| Ivesia callida | |
|---|---|
| Conservation status | |
|
Critically Imperiled (NatureServe) |
|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Rosids |
| Order: | Rosales |
| Family: | Rosaceae |
| Genus: | Ivesia |
| Species: | I. callida |
| Binomial name | |
| Ivesia callida (H.M.Hall) Rydb. |
|
Ivesia callida is a rare species of flowering plant in the rose family known by the common name Tahquitz mousetail. It is endemic to the San Jacinto Mountains of Riverside County, California, where it is known from only two occurrences. The plant grows in cracks and crevices of the granite mountain cliffs. It was named for Tahquitz, a rock formation in its endemic range. This is a small perennial herb which forms matted patches of hanging foliage on cliff faces. The leaves are strips of oval-shaped green leaflets. Each leaf is up to 7 centimeters long and has several pairs of hairy, glandular leaflets. The thin, green, hanging stems are up to 15 centimeters long and bears an inflorescence of several flowers. Each flower has five hairy, pointed sepals and five rounded to oval white petals. The center of the flower contains twenty stamens with disc-shaped anthers and several pistils.