Hawksbeards Found in the Columbia River Gorge
Slender Hawksbeard: Crepis atrabarba ssp. originalis - Native perennial wildflower. Fairly easy to recognize due to the leaves with very narrow central stem and linear leaf segments.
Bearded Hawksbeard: Crepis barbigera - Native perennial wildflower. Inflorescence of 6-70 flower heads, each head with 8-25 flowers. The leaves are pinnatifid with wide lobes, the blade around the mid stem is wider than the other species.
Smooth Hawksbeard: Crepis capillaris - An introduced annual found especially west of the Cascade crest. The herbage consists of short, fine, sometimes glandular hairs.
Gray Hawksbeard, Intermediate Hawksbeard, Limestone Hawksbeard: Crepis intermedia - Native perennial wildflower. Plants with broad dandelion-like leaves, both on the stem as well as at the base. Leaves pinnatifid with narrow lobes. Herbage covered with short, gray, felt-like hairs. 10-60 flower heads, each with 7-12 ray flowers. Outer bracts considerably shorter than inner bracts.
Western Hawksbeard: Crepis occidentalis - Native perennial wildflower. Plant with broad dandelion-like leaves. The leaf segments may point slightly backwards towards the leaf base. Plants covered with short, felt-like hairs. Erect stems have 10-30 flower heads in candelbra-like clusters. Flower heads yellow, dandelion-like. 5-12 inches tall.
Rough Hawksbeard: Crepis setosa - An introduced annual usually found west of the Cascade Mts. The herbage is not glandular but consists of stiff hairs and bristles, the bristles often yellowish.