[Babystars and Linanthus: The Genus Leptosiphon in the Columbia River
Gorge of Oregon and Washington]
Baby Stars, Bicolored Linanthus, True Babystars
Leptosiphon bicolor
Synonyms: Linanthus bicolor, Linanthus bicolor ssp. bicolor, Linanthus bicolor var. bicolor, Linanthus bicolor ssp. minimus, Linanthus bicolor var. minimus
The photo above shows a close-up of the spreading corolla lobes of baby stars as seen at Memaloose in the Columbia River Gorge..........April 24, 2006. Note the yellow stamens which extend beyond the mouth of the corolla tube.
The photo
at right shows a close-up of the narrow corolla tube of baby stars as seen at Memaloose in the Columbia River Gorge..........April 24, 2006. Note the spreading, gland-tipped hairs on the corolla tube.
Characteristics:
Baby Stars is a small, slender annual, not exceeding 15 cm in
height. It is usually found as a single erect stem, but branching may occur
at the base to form several stems. The leaves are 3 to 7 cleft, up to 2 cm long,
with thin, linear segments. The leaf arrangement on the stems makes them look
whorled.
The inflorescence is a dense terminal cluster of trumpet like
flowers, with long thin tubes (to 3 cm in length) and short (2 to 4 mm long)
flaring lobes. The throat is yellow, with the spreading lobes a deep pink or
purple color.
Habitat:
Baby Stars are a low elevation plant of grassy areas.
Range:
Baby Stars are found primarily west of the Cascade Mts, from
southern Vancouver Island south to southern California.
An eastward extension through the Cascades occurs in the Columbia
River Gorge where they may be found between the elevations of 100'-2000' from
west of Hood River, OR east to the mouth of the Klickitat River.
-
-
Additional views of babystars as seen on grassy slopes at the Labyrinth in the mid-Columbia River Gorge..........April 15, 2010.
-
The above photos show a white-flowered variety of baby stars as seen at Catherine Creek...........April 14, 2007.
-
Baby stars observed at Heartleaf Butte, a Friends of the Gorge property near Lyle, WA......April 13, 2024.
-
Baby stars as seen at left at Catherine Creek.........April 17, 2017. The photo at right shows baby stars blooming near the Catherine Creek trailhead, Columbia River Gorge......April 15, 2023.
Paul Slichter