Aquilegia hinckleyana, Hinckley's golden columbine, is a partially recognized species of flowering plant of the genus Aquilegia (columbines) in the family Ranunculaceae endemic to Capote Falls in northwestern Presidio County, Texas. The plant is found within a small region of the county and only grows in moister areas of its generally dry range. Considered a smaller version of Aquilegia chrysantha, A. hinckleyana has a height of around 60 centimetres (24 in) and possesses yellow flowers. It has seen modern cultivated, particularly in Texas. The species is named for L. C. Hinckley, who first collected the species in 1943.
| Aquilegia hinckleyana | |
|---|---|
| |
| Holotype of Aquilegia hinckleyana | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Order: | Ranunculales |
| Family: | Ranunculaceae |
| Genus: | Aquilegia |
| Species: | A. hinckleyana
|
| Binomial name | |
| Aquilegia hinckleyana | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
|
Aquilegia chrysantha var. hinckleyana (Munz) Lott 1985 | |
In 1985, it was proposed that the species should be reevaluated as a variety of A. chrysantha. The name A. chrysantha var. hinckley has been adopted by Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center and some commercial distributors. The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and the Flora of North America agree with Philip A. Munz's original 1946 classification of the plant as a separate species.
Description
editAquilegia hinckleyana plants have a height of around 60 centimetres (24 in),[3]: 94 with stems ranging between 5 decimetres (20 in) and 7 decimetres (28 in) tall. The stems have a width of between 4 millimetres (0.16 in) and 7 millimetres (0.28 in) at the base. These stems are glabrous and glaucous below the base.[4]
The plant yellow flowers.[3]: 94 The flowers stand suberect with spreading sepals that are roughly 25 millimetres (0.98 in) long and 17 millimetres (0.67 in) wide. It has slender nectar spurs that are about 4 centimetres (1.6 in) and 5 millimetres (0.20 in) wide.[4]
The plant serves as a host to the larva of the columbine duskywing, Erynnis lucilius.[5]
Taxonomy
editThe holotype for A. hinckleyana was collected by Marfa, Texas, resident L. C. Hinckley on March 28, 1943, from Capote Falls and first described with its binomial nomenclature by botanist Philip A. Munz in 1946.[4] The holotype, L. C. Hinckley 2672, is in the Harvard University Herbaria, with a paratype inventoried at Cornell University's Bailey Hortorium.[6][4] The plant is recognized as a species under Munz's classification by Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Flora of North America.[2][7]
In 1985, Emily J. Lott proposed reevaluating A. hinckleyana and Aquilegia chaplinei as a varieties of A chrysantha, with A. hinckleyana renamed as ''A. chyrsantha var. hinckleyana.[8] Lott's reclassification of both plants has been adopted by the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center at the University of Texas at Austin.[5] Some commercial distributors have also referred to the plant using this classification.[3]: 94
Etymology
editThe word columbine derives from the Latin word columbinus, meaning "dove", a reference to the flowers' appearance of a group of doves. The genus name Aquilegia may come from the Latin word for "eagle", aquila, in reference to the pedals' resemblance to eagle talons.[5] Aquilegia may also derive from aquam legere, which is Latin for "to collect water", or aquilegium, a Latin word for a container of water.[9] Munz named the species for Hinckley, saying that it was "a pleasure to dedicate it to its discoverer".[4]
Distribution
editA. hinckleyana is endemic to a small area area around Capote Falls in the Sierra Vieja mountains of northwestern Presidio County, Texas, the site of its type locality.[5][3]: 94 The falls is privately held as part of the Brite Ranch.[3]: 94 Hinckley reported that the plant formed "a thick bed on the always moist bank under the overhanging cliff at the fall".[4]
Conservation
editThe plant's NatureServe conservation status was last evaluated in 1997, when it was rated at T1 to indicate it as a critically imperiled variety of A. chrysantha. The Nature Conservancy identified pollution, overgrazing, and diversion of water as the primary threats to the plant and recommended the protection of 100 acres around the plant's range to encompass portions upstream.[1]
Cultivation
editA. hinckleyana is a popular spring-blooming flower in Texas. Botanist Robert Nold noted its prevalence in nurseries, particularly in Texas, in 2003.[3]: 94 The plant remains commercially available.[5]
References
edit- ^ a b "Aquilegia chrysantha var. hinckleyana". explorer.natureserve.org. The Nature Conservancy. Retrieved December 20, 2024.
- ^ a b "Aquilegia hinckleyana Munz". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 14 December 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f Nold, Robert (2003). Columbines: Aquilegia, Paraquilegia, and Semiaquilegia. Portland, OR: Timber Press. ISBN 0881925888.
- ^ a b c d e f Munz, Philip A. (March 25, 1946). Aquilegia: The Cultivated and Wild Columbines. Gentes Herbarum. Vol. VII. Ithaca, NY: The Bailey Hortorium of the New York State College of Agriculture at Cornell University. pp. 141–143.
- ^ a b c d e "Aquilegia chrysantha var. hinckleyana". wildflower.org. Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. Retrieved December 14, 2024.
- ^ "Occurrence 28 March 1943". gbif.org. Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Retrieved December 20, 2024.
- ^ "Aquilegia hinckleyana Munz". Flora of North America. Vol. 3.
- ^ Lott, Emily J. (1985). "New combinations in Chihuahuan Desert Aquilegia (Ranunculaceae)". Phytologia. 58: 488.
- ^ "Aquilegia confusa Rota". Portale alla flora del Monte Grappa (in Italian). University of Trieste. Archived from the original on December 10, 2024. Retrieved December 20, 2024.
