Lupinus duranii
Encyclopedia
Lupinus duranii is a species of lupin
e known by the common name Mono Lake lupine. It is endemic to California
, where it is known mainly from the eastern slopes of the Sierra Nevada in western Mono County
. Its distribution includes Mammoth Mountain
and the hills around Mono Lake
, and its habitat has gravelly, pumice
-rich soils of volcanic origin. This is a tough, compact perennial herb forming tufts no more than about 12 centimeters tall. The basal palmate leaves are made up of 5 to 8 shaggy-haired leaflets up to 2 centimeters long. The inflorescence
is a crowded raceme
of flowers, each about a centimeter long and arranged in whorls about the stout, hairy stem. The flower is purple with a white patch on its banner. It yields a legume pod 1 or 2 centimeters long containing white seeds.
Lupin
Lupinus, commonly known as Lupins or lupines , is a genus in the legume family . The genus comprises about 280 species , with major centers of diversity in South and western North America , and the Andes and secondary centers in the Mediterranean region and Africa Lupinus, commonly known as Lupins...
e known by the common name Mono Lake lupine. It is endemic to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, where it is known mainly from the eastern slopes of the Sierra Nevada in western Mono County
Mono County, California
Mono County is a county located in the east central portion of the U.S. state of California, to the east of the Sierra Nevada between Yosemite National Park and Nevada. As of the 2010 census, the population was 14,202, up from 12,853 at the 2000 census...
. Its distribution includes Mammoth Mountain
Mammoth Mountain
Mammoth Mountain is a lava dome complex west of the town of Mammoth Lakes, California in the Inyo National Forest of Madera County and Mono County. It is home to a large ski area on the Mono County side....
and the hills around Mono Lake
Mono Lake
Mono Lake is a large, shallow saline lake in Mono County, California, formed at least 760,000 years ago as a terminal lake in a basin that has no outlet to the ocean...
, and its habitat has gravelly, pumice
Pumice
Pumice is a textural term for a volcanic rock that is a solidified frothy lava typically created when super-heated, highly pressurized rock is violently ejected from a volcano. It can be formed when lava and water are mixed. This unusual formation is due to the simultaneous actions of rapid...
-rich soils of volcanic origin. This is a tough, compact perennial herb forming tufts no more than about 12 centimeters tall. The basal palmate leaves are made up of 5 to 8 shaggy-haired leaflets up to 2 centimeters long. The inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
is a crowded raceme
Raceme
A raceme is a type of inflorescence that is unbranched and indeterminate and bears pedicellate flowers — flowers having short floral stalks called pedicels — along the axis. In botany, axis means a shoot, in this case one bearing the flowers. In a raceme, the oldest flowers are borne...
of flowers, each about a centimeter long and arranged in whorls about the stout, hairy stem. The flower is purple with a white patch on its banner. It yields a legume pod 1 or 2 centimeters long containing white seeds.