Click on the images below to see larger versions.
| Scientific Name | Cryptantha ambigua | USDA PLANTS Symbol | CRAM3 |
| Common Name | Basin Cryptantha | ITIS Taxonomic Serial No. | 31783 |
| Family | Boraginaceae (Forget-me-not) | SEINet Reference |
Click Here |
| Description |
Life zones and habitat: Foothills and montane (5500 to 9000 ft.); dry, sandy or gravelly areas in sagebrush scrub, open woodlands. Plant: Very hairy annual, multiple stems 2 to 12 inches tall, usually erect. Leaves: Alternate stem leaves linear to narrowly lanceolate, 1/2 to 1-1/2 inches long, very bristly to hairy. Inflorescence: Clusters of developing egg-shaped fruits (nutlets) topped with small white flowers; blossoms are five-lobed, about 1/8-inch across. Bloom Period: May to July. References: "Flora of Colorado" by Jennifer Ackerfield, Wikipedia and Jepson eFlora. |
BONAP Distribution Map |
Colorado Status: Native |
| Scientific Name | Cryptantha cinerea var. jamesii (Cryptantha suffruticosa, Oreocarya suffruticosa, Oreocarya suffruticosa var. cinerea) | USDA PLANTS Symbol | CRCIJ |
| Common Name | James' Cryptantha, James' Catseye | ITIS Taxonomic Serial No. | 527550 |
| Family | Boraginaceae (Forget-me-not) | SEINet Reference |
Click Here |
| Description |
Life zones and habitat: Plains to foothills (4000 to 5700 ft.); dry, sandy or gravelly soils in grassy areas and often on sandstone outcrops, bluffs and open woodlands. Plant: Prostrate to ascending perennial, 4 to 24 inches tall; stems branching from the base as well as above, herbage silvery-white in appearance. Leaves: Stem leaves oblanceolate to linear, 3/4 to 6 inches long and less than 1/8 to 5/8 inches wide; upper surfaces strigose, lower surfaces strigose and bristly. Inflorescence: Initially scorpiod cyme of small white flowers, straightening later; blossoms are five-lobed, about 1/4-inch across. Bloom Period: April to August. References: "Flora of Colorado" by Jennifer Ackerfield, SW Colorado Wildflowers and SEINet. |
BONAP Distribution Map |
Colorado Status: Native |
| Scientific Name | Cryptantha crassisepala | USDA PLANTS Symbol |
|
| Common Name | Thicksepal Catseye, Thicksepal Cryptantha | ITIS Taxonomic Serial No. |
|
| Family | Boraginaceae (Forget-me-not) | SEINet Reference |
Click Here |
| Description |
Life zones and habitat: Plains and foothills (4000 to 7500 ft.); dry sandy or gravelly soils; dunes, slopes, grasslands. Plant: Short annual, 4 to 6 inches tall; several to many spreading stems with pungent bristles. Leaves: Very bristly leaves clustered at base and alternate on stems; sessile, linear to narrowly oblanceolate, up to 2 inches long and less than 1/4-inch wide near base, becoming smaller upward. Inflorescence: Very small white flowers, 1/8-inch across, in dense curled spikes (scorpioide cymes) surrounded by a calyx less than 0.1 inch long, of thick, bristly sepals with prominent ribs; blossoms have 5 rounded lobes; no bracts below cymes. Cymes open and elongate up to 6 inches long as plant matures. Bloom Period: April to June. References: "Flora of Colorado" by Jennifer Ackerfield, "Manual of the Vascular Plants of Texas" by Correll and Johnston and SEINet. |
BONAP Distribution Map
|
Colorado Status: Native |
| Scientific Name | Cryptantha fendleri | USDA PLANTS Symbol | CRFE3 |
| Common Name | Sanddune Cryptantha, Sanddune Catseye, Fendler's Cryptantha | ITIS Taxonomic Serial No. | 31807 |
| Family | Boraginaceae (Forget-me-not) | SEINet Reference |
Click Here |
| Description |
Life zones and habitat: Plains to montane (4900 to 9000 ft.); dry, sandy soils in open areas; sagebrush scrub. Plant: Very hairy annual, 4 to 20 inches tall, single stem with multiple branches, densely hairy. Leaves: Alternate stem leaves narrowly oblanceolate, 3/4 to 2 inches long, very bristly to hairy. Inflorescence: Linear array of developing egg-shaped fruits (nutlets) with usually one or two very small white flowers at the tip; blossoms are five-lobed, less than 1/10-inch across. Bloom Period: May to July. References: "Flora of Colorado" by Jennifer Ackerfield and Jepson eFlora. |
BONAP Distribution Map |
Colorado Status: Native |
| Scientific Name | Cryptantha minima | USDA PLANTS Symbol | CRMI5 |
| Common Name | Little Cryptantha, Little Catseye | ITIS Taxonomic Serial No. | 31773 |
| Family | Boraginaceae (Forget-me-not) | SEINet Reference |
Click Here |
| Description |
Life zones and habitat: Plains and foothills (3500 to 8000 ft.); dry, sandy or gravelly soils in prairies, shrublands and disturbed areas,and at the base of rock outcrops. Plant: Small, bristly hairy annual, 4 to 8 inches tall. Leaves: Alternate stem leaves linear to oblanceolate, 3/8 to 1-1/4 inches long; surfaces very bristly to hairy and with pustules. Inflorescence: Spike-like, with leafy bracts along one main axis in upper 2/3 of stem; very small white blossoms are five-lobed, less than 1/16-inch across; sepals with bristly hairs and thick, whitish veins. Bloom Period: April to June. References: "Flora of Colorado" by Jennifer Ackerfield, iNaturalist and Status of Tiny Cryptanthe in Alberta. |
BONAP Distribution Map |
Colorado Status: Native |
| Scientific Name | Cryptantha thyrsiflora (Oreocarya thyrsiflora) | USDA PLANTS Symbol | CRMI5 |
| Common Name | Calcareous Cryptantha, Calcareous Catseye | ITIS Taxonomic Serial No. | 31879 |
| Family | Boraginaceae (Forget-me-not) | SEINet Reference |
Click Here |
| Description |
Life zones and habitat: Plains to montane (3800 to 9600 ft.); dry, caliche (calcareous) or rocky soils; pastures, outcrops, bluffs and roadsides. Plant: Bushy, bristly-hairy perennial with multiple stems, 8 to 16 inches tall. Leaves: Oblanceolate, 1-5/8 to 4 inches long and 1/4 to 5/8-inch wide; hairy surfaces. Inflorescence: A compact, erect cluster (thyrse) with many small white blossoms; flowers are five-lobed, less than 1/3-inch across with yellow centers (fornices); sepals covered with thick, white or transluscent bristles. Bloom Period: May to July. References: "Flora of Colorado" by Jennifer Ackerfield and Eastern Colorado Wildflowers . |
BONAP Distribution Map Oreocarya thyrsiflora |
Colorado Status: Native |
