Kopsiopsis hookeri
Vancouver groundcone
Orobanchaceae (Broom-rape family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
Vancouver groundcone
Orobanchaceae (Broom-rape family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
Species Information
General:
Parasitic herb from a coarse fleshy root and thickened stem-base; stems single or clustered, stout, up to 3 cm thick above, yellow to red or purple, 8-12 cm tall.
Leaves:
Basal leaves lacking; stem leaves scaly-bracteate, alternate, the bracts entire, overlapping like the bracts on a conifer cone.
Flowers:
Inflorescence of numerous flowers in dense spikes, each flower subtended by a bract; corollas yellow to purple, 1-1.5 cm long with the lower lip shorter than the upper lip; calyces with 2-3 lobes; filaments with tufts of basal hairs.
Fruits:
Capsules, 1-1.5 cm long; seeds numerous, minute, honeycombed.
Illustration
If more than one illustration is available for a species (e.g., separate illustrations were provided for two subspecies) then links to the separate images will be provided below. Note that individual subspecies or varietal illustrations are not always available.
Illustration Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia
Habitat and Range
Parasitic on Gaultheria shallon in moist to mesic forests in the lowland zone; locally frequent on S Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands, rare on the Queen Charlotte Islands and SW mainland; S to N CA.Status Information
Synonyms
Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Boschniakia hookeri Walp.