Plant Species of the Borrego Desert This page is devoted to the species themselves. For bloom reports, a working draft of the flora for the Borrego Desert, preliminary analysis of the flora, and some pages on places of the Borrego Desert, see The Borrego Desert.
Table of Contents
General Pages
Individual Plant Species or Groups of Similar Species
Pages at Main Plants Site
General Pages iNaturalist Flora of Anza-Borrego State Park and adjacent desert Project Description Page. Search for observations by species and/or by location:
- All observations, obscured and not-obscured locations (may return observations not actually in the Borrego Desert)
- Only non-obscured observations (will not return observations of obscured species, but will return only observations actually within the Project Boundary).
Species Obscured in iNaturalist for the Borrego Desert Project
Pictorial Gallery of Species in Bloom
Annual Plant Species: Seedling and Flower Pictures
- organized by shape of the cotyledons and first true leaves
- Family Order
- Sorted by Frequency of Observation in Bloom
Distinguishing Characteristics of Similar Species
Endemic or Near-Endemic Species
Individual Plant Species or Groups of Similar Species In November, 2015, we have begun putting distribution maps online for some species, whenever they pique our interest enough that we wanted to see a map for ourselves. Those maps will either be linked from the species page, or will be given as a separate link for each family.
The distribution maps may be made from our GPS point database, or from vouchers, or from both.
For an overview of our GPS point database, and maps showing where we have processed records, see Geographic Distribution Maps of GPS Points for Plant Species.
See also Fred Melgert and Carla Hoegen's Distribution Maps of Rare Plants.
Ferns
Pteridaceae, Brake Family
- Geographic Distribution Maps for all the species in this family found in the Borrego Desert area:
- Adiantum capillus-veneris, maidenhair fern
- Cheilanthes covillei, beady lipfern
- Cheilanthes covillei X C. parryi = Cheilanthes Xparishii, teensy lipfern
- Cheilanthes parryi, woolly lipfern
- Cheilanthes viscida, sticky lipfern
- Notholaena californica ssp. californica, California cloak fern
- Pellaea andromedifolia, coffee fern
- Pellaea mucronata var. mucronata, bird's-foot fern
- Pentagramma triangularis ssp. triangularis, goldback fern
Individual pages with more information on some of these species:
- Cheilanthes clevelandii and C. covillei
- Notholaena californica, California cloak fern, including how to distinguish it from Pentagramma triangularis
Dicots
Acanthaceae, Acanthus Family (chuparosa is our best known family member)
- Carlowrightia arizonica, Arizona carlowrightia. See Fred Melgert and Carla Hoegen's map showing populations in Flatcat Canyon, Hellhole Canyon, Bisnaga Alta Wash and one fork of Carrizo Canyon from their surveys. The map has an accurate count in Flatcat Canyon and one fork of Carrizo Canyon, and estimates for the other locations.
Apiaceae, Carrot Family
Apocynaceae, Dogbane Family
- Geographic Distribution Maps for species in this family found in the Borrego Desert area, put online as we randomly make them.
- Matelea parvifolia, spearleaf
Asteraceae, Sunflower Family
- Geographic Distribution Maps for species in this family found in the Borrego Desert area, put online as we randomly make them.
- Baccharis brachyphylla and B. sergiloides
- Distinguishing young rosettes of Malacothrix glabrata, desert dandelion, and Chaenactis fremontii, Fremont pincushion
- Ericameria paniculata, blackbanded rabbitbrush
- Fred Melgert and Carla Hoegen's Ericameria teretifolia geographic distribution map from their surveys.
- Gutierrezia sarothrae (we don't have G. californica in the Borrego Desert)
- Isocoma acradenia, alkali goldenbush
- Lessingia glandulifera
- Thymophylla pentachaeta var. belenidium, five-needled thymophylla
- Volutaria tubuliflora, tubular knapweed
- Xylorhiza orcuttii, Orcutt's woody-aster
Boraginaceae, Borage Family
- Amsinckia intermedia and A. tessellata, Fiddlenecks
- Cryptantha
- Where In Coyote Canyon Was Hall's Voucher of Cryptantha oxygona?
