''Collinsia'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

of about 20 species of

annual Annual may refer to: *Annual publication, periodical publications appearing regularly once per year **Yearbook **Literary annual *Annual plant *Annual report *Annual giving *Annual, Morocco, a settlement in northeastern Morocco *Annuals (band), a ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

s, consisting of the blue eyed Marys and the Chinese houses. It was traditionally placed in the snapdragon

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Scrophulariaceae The Scrophulariaceae are a family of flowering plants, commonly known as the figwort family. The plants are annual and perennial herbs, as well as shrubs. Flowers have bilateral (zygomorphic) or rarely radial (actinomorphic) symmetry. The Scr ...

, but following recent research in

molecular genetics Molecular genetics is a branch of biology that addresses how differences in the structures or expression of DNA molecules manifests as variation among organisms. Molecular genetics often applies an "investigative approach" to determine the st ...

, it has now been placed in a much enlarged family

Plantaginaceae Plantaginaceae, the plantain family or veronica family, is a large, diverse family (biology), family of flowering plants in the order Lamiales that includes common flowers such as Antirrhinum, snapdragon and Digitalis, foxglove. It is unrelated ...

. The genus is endemic to North America, and is named in honor of Zacchaeus Collins, a

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

botanist Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

of the late eighteenth/early nineteenth century. Many of the 20

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

may be found in

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. Two species, '' Collinsia parviflora'' (smallflower blue eyed Mary) and '' Collinsia violacea'' (violet blue eyed Mary), had medicinal uses among American Indian peoples. Species include: *''

Collinsia antonina ''Collinsia'' is a genus of about 20 species of annual flowering plants, consisting of the blue eyed Marys and the Chinese houses. It was traditionally placed in the snapdragon family Scrophulariaceae, but following recent research in molecular ...

'' *'' Collinsia bartsiifolia'' *''

Collinsia callosa ''Collinsia callosa'' is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family known by the common name desert mountain blue-eyed Mary. It is endemic to California, where it grows in the mountains of the southernmost Sierra Nevada, the Transverse ...

'' *'' Collinsia childii'' *''

Collinsia concolor ''Collinsia concolor'' is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family known by the common name Chinese houses. It is native to Southern California and Baja California. It grows in the woodlands and chaparral of the coastal mountain rang ...

'' *''

Collinsia corymbosa ''Collinsia corymbosa'' is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family known by the common name round-headed Chinese houses. It is endemic to the coastline of California north of the San Francisco Bay Area, where it is uncommon and scatt ...

'' *''

Collinsia grandiflora ''Collinsia grandiflora'' is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family known by the common names giant blue eyed Mary and large-flowered collinsia. This wildflower is native to western North America from British Columbia to northern Ca ...

'' *''

Collinsia greenei ''Collinsia greenei'' is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family known by the common name Greene's blue-eyed Mary. It is endemic to northern California, where it grows in the coastal and inland mountains, including the North Coast R ...

'' *''

Collinsia heterophylla ''Collinsia heterophylla'', known as purple Chinese houses or innocence, is a flowering plant native to California and the Peninsular Ranges in northern Baja California. Description ''Collinsia heterophylla'' is an annual plant growing in shady ...

'' *''

Collinsia linearis ''Collinsia linearis'' is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family known by the common name narrowleaf blue-eyed Mary. It is native to the coniferous forests of the Klamath Mountains in northern California and southern Oregon sometim ...

'' *''

Collinsia multicolor ''Collinsia multicolor'' is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family, known by the common names San Francisco blue eyed Mary and San Francisco collinsia. It is endemic to the San Francisco Bay Area, where it is known from San Francisc ...

'' *''

Collinsia parryi ''Collinsia parryi'' is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family known by the common name Parry's blue eyed Mary. It is endemic to central and southern California, where it is found in the southern Coast Ranges and in the Transverse R ...

'' *'' Collinsia parviflora'' *''

Collinsia parvula ''Collinsia'' is a genus of about 20 species of annual flowering plants, consisting of the blue eyed Marys and the Chinese houses. It was traditionally placed in the snapdragon family Scrophulariaceae, but following recent research in molecular ...

'' *''

Collinsia rattanii ''Collinsia rattanii'' is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family known by the common name sticky blue-eyed Mary. It is native to the coniferous forests of the Pacific Northwest of the United States from Washington to northern Califo ...

'' *''

Collinsia sparsiflora ''Collinsia sparsiflora'' is a flowering plant in the family Plantaginaceae known by the common names spinster's blue-eyed Mary and few-flowered collinsia. One variety of the species is native to the West Coast of the United States as far north a ...

'' *'' Collinsia tinctoria'' *'' Collinsia torreyi'' *'' Collinsia verna'' *'' Collinsia violacea''

References

External links

Calflora Database: ''Collinsia'' speciesJepson Manual Treatment of ''Collinsia''
Annual plants Plantaginaceae genera Taxa named by Thomas Nuttall {{Plantaginaceae-stub