosystems Explorer , the authoritative source for conservation information in British Columbia.

Taxonomic and Nomenclatural Links

Genetic information (NCBI Taxonomy Database)
International Plant Names Index
Taxonomic Information from the Missouri Botanical Garden
Vascular Plant Type Database, New York Botanical Gardens
Integrated Taxonomic Information System

Additional Range and Status Information Links

Burke Museum of Natural History (Washington State records)
Burke Museum of Natural History: Range and Status
CalFlora
Consortium of Pacific Northwest Herbaria records
Jepson Interchange
NatureServe Explorer
USDA

Additional Photo Sources

Burke Museum of Natural History's Image Collection
Images From CalPhoto
UT Austin's Native Plant Database
Google Image Search
Flickr Image Search

Related Databases

The Global Invasive Species Database
FDA Poisonous Plant Database

General References

Google Scholar Search
Family References
General Botanical References for BC

Recommended citation: Author, Date. Page title. In Klinkenberg, Brian. (Editor) 2013. E-Flora BC: Electronic Atlas of the Plants of British Columbia [eflora.bc.ca]. Lab for Advanced Spatial Analysis, Department of Geography, University of British Columbia, Vancouver. [Accessed: 5/22/2013 2:56:33 AM ]

Disclaimer: The information contained in the E-Flora atlas pages is derived from expert sources as cited in each section. This information is scientifically based. E-Flora also acts as a portal to other sites via deep links. As always, users should refer to the original sources for complete information. E-Flora BC is not responsible for the accuracy or completeness of the original information.

E-Flora BC: An initiative of the Spatial Data Lab, Department of Geography UBC, and the UBC Herbarium.