Single Record

Participant Info

Species
Mentzelia rusbyi [Nuttallia rusbyi]
Family
Loasaceae
CommonName
Rusby’s blazingstar
Presence
YES
Status
native
EarliestDate
1981
LatestDate
2024
Ecosystem
basin, foothill, montane, ruderal, urban
Geobotanical
SSanjuans
Counties
Conejos, Mineral, Rio Grande, Saguache
Passes
WildlifePreserves
Other Localities
Del Norte
Comments
Rusby's blazingstar has been fairly often collected from the San Juan foothills but not farther north in the Garita and Sawatch ranges. On the east side of the Valley, there is only one collection, from the Crestone campground. The longitudinal ridges on the seed pod make Mentzelia rusbyi fairly easy to identify The species enjoys dry foothill slopes and roadsides and sometimes disturbed urban areas. Distribution in the USA is northeast Arizona, west Utah, west and central Colorado (with an extension down the Arkansas drainage), and most of New Mexico, where It follows the Rio Grande drainage to the Mexican border (but not farther down stream).