SUNRISE HIGHWAY, LAGUNA MOUNTAINS
OCTOBER 2008 PAGE ONE
Photographs by Michael Charters
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Today I drove down the Sunrise Highway from Cuyamaca Lake to I-8, stopping at a number of locations. The Lagunas are pretty dry right now, and many things are in seed, thus somewhat difficult to identify. The purpose of this trip was to photograph the Machaeranthera asteroides var. lagunensis that Tom Chester reported several days ago. This taxon has been on my top priorities list for some time and I'm glad to have finally seen it, although the excitement factor was definitely lessened by the fact that it looked so similar to typical Machaeranthera canescens. Southern California species of Machaeranthera are being divided among four genera: Machaeranthera, Arida, Dieteria and Xanthisma. The Jepson Manual 1st edition suggested that M. asteroides may not in fact be separate from M. canescens, but the 2nd edition will apparently retain the separation with Dieteria canescens and D. asteroides being recognized. Thus the taxon under consideration here, which is a rare one previously called Machaeranthera lagunensis, will receive the taxonomic appellation of Dieteria asteroides var. lagunensis. I have decided for practical reasons not to change the names in my website until the 2nd edition is published. An upside-down V next to the common name below indicates a taxon that was new to me when I photographed it on this field trip. |
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Southern mountain woolstar Eriastrum densifolium ssp. austromontanum Polemoniaceae |
Laguna Mountains goldenbush ^ Ericameria cuneata var. macrocephala Asteraceae |
Wand wirelettuce Stephanomeria virgata ssp. pleurocarpa Asteraceae |
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Indian Valley bush mallow Malacothamnus aboriginum Malvaceae |
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California goldenrod Solidago californica Asteraceae |
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California buckwheat Eriogonum fasciculatum Polygonaceae |
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Foothill penstemon Penstemon heterophyllus var. australis Scrophulariaceae |
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Wright's thimblehead Hymenothrix wrightii Asteraceae |
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Basin sagebrush Artemisia tridentata ssp. tridentata Asteraceae |
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Birch-leaf mountain mahogany Cercocarpus betuloides var. betuloides Rosaceae |
California black oak Quercus kelloggii Fagaceae |
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Parish's Jacumba milk-vetch Astragalus douglasii var. parishii Fabaceae |
Willow-herb Epilobium ciliatum ssp. ciliatum Onagraceae |
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Leafy daisy, Fleabane-aster Erigeron foliosus var. foliosus Asteraceae |
Wright's buckwheat Eriogonum wrightii var. membranaceum Polygonaceae |
Golden stars Bloomeria crocea Liliaceae |
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