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

Cuscuta pacifica Engelm. var. pacifica
salt marsh dodder
Convolvulaceae (Dodder family)
(Previously in Cuscutaceae)

Introduction to Vascular Plants

Distribution of Cuscuta pacifica var. pacifica
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Species Information

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Illustration Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

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 stalked flowers in loose clusters or globular masses; flowers 2.0-4.5 mm long, with 5 petals/sepals; sepals free to about halfway to the base; stamens not exserted; stigmas headlike.

Fruits:
Capsules globose, somewhat beaked; seeds usually solitary.

Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Habitat / Range

Parasitic on plants of the Chenopodiaceae and Asteraceae on saline sites in the lowland zone; locally frequent in SW BC, known from S Vancouver lsland, the Gulf Islands and the lower Fraser Valley; S to UT, AZ, CA and MX.

Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Ecology

Ecological Framework for Cuscuta pacifica var. pacifica

The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)

Site Information	Value / Class
Site Information	Minimum	Average	Maximum
Elevation (metres)	0	0	0
Slope Gradient (%)	0	0	0
Aspect (degrees) [0 - N; 90 - E; 180 - S; 270 - W]		0
Soil Moisture Regime (SMR) [0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic; 8 - hydric]	8	8	8
Modal Nutrient Regime Class	C
Number of field plots species was recorded in:	1
Modal BEC Zone Class	CDF
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in:	CDF(1)
Source: Klinkenberg 2020

Status Information

Origin Status	Provincial Status	BC List (Red Blue List)	COSEWIC
Native	S4	Yellow	Not Listed

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

Synonyms and Alternate Names

Cuscuta salina Engelm.

Taxonomic and Nomenclatural Links

Genetic information (NCBI Taxonomy Database)
International Plant Names Index
Taxonomic Information from the World Flora Online

Additional Range and Status Information Links

Burke Museum of Natural History (Washington State records)
CalFlora
Consortium of Pacific Northwest Herbaria records
Jepson Interchange
NatureServe Explorer

Additional Photo Sources

Images From CalPhoto
UT Austin's Native Plant Database
Google Image Search
Flickr Image Search

General References

Google Scholar Search
Family References
General Botanical References for BC

Recommended citation: Author, Date. Page title. In Klinkenberg, Brian. (Editor) 2020. 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: 2024-12-11 5:20:06 PM ]

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.