Leptosiphon ramosissimus Illustration by Kristin Jakob
Kristin Jakob
Eva Buxton, botanist and longtime CNPS Marin Chapter Board Member, has recently described a new species of Leptosiphon and had it published in Madroño, the journal of the California Botanical Society. Found so far only on Marin Water District lands, this plant was first observed by Wilma Follette on one of her Wednesday Wildflower Walks for CNPS Marin in the 1990s. It is found along Kent Pump Road that connects Alpine and Kent Lakes.
It was a 30-year saga to finally bring official recognition to this species. Amongst the various delays in the process was Eva’s work on the description and publication of another new species, a meadowfoam named Limnanthes douglasii subsp. ornduffii, discovered near Moss Beach in the course of botanical surveying work she conducted as a botanist for an environmental consulting firm.
I was honored with the commission to illustrate Eva’s treatments of three new species; the first being her Master’s degree thesis on Linanthus latisectus, published in 1993, followed by the Limnanthes published in 2013, the year I commenced work on drawings of the taxon that would be named Leptosiphon ramosissimus.
For free access to the complete article, search the world wide web for “Eva Buxton Leptosiphon ramosissimus” and read it at BioOne Digital Library. The printed version is in Madroño, Vol 72, Issue 4, pp. 188-196.
Leptosiphon ramosissimus Photo by David Greenberger
L. ramosissimus corolla showing broad, apiculate lobes and stamens with orange-yellow pollen. Photo by Eva Buxton