Aquilegia eximia , the serpentine columbine or Van Houtte's columbine, is a perennial species of flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae, endemic to California.[2]
| Aquilegia eximia | |
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Scientific classification 
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| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Order: | Ranunculales |
| Family: | Ranunculaceae |
| Genus: | Aquilegia |
| Species: | A. eximia
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| Binomial name | |
| Aquilegia eximia | |
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List
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Description
editAquilegia eximia is a perennial herb growing from a thick caudex and reaching a maximum height of 20–160 cm (7.9–63.0 in). The lower leaves are divided into large, leaflike segments up to 4–5 cm (1.6–2.0 in) long and a lobed oval in shape. Leaves farther up the stem are not segmented but may be deeply lobed. The inflorescence bears a large, nodding columbine flower. Each flower has five bright red to orange-red flat sepals of 10–28 mm (0.39–1.10 in) in length, and five petals which have hollow spurs 12–35 mm (0.47–1.38 in) long, bright orange-red on the outer surface and lighter orange to yellow inside. The mouth of each hollow petal tube is 6–10 mm (0.24–0.39 in) wide. The sepals and petals are generally reflexed back toward the stem and the five pistils and many thin stamens extend forward from the center of the flower.[3]
Taxonomy
editThe species is part of a clade containing all the North American species of columbines, that likely split from their closest relatives in East Asia in the mid-Pliocene, approximately 3.84 million years ago.[4]
Etymology
editThe specific epithet eximia means "special" or "remarkable" in Latin.
Distribution and habitat
editAquilegia eximia is endemic to the mixed-evergreen or conifer forests of the California Coast Ranges, the western Transverse Ranges, and the San Francisco Bay Area,[1] usually growing on serpentine soils and sometimes in moist ravines at altitudes of 100–1,800 m (330–5,910 ft).[3]
Ecology
editThe species flowers from May to October and is pollinated by hummingbirds. Its range overlaps with that of Aquilegia formosa, which flowers earlier in the year.[3]
Conservation
editAs of November 2024[update], NatureServe listed Aquilegia eximia as Vulnerable (G3). This status is noted as being in neeed of review, having last been assessed on 2 February 2007.[1]
References
edit- ^ a b c "Aquilegia eximia Van Houtte's Columbine". NatureServe. Retrieved 9 November 2024.
- ^ a b "Aquilegia eximia Van Houtte ex Planch". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 9 November 2024.
- ^ a b c "Aquilegia eximia". The Jepson Herbarium. University of California, Berkeley. 22 August 2024. Retrieved 9 November 2024.
- ^ Fior, Simone; Li, Mingai; Oxelman, Bengt; Viola, Roberto; Hodges, Scott A.; Ometto, Lino; Varotto, Claudio (2013). "Spatiotemporal reconstruction of the Aquilegia rapid radiation through next-generation sequencing of rapidly evolving cpDNA regions". New Phytologist. 198 (2): 579–592. doi:10.1111/nph.12163. PMID 23379348.