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Purple Sanicle (Sanicula bipinnatifida) A.k.a. Shoe Buttons. Native, perennial plant in the Carrot (Apiaceae) family. Leaves are twice pinnatifid and sharply toothed. Flowers are spherical, reddish-purple, with prominently exerted stamens. Peak bloom time: March-April. Fruits are hooked. Indigenous people made an infusion of the leaves for snakebites.

Native American Ethnobotany: A database of plants used as drugs, foods, dyes, fibers, and more, by native Peoples of North America. http://naeb.brit.org/ and http://naeb.brit.org/uses/search/?string=Sanicula+bipinnatifida

Plants of Monterey County: an Illustrated Field Key, 2nd edition, Matthews and Mitchell, 2015, pp. 28-29.

Jepson eFlora https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=43166

Flora of Fort Ord: Monterey County, California, David Styer, 2019, p. 25.

Monterey County Wildflowers: a Field Guide, Yeager and Mitchell, 2016, p. 146.

Monterey County Wildflowers– a photographic guide https://montereywildflowers.com/apiaceae-sanicle/

5-minute video of Fort Ord Flora and Fauna, produced by David Styer: https://fortordcleanup.com/archives/2020/natural-treasures-of-fort-ord-90-amazing-photographs/

Oregon Flora https://oregonflora.org/taxa/index.php?taxon=8135

(The) Monterey Pine Forest: Coastal California's Living Legacy, 2nd. ed, The Monterey Pine Forest Watch, 2018. (Excellent book).

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Sanicles (Genus Sanicula). Native, perennial plants in the Carrot (Apiaceae) family. Stems spreading to erect. Leaves simple or compound, ternately, palmately, or pinnately lobed or dissected. Blades orbicular to ovate in outline, margins entire or toothed. Flower heads are small, simple umbels, unlike Tauschia (Umbrellaworts) that have compound umbrels.

Jepson eFlora Key to Sanicles: https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_keys.php?key=10218

Plants of Monterey County: an Illustrated Field Key, 2nd edition, Matthews and Mitchell, 2015, pp. 28-29.

Flora of Fort Ord: Monterey County, California, David Styer, 2019, pp. 25-26.

Monterey County Wildflowers: a Field Guide, Yeager and Mitchell, 2016, p. 287.

Monterey County Wildflowers– a photographic guide https://montereywildflowers.com/apiaceae-sanicle/

Oregon Flora https://oregonflora.org/taxa/index.php?taxon=1394

Contra Costa Goldfields are often seen together with the Hickman’s Popcornflowers along the rim of receding vernal pools on Fort Ord National Monument.

Link to confirmed observations nearby: flowering https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/169113156 and fruiting with black seeds: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/117937822

Contra Costa Goldfields (Lasthenia conjugens) Rare, native/endemic, annual plant that grows < 40 cm (up to 15 inches) tall in seasonal vernal pools and moist grasslands. It is distinguished by the number of its hairy phyllaries (12–18) that are fused for less than half of their length. It has 6–13 ray flowers. Peak bloom time: March-June. Leaves are linear and entire or occasionally pinnately lobed. It can be found locally in great numbers in vernal pools growing together with Hickman’s Popcornflower (Plagiobothrys chorisianus var. hickmanii), another rare vernal pool plant. Fruit: < 1.5 mm, club-shaped, glabrous.
Conservation Status: 1B.1 in California, US (CNPS).

The back cover of D. Styer's book shows a carpet of Contra Costa Goldfields (Lasthenia conjugens) growing in a drying vernal pool in Butterfly Valley (see key to places in Fort Ord, p. 1.)
Flora of Fort Ord: Monterey County, California, David Styer, 2019, p. 48.