- Pectocarya species of southern California
- Pectocarya heterocarpa and P. peninsularis
- Phacelia crenulata
- Phacelia rotundifolia
- Tiquilia canescens
Brassicaceae, Mustard Family
- Brassica tournefortii, Sahara Mustard Reduction in Numbers in the Borrego Desert Floor in 2015
- Brassica tournefortii, Sahara Mustard Germination Experiments
- Caulanthus species, jewel-flowers
- Lyrocarpa coulteri var. palmeri, Coulter's lyrepod
Burseraceae, Torchwood Family
Cactaceae, Cactus Family
- Family Page (species list with abundances, photographs of flowers of each species shown at the correct relative size)
- Cylindropuntia bigelovii: Geographic Distribution and Recent Death Rate
- Distinguishing Cylindropuntia bigelovii and C. fosbergii
- Distinguishing Cylindropuntia echinocarpa and C. ganderi
- Distribution of Cylindropuntia echinocarpa and C. ganderi in the Borrego Valley Area
- Cylindropuntia ramosissima, pencil cholla
- Echinocereus engelmannii
- Mammillaria dioica, California fish-hook cactus; and Mammillaria tetrancistra, fish-hook cactus
Campanulaceae, Bellflower Family
Convolvulaceae, Morning Glory Family
Crassulaceae, Stonecrop Family
- Dudleya arizonica, Arizona chalk dudleya, and D. saxosa ssp. aloides, desert dudleya
- A Hybrid (Stabilized Ancient?) Population of Dudleya arizonica and D. saxosa
Ericaceae, Heath Family
Euphorbiaceae, Spurge Family
Fabaceae, Pea Family
- Geographic Distribution Maps for species in this family found in the Borrego Desert area, put online as we randomly make them.
- Calliandra eriophylla, pink fairy duster
- Dalea mollis and D. mollissima
- Annual Lupinus species
- Lupinus arizonicus, Arizona lupine
- Parkinsonia florida, Blue Palo Verde
Fouquieriaceae, Ocotillo Family
Lamiaceae, Mint Family
Loasaceae, Stickleaf Family
Malvaceae, Mallow Family
- Abutilon palmeri, Palmer's abutilon
- Fred Melgert and Carla Hoegen's Horsfordia newberryi geographic distribution map from their surveys.
- Eremalche rotundifolia, five spot
Nyctaginaceae, Four O'Clock Family
Polemoniaceae, Phlox Family
- Eriastrum diffusum, E. eremicum, and E. sapphirinum, annual woolly stars.
- Night-Blooming Linanthus species.
Polygonaceae, Buckwheat Family
- Annual Eriogonum species of the Desert Floor (showing just E. inflatum, E. thomasii, and E. trichopes for now)
- Eriogonum trichopes and E. inflatum, little desert trumpet, and desert trumpet.
Rhamnaceae, Buckthorn Family
Rosaceae, Rose Family
Scrophulariaceae, Snapdragon Family
Solanaceae, Nightshade Family
Zygophyllaceae, Caltrop Family
Monocots
Agavaceae, Agave Family
- Hesperocallis undulata, desert lily
Juncaceae, Rush Family
Liliaceae, Lily Family
- Hesperocallis undulata, desert lily (in the Agaveaceae family now)
Poaceae, Grass Family
- Heteropogon contortus, tanglehead. Link contains repeat photographs from 2005 and 2018.
- Stipa capensis (Stipellula capensis), spear needlegrass
Pages at Main Plants Site These pages from the main Plants of southern California site contain information about Borrego Desert Species.
- Anza-Borrego Desert Annuals From Seedling To Flower
- Gilias of San Diego County
- Lycium Species of the San Diego County Desert
- Phacelia nashiana = P. campanularia2
- Pilostyles thurberi, Southern California's Most Unusual Wildflower
- Opuntia (chollas and prickly-pears)
- Opuntia acanthocarpa var. coloradensis
- Opuntia bigelovii and O. fosbergii
- Opuntia echinocarpa, O. ganderi, O. parryi, and O. wolfii
- Opuntia ganderi In Extreme Northeast San Diego County
Go to:
Copyright © 2009-2023 by Tom Chester and Kate Harper.
Commercial rights reserved. Permission is granted to reproduce any or all of this page for individual or non-profit institutional internal use as long as credit is given to us at this source:
http://tchester.org/bd/species/index.html
Comments and feedback: Tom Chester
Updated 28 April 2023.