Single Record

PhotoRecords: YES Rich Haswell: Mineral Co, edge of upper Tucker Pond 23 July 2019

Comments: For Viola nephrophylla there are a fair number of vouchers from the Watershed, although almost all from the west side: e.g., Deep Creek SW of Creede in Mineral Co and Los Pinos Creek in Conejos Co. The one exception was found southeast of Poncha Pass in Saguache Co. Usually this violet grows very close to creeks or ponds, sometimes hanging over the water. The species has an extensive USA distribution, present in every state west of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers as well in northern New England. It is present in the Rio Grande drainage through New Mexico to Otero Co, but not on into Texas. Note that according to Ackerfield (2022), most of the few Colorado herbarium vouchers for V. sororia (which has not been found in the Watershed) are misidentified as V. nephrophylla. In the field, V. nephrophylla can easily be mistaken for the more common V. adunca. If the plant is mature (in blossom) the quickest way to determine is by pushing the plant sideways to expose the base. With V. nephrophylla, the peduncles of the leaves can be seen emerging from the ground, not from a central stem. Incidentally, the specific name refers to the kidney-shaped leaves.