Microsteris gracilis var. gracilis (Hook.) Greene (Hook.) Greene
pink twink
Polemoniaceae (Phlox family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
pink twink
Polemoniaceae (Phlox family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
Map
Distribution of Microsteris gracilis var. gracilis
Click here to view the full interactive map and legend
Species Information
General:
Annual herb from a taproot; stems erect, sometimes decumbent, simple or branched, minutely hairy or glandular-hairy at least above, 5-30 cm tall.
Leaves:
Upper leaves alternate, entire, linear to lance-elliptic; lower leaves opposite, more egg-shaped; 1-5 cm long, unstalked, at least the upper leaves hairy to glandular.
Flowers:
Inflorescence of pairs of flowers (one stalked the other not) at the ends of the stem and branches, or single in the axils of leaf-like bracts; corollas pinkish-white, 5-15 mm long, the tube white or yellowish, spreading to five pink to pale purple, squared-off or notched, 1-2 mm long lobes; calyces 5-10 mm long, glandular-hairy, with 5 green ribs separated by membranous tissue that is ruptured by the ripening capsule, the slender teeth about as long as the tube.
Fruits:
Capsules, spheric to egg-shaped, 3-chambered; seeds 1 per chamber.
Ecology
Ecological Framework for Microsteris gracilis var. gracilis
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) |
855 | 137 | 2111 |
| Slope
Gradient (%) |
28 | 0 | 210 |
|
Aspect (degrees) |
197 | 0 | 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: |
265 | ||
| Modal
BEC Zone Class |
BG | ||
|
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in |
BG(78), CDF(2), CWH(1), ESSF(8), ICH(23), IDF(67), MS(8), PP(37), SBS(6) | ||
|
Source:
Klinkenberg 2013
|
|||
Habitat and Range
Moist to dry grasslands, meadows, rocky slopes, floodplain terraces, streamsides, gravelly roadsides and forest openings in the lowland, steppe and lower montane zones; common in S BC, infrequent northward; ssp. gracilis - mostly west of the Coast-Cascade Mountains, N to Vancouver Island, introduced in SE AK, S to CA, OR and MT; ssp. humilis - mostly east of Coast-Cascade Mountains, N to S YT (where probably introduced), S to MT, NM, CA and MX, S America.Status Information
Synonyms
Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Gilia gracilis Hook.
Phlox gracilis (Hook.) Greene
Phlox gracilis subsp. gracilis (Hook.) Greene
Phlox gracilis subsp. gracilis (Hook.) Greene