Single Record

Participant Info

Species
Gentianella heterosepala [Gentianella amerela subsp. heterosepala] [Amarella heterosepala] [Gentiana heterosepala] [Gentianella amarella subsp. heterosepala]
Family
Gentianaceae
CommonName
Autumn dwarf gentian
Presence
yes
Status
native
EarliestDate
1922
LatestDate
2019
Ecosystem
subalpine, tundra
Geobotanical
SSanjuans
Counties
Conejos, Hinsdale, Mineral, Rio Grande, Saguache, San Juan
Passes
Bonito, Elwood, Spring Creek
WildlifePreserves
Other Localities
Comments
In the past Gentianella heterosepala has been treated as a subspecies of G. amarella or G. acuta, but Allred et al. (2020) make a good case for species rank. The defining features for G. heterosepala are (1) at least one large foliaceous sepal, free nearly to the base, (2) corolla fringe connate at the base, and (3) sometimes smaller size, as small as 10-29 cm. The smaller plants tend to grow in alpine habitats. Distribution in the Watershed is a guess, since vouchers identified as G. heterosepala or subsp. heterosepala are often G. acuta [amarella] (see Allred, Jercinovic, and Ivey, 2020, p. 476). But so far no specimens have been recorded from the east side of the Valley. The species follows the Rio Grande drainage to the Mexico border but no farther.