Endangered Species Fact Sheets (species in Monterey County) http://www.elkhornsloughctp.org/factsheet/factsheet.php?SPECIES_ID=92
Excerpt: " Common Names - Contra Costa Goldfields
Family - Asteraceae (Sunflower Family)
Federal Status - federal endangered
(June 1997). Habitat: Vernal pools in areas with marine climatic influence; gen < 125 m. Key Characteristics: Annual herb < 4 dm tall, stems simple or freely branched above, glabrous or +/- hairy; leaves < 8 cm long, linear, entire or pinnately lobed, glabrous; involucre 6–10 mm high, hemispheric to obconic, phyllaries 12–18, fused less than half their length (all other taxa in our region have phyllaries fused > 2/3ds their length); receptacle dome-shaped or obconic, densely hairy; corolla yellow, ray flowers 6–13(18), the rays 5–10 mm, disk flowers many, style tips triangular."

Jepson eFlora https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=3729

Calflora https://www.calflora.org/entry/psearch.html?namesoup=Lasthenia+conjugens&countylist=MNT&plantcomm=any&format=photos&orderby=taxon

CNPS Rare Plant Inventory: https://rareplants.cnps.org/Plants/Details/951

Flora of North America http://beta.floranorthamerica.org/Lasthenia_conjugens

Plants of Monterey County: an Illustrated Field Key, 2nd edition, Matthews and Mitchell, 2015, p. 69.

Monterey County Wildflowers https://montereywildflowers.com/asteraceae-sunflower1/

Monterey County Wildflowers: a Field Guide, Yeager and Mitchell, 2016, p. 301

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In general:

5-minute video of Fort Ord Flora and Fauna, produced by David Styer: https://fortordcleanup.com/archives/2020/natural-treasures-of-fort-ord-90-amazing-photographs/

Fort Ord A Love Story, Dorothy E. Denning, 2024 (includes 1,000+ color photos)

Endangered Species Fact Sheets (species in Monterey County) http://www.elkhornsloughctp.org/factsheet/

CNPS Rare Plant Inventory: https://rareplants.cnps.org/Home/

Dwarf Orthocarpus (Triphysaria pusilla) COMPARED TO Triphysaria versicolor:

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Dwarf Orthocarpus (Triphysaria pusilla) A.k.a. Dwarf Owl's Clover or Little Owl's Clover. Native, hairy, hemi-parasitic plant in the Orobranchaceae (Broomrape) family that grows up to 20cm (8 inches) tall in grasslands, lawns, pastures, roadsides, edges of vernal pools, and woodlands . The foliage is green, turning reddish-brown. The tiny flowers are almost invisible to the naked eye, but under a hand lens, there is a pouch that is dark red on top with lower lips that are also dark red. Peak bloom time: March-April.

Link to confirmed observation: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/157013964

Flora of Fort Ord: Monterey County, California, David Styer, 2019, p. 158.

Jepson eFlora https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=47296

Calflora (with species distribution map) https://www.calflora.org/app/taxon?crn=8133

Flora of North America http://floranorthamerica.org/Triphysaria_pusilla

Plants of Monterey County: an Illustrated Field Key, 2nd edition, Matthews and Mitchell, 2015, pp. 226-227.

Monterey County Wildflowers: a Field Guide, Yeager and Mitchell, 2016, p. 111.

Monterey County Wildflowers– a photographic guide https://montereywildflowers.com/orobanchaceae-xcastilleja/

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COMPARED TO (less common)

Yellow-beak False Owl's-Clover (Triphysaria versicolor) A.k.a. Smooth Owl's Clover, or Yellow Owl's Clover, or Yellowbeak Owl's Clover. Native, green- to yellow-brown, generally glabrous, hemi-parasitic plant in the Orobanchaceae (Broomrape) family that grows 10--60 cm (up to 24 inches) tall.
There are 3 subspecies listed on Calflora. (The subspecies Triphysaria versicolor subsp. versicolor grows on Fort Ord) Triphysaria versicolor subsp. versicolor grows in grasslands, vernally moist seeps to dry grassy meadows, headlands, rock outcrops, and coastal prairies. Corolla is white fading to rose-pink with age, beak is white or rose pink, and the plant is purple-dotted. Peak bloom time: March-April.

