San Jacinto bluecurls facts for kids
Quick facts for kids San Jacinto bluecurls |
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|---|---|
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Trichostema
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| Species: |
austromontanum
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Trichostema austromontanum is a special flowering plant often called San Jacinto bluecurls. It belongs to the mint family. This plant grows naturally in the mountains of California, especially east of the Sierra Nevada range, and also in Baja California. You can find it in wet mountain meadows and near lakes.
Contents
Discovering San Jacinto Bluecurls
Where Do San Jacinto Bluecurls Live?
This plant loves wet places! It grows in damp mountain meadows and along the edges of lakes. Its home stretches across California's mountains, from the areas east of the Sierra Nevada to the Transverse Ranges and Peninsular Ranges. You can even find it further south in Baja California.
What Do San Jacinto Bluecurls Look Like?
San Jacinto bluecurls are annual plants. This means they complete their whole life cycle in one year. They can grow up to about half a meter (around 20 inches) tall. The plant has a nice, fresh smell because it's part of the mint family. Its stems and leaves are covered in tiny hairs, some of which are sticky (glandular).
The leaves are long and narrow, shaped like a spear. They are usually about 2 to 5 centimeters (1 to 2 inches) long. The flowers grow in clusters along the stem, right where the leaves meet. Each flower has a fuzzy outer part called a calyx, made of pointy sepals. The main flower part, called the corolla, is purple and shaped like a tube with lips. It's quite pretty! The four stamens, which are the parts that hold pollen, are long and curve outwards.
Special Subspecies: Hidden Lake Bluecurls
There are two types, or subspecies, of San Jacinto bluecurls. One of them is much rarer than the other. This rare type is called ssp. compactum, or the Hidden Lake bluecurls. It is only found in one specific spot: at Hidden Lake. This lake is a small, seasonal alpine lake located high up in the San Jacinto Mountains in Riverside County, California.
Because it's so rare and found in only one place, the Hidden Lake bluecurls is listed as a threatened species by the United States government. This means it's in danger of disappearing. The biggest problem for this plant is people accidentally stepping on it. Hikers and sightseers visiting Hidden Lake can easily trample the plants, which harms their survival. Protecting its habitat is very important to keep this special plant safe.
