Polemonium pulcherrimum var. pulcherrimum “Jacob’s Ladder” Polemoniaceae
Missoula, MT
April 25, 2015
Robert Niese
Jacob’s Ladder is an abundant wildflower found on talus slopes or rocky outcrops throughout lower elevations of western Montana. However, in Washington, these plants, while equally common, are restricted to sub-alpine zones and are regularly found above the tree-line.
Viola adunca “Hookedspur Violet” Violaceae
Lolo National Forest, Bitterroot Mountains, MT
May 10, 2015
Robert Niese
The Hookedspur Violet is an abundant, easily recognized flower found throughout the Northwest. In our area it is readily distinguished from other purple-flowered violets by its long spur (not shown here) and its lance-ovate or near-cordate-ovate leaves.
Ribes lacustre “Spiny Swamp Currant” Grossulariaceae
Lolo National Forest, Bitterroot Mountains, MT
May 10, 2015
Robert Niese
East of the Cascades, the Spiny Swamp Currant is the most common member of Ribes in shady, wet areas of dense coniferous forests. Their berries, like most Ribes are edible but quite unpalatable.
Arnica cordifolia “Heart-leaf Arnica” Asteraceae
Lolo National Forest, Bitterroot Mountains, MT
May 10, 2015
Robert Niese
These lovely flowers are literally blanketing the otherwise barren burn areas of the Lolo National Forest this year!
Misumena vatia “Goldenrod Crab Spider” Thomisidae on
Cymopterus glaucus “Waxy Spring Parsley” Apiaceae
Lolo National Forest, Bitterroot Mountains, MT
May 10, 2015
Robert Niese
Goldenrod Crab Spiders are inordinately abundant in spring blooms all around the PNW. They can be differentiated from their cousins in the genus Misumenoides by the lack of a faint white ridge on their face between their lower eyes and their jaws. But far more interesting than this lurking ambush predator is the fact that this image of Cymopterus glaucus is the first to grace the internet. And all because I thought I was taking a picture of a cool spider. You can see more photos of this plant below. C. glaucus is endemic to Idaho and western Montana where it is locally common on sandy or gravely slopes in dry Ponderosa Pinelands. I’m so confounded by the lack of images of this plant online that I’ll be checking out the UM herbarium later to verify that this is indeed C. glaucus. Any suggestions to the contrary would be much appreciated.
Equisetum arvense “Common Horsetail” Equisetaceae
Lolo National Forest, Bitterroot Mountains, MT
May 10, 2015
Robert Niese
Horsetails were once abundant, diverse organisms, but today all surviving members of this ancient clade are restricted to a single genus with a worldwide distribution. This particular stalk is a fertile, strobilus-bearing stem. Their infertile counterparts look almost nothing alike!
Castilleja hispida “Harsh Paintbrush” Orobanchaceae
Lolo National Forest, Bitterroot Mountains, MT
May 10, 2015
Robert Niese
There are three or four species of paintbrushes with red bracts in the Pacific Northwest. The two most common are the Harsh Paintbrush (C. hispida) and the Common Crimson Paintbrush (C. miniata). C. hispida has a dense coat of long, hispid hairs (which look lovely when back-lit!) and will always have lobed leaves on the upper third of their stems. Conversely C. miniata is often less hairy and will have unlobed leaves on the entire stem (sometimes with small lobes on the upper-most portion). The two can also be differentiated by their calyces which are pointed in C. miniata and blunt in C. hispida.
Fun Fact: All paintbrush species are parasites, growing on the roots of other plants to survive.
Erodium cicutarium “Stork’s Bill” Geraniaceae
Missoula, MT
April 23, 2015
Robert Niese
Erodium is famous for its fascinating dispersal mechanism. Their fruits are shaped like a stork’s bill (hence the common name) and separate into five seeds with a wirey tip upon maturity. As the seeds dry out, they begin to curl up into a corkscrew-like shape. If they are resting on soil as they begin to dry, this curling process will drive them into the ground. You can watch this self-planting mechanism here or check out the GIF below. It’s really freaking awesome!
Alyssum desertorum “Desert Madwort” Brassicaceae
Missoula, MT
April 23, 2015
Robert Niese
Desert Madwort is a common weed east of the Cascades. Although it is an invasive plant (native to Eurasia), the madwort has been incorporated into the diets of many important PNW species. For example, Pronghorn Antelope consume large quantities of madwort in the winter when other food is scarce. And harvester ants have been known to collect copious quantities of madwort seeds in the fall, and will sometimes collect every single seed that was dropped in a given season.
Balsamorhiza sagittata “Arrowleaf Balsamroot” Asteraceae
Blackfoot River Recreation Corridor (BLM), MT
April 23, 2015
Robert Niese
Arrowleaf Balsamroot was first collected by Meriwether Lewis (of the Lewis and Clark Expedition) when he was exploring the northern Rockies in 1806. These particular specimens appear to have been munched by some deer (notice that the left side is missing some flowers).
Northwest Naturalist 