Flora of Fort Ord: Monterey County, California, David Styer, 2019, p. 158.
(The subspecies Triphysaria versicolor subsp. versicolor grows on Fort Ord)

Link to confirmed observation of Triphysaria versicolor subsp. versicolor nearby: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/2833685

Jepson eFlora https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=47297 and
Jepson eFlora Triphysaria versicolor subsp. versicolor https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=53282

Calflora (with Triphysaria versicolor distribution map) https://www.calflora.org/app/taxon?crn=8134
Calflora, Triphysaria versicolor subsp. versicolor https://www.calflora.org/app/taxon?crn=8136

Flora of North America http://floranorthamerica.org/Triphysaria_versicolor_subsp._versicolor

Plants of Monterey County: an Illustrated Field Key, 2nd edition, Matthews and Mitchell, 2015, p. 225.

Monterey County Wildflowers: a Field Guide, Yeager and Mitchell, 2016. (species not listed)

Monterey County Wildflowers– a photographic guide https://montereywildflowers.com (species not listed)

Each plant had 1 tubular flower at terminal end of 3-4 inch tall pedicel. 4-6 plants observed near Chamise shrubs and other other wildflowers.

Oneflower Broomrape (Aphyllon purpureum) Formerly called Naked Broomrape (Orobanche uniflora). It has a variety of names in different references. It is a native, small, root-parasitic plant in the Broomrape (Orobanchaceae) family that grows 3.5–18cm (up to 7 inches) tall in moist soils. It is parasitic on members of sunflower and saxifrage families. There are no leaves on single stem that bears one purple flower with orange filaments. Peak bloom time: April-July.

Monterey County Wildflowers:
"Naked Broomrape – Aphyllon purpureum (formerly Orobanche uniflora) grows in "moist places, parasitic on members of sunflower and saxifrage families. It is a true parasite, without photosynthetic leaves. It has 1-3 beautiful, small bluish-purple flowers, on pedicels 3–12 cm long. Most of the plant’s stem is underground. This species generally has pale purple (occasionally deep violet) to yellowish flowers. [Note: All native California members of the Orobanche genus have been moved to the Aphyllon genus (see Jepson eFlora Revision 5, December 2017). It is now considered that A. uniflora is not found in California and that California plants previously treated as Orobanche uniflora did not belong to that species.]"
Monterey County Wildflowers https://montereywildflowers.com/orobanchaceae-xcastilleja/

Jepson eFlora with botanical illustration: https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=103312

Calflora https://www.calflora.org/entry/observ.html?track=m#srch=t&lpcli=t&taxon=Aphyllon+purpureum&chk=t&cch=t&cnabh=t&inat=r&cc=MNT and CA distribution: https://www.calflora.org/app/taxon?crn=13529

Monterey County Wildflowers: a Field Guide, Yeager and Mitchell, 2016, p. 110.

Flora of North America http://beta.floranorthamerica.org/Orobanche_uniflora_subsp._occidentalis

Western Pearlflower (Heterocodon rariflorum) Native, small, annual, rare plant in the Bellflower (Campanulaceae) family that grows in open areas at chaparral edges in seasonally wet soil. It is the only species in the genus Heterocodon. Stems are, thin, 5-30 cm long, simple, or branched from base, 4-angled, and sparsely hairy. Sepals are widely triangular, leaf-like, toothed, and 2-4 mm wide. Corolla is cylindric, tube is white to pale blue, lobes are purplish-blue. Peak bloom time: May. David Styer says he first discovered this plant on Fort Ord in 2016, and has only seen it in bloom one spring in 2017, and never since.

Flora of Fort Ord: Monterey County, California, David Styer, 2019, p. 82.

Jepson eFlora https://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/eflora/eflora_display.php?tid=28069

Plants of Monterey County: an Illustrated Field Key, 2nd edition, Matthews and Mitchell, 2015, pp. 120-121.

Monterey County Wildflowers: a Field Guide, Yeager and Mitchell, 2016 (species not listed)

Monterey County Wildflowers– a photographic guide (species not listed)