1907] Hall. Compositae of Southern California. 75 



high: rays numerous, the obovate or oblong ligule about 5 mm. 

 long: corolla-tube in both ray and disk-flowers sparsely long- 

 villous with jointed hairs; pappus a minute barely denticulate 

 crown and a single setiform awn which is short-plumose toward 

 the tip. 



On dry plains. within the Lower Sonoran Zone of the Mohave 

 Desert (Hesperia, Warren's Well, Rabbit Springs, Cushenberry 

 Springs, Kramer, Yucca), east to Utah; much less common than 

 no. 2. 



2. M. bellioides (Gray) Hall, comb. nov. Eremiastrum bel- 

 lioides Gray, PL Thurb. 321 (1854) ; Torr. Pacif. R. Rept. v. 361, 

 t. 6 (1857). E. Orcuttii Wats., Proc. Am. Acad. xxv. 132 (1890). 

 E. bellioides Orcuttii Coville, Contr. U. S. Nat. Herb. iv. 125 

 (1893). DESERT ASTER. 



Characters the same as for E. bellidiforme except as follows: 

 ray-corollas with sparsely villous tube ; disk-corollas with either 

 glabrous or very sparsely pubescent tube: pappus of 3 to 12 

 oblong or cuneate more or less setose-pinnatifid paleae and 1 to 

 12 slender nonplumose bristles. 



Very common in sandy soil, springing up after the rains, 

 throughout the Lower Sonoran Zone of the Desert Area, from 

 our southern boundary to Inyo Co. ; east into Arizona, Utah, etc. 



The type of this species was gathered by George Thurber in 

 southeastern Imperial Co., from which district also came the 

 type of Dr. Watson's Eremiastrum Orcuttii. This latter species 

 was distinguished from E. bellioides by the pappus of 5 paleae 

 alternating with as many bristles twice as long. Dr. Coville has 

 already pointed out (1. c.) the intergradation between thse forms, 

 especially as regards the number of pappus-bristles, and recent 

 collections indicate that the number of paleae are also variable. 

 In specimens from the east base of San Jacinto Mt., Hall, no. 

 1836, the awns and paleae are 8 each. In plants from Rhyolite, 

 Nevada, Slwcldey, no. 62, the pappus consists almost uniformly 

 of 3 lacerate paleae and 1 bristle ; rarely a second shorter bristle 

 arises from the margin of a palea. 



