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Brodiaeas On The Santa Rosa Plateau, Riverside County  
W.P. Armstrong, 6 June 2006

Brodiaea terrestris ssp. kernensis (BTK): The staminodes are slightly hooded. Populations during spring of 2006 were quite uniform. During the previous spring of 2005 with above average rainfall the staminodes were much more variable. See the following link:

  Variation of BTK on the Santa Rosa Plateau  

A Sterile Hybrid Between Brodiaea santarosae and BTK   

This appears to be a hybrid between BTK and Brodiaea santarosae which grow intermixed in certain areas of the Santa Rosa Plateau. The large, strap-shaped staminode resembles BTK; however, the slender, apical extension resembles Brodiaea santarosae. The anther sacs of these putative hybrids were devoid of pollen.

Putative hybrid between BTK and Brodiaea santarosae.

This appears to be a hybrid between BTK and Brodiaea santarosae which grow intermixed in certain areas of the Santa Rosa Plateau. The large, strap-shaped staminode resembles BTK; however, the slender, apical extension resembles Brodiaea santarosae. The anther sacs of these putative hybrids were devoid of pollen. In fact, the anther sacs in the above image appear narrow compared with fertile BTK flowers.

The above image was taken in May 2005. It clearly shows the attributes of staminodes from BTK and Brodiaea santarosae. The substantial variation in staminodes of BTK observed in 2005 was not seen in 2006; however, this small population of putative hybrids retained their characteristic staminode shape.

See Images of Coastal BTK in San Marcos
Images of Brodiaea filifolia in San Marcos
Images of Brodiaea hybrid in San Marcos

Brodiaea santarosae: A New Species

This species was previously confused with B. filifolia and B. orcuttii.

Brodiaea santarosae. It has the longer filaments and larger flowers of B. orcuttii, but has slender, pointed staminodes like B. filifolia. This is a fertile, pollen-producing plant.

Brodiaea santarosae.

Brodiaea santarosae. It has long filaments and the flower size of B. orcuttii, but has slender, pointed staminodes like B. filifolia.

Brodiaea santarosae. It has the longer filaments and larger flowers of B. orcuttii, but has slender, pointed staminodes like B. filifolia. The anthers contained abundant pollen, some of it is visible on the perianth segments and staminodes.

Brodiaea santarosae. on the Santa Rosa Plateau.

Random view of the pollen of Brodiaea santarosae. In the above four quadrants there are 9 blank grains (marked with red x's) and 60 normal grains, a pollen viability percentage of 85%. I did ten random pollen samples like this one and got percentages as low as 80% and as high as 90%. The pollen was stained with acetocarmine. Magnification 100x.

Closer view of the pollen of Brodiaea santarosae. Pollen stained with acetocarmine. 200x.

See Images of Coastal BTK in San Marcos
Images of Brodiaea orcuttii in San Marcos
Images of Brodiaea hybrid in San Marcos

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All text material & images on these pages copyright © W.P. Armstrong