Malacothamnus fasciculatus facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Malacothamnus fasciculatus |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Malacothamnus
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| Species: |
fasciculatus
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Malacothamnus fasciculatus, with the common name chaparral mallow, is a species of flowering plant in the mallow family. It is found in far western North America.
Distribution
The plant is native to southern California and northern Baja California, where it is a common member of the chaparral and coastal sage scrub plant communities.
Description
Malacothamnus fasciculatus is a shrub with a slender, multibranched stem growing 1–5 metres (3.3–16.4 ft) in height. It is coated thinly to densely in white or brownish hairs.
The leaves are oval or rounded in shape, 2 to 11 centimeters long, and sometimes divided into lobes. The inflorescence is an elongated cluster of many pale pink flowers with petals under a centimeter long.
Varieties
It is a highly variable plant which is sometimes described as a spectrum of varieties, and which is sometimes hard to differentiate from other Malacothamnus species.
- Varieties of the species currently named include:
- Malacothamnus fasciculatus var. catalinensis — Santa Catalina Island bush-mallow; endemic to Catalina Island, one of the Channel Islands of California.
- Malacothamnus fasciculatus var. fasciculatus.
- Malacothamnus fasciculatus var. nesioticus — Santa Cruz Island bush mallow; a rare plant endemic to Santa Cruz Island, one of the Channel Islands, on which only ~120 individual plants remain. It is federally listed as an endangered species.
- Malacothamnus fasciculatus var. nuttallii — endemic to California in the Outer South Coast Ranges, and Western Transverse Ranges.
