Micranthes occidentalis
western saxifrage
Saxifragaceae (Saxifrage family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
western saxifrage
Saxifragaceae (Saxifrage family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
Species Information
General:
Perennial herb from short, horizontal rhizomes; flowering stem 1, 10-25 cm tall, glandular-hairy, usually with red glands.
Leaves:
Basal leaves egg-shaped to diamond-shaped, 3-8 cm long, 1-3 cm wide, coarsely and irregularly toothed with 15 to 30 teeth, wedge-shaped at base, fringed, sparsely long-hairy, only young leaves reddish woolly-hairy below; stalks slender to slightly winged; stem leaves lacking.
Flowers:
Inflorescence terminal, open to compact, of several clusters of flowers; petals white to pink, 1.5-3.5 mm long, egg-shaped to oblong, narrowed to a distinct or indistinct claw, deciduous; calyces joined to the lower portion of the ovary, free hypanthium present or absent, the lobes green to purplish, egg-shaped to oblong lanceolate, 1-2.5 mm long, spreading or bent back; stamens 10.
Fruits:
Follicles, 3-6 mm long, greenish to reddish-purple; seeds brownish, about 0.7 mm long, wrinkled lengthwise.
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
Ecology
Ecological Framework for Micranthes occidentalis
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)
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 |
||
|
Avg |
Min |
Max |
|
| Elevation
(metres) |
1988 | 531 | 2610 |
| Slope
Gradient (%) |
43 | 0 | 125 |
|
Aspect (degrees) |
188 | 25 | 360 |
| Soil
Moisture Regime (SMR) [0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic; 8 - hydric] |
2 | 0 | 6 |
| Modal
Nutrient Regime
Class |
C | ||
| #
of field plots species was recorded in: |
102 | ||
| Modal
BEC Zone Class |
ESSF | ||
|
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in |
AT(27), BAFA(8), CMA(1), ESSF(38), ICH(3), IDF(1), IMA(10), MH(3), MS(3), PP(2), SBS(2) | ||
|
Source:
Klinkenberg 2013
|
|||
Habitat and Range
Moist to dry meadows and gravelly slopes from the montane to alpine zones; common throughout most of BC to 59degreeN, absent from NE BC and the coastal islands; E to AB and S to SD, NM, ID, NV and CA.Status Information
Synonyms
Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Saxifraga occidentalis S. Watson