Cliff sword fern
Polystichum imbricans ssp. curtum
Dryopteridaceae

Leafy buckwheat
Eriogonum fasciculatum var. polifolium
Polygonaceae

Threadleaf rubber rabbitbrush
Ericameria nauseosa var. oreophila
Asteraceae

The clearest and easiest way to differentiate these two sub-species is in most cases to determine the ratio of the length of the corolla tube to that of the calyx. The dividing line is around 2, with ssp. splendens having a ratio usually between 1.4 and 1.6 and ssp. grantii between 3.6 and 6. I photographed the ssp. splendens on the south-facing side of the Strawberry Peak-Mt. Lawlor ridge, and the ssp. grantii down in the more deserty area on the north side at Strawberry Meadows. Tom Chester measured the ratio of the ssp. splendens above as 1.7 and the ssp. grantii as 2.9. The two sets of pictures below show the more typical dimensions of the two sub-species, with the very short corolla tube of ssp. splendens and the very long corolla tube of ssp. grantii.