''Iris munzii'' is a species of

iris Iris most often refers to: *Iris (anatomy), part of the eye * Iris (color), an ambiguous color term *Iris (mythology), a Greek goddess * ''Iris'' (plant), a genus of flowering plants * Iris (given name), a feminine given name, and a list of peopl ...

which is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to the

Sierra Nevada foothills :''See Sierra Nevada for general information about the mountain range in the United States.'' The ecology of the Sierra Nevada, located in the U.S. states of California and Nevada, is diverse and complex. The combination of climate, topography, ...

Tulare County, California Tulare County ( ) is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 473,117. The county seat is Visalia. The county is named for Tulare Lake, once the largest freshwater lake west of the Great La ...

, mostly in the vicinity of the

Tule River The Tule River, also called Rio de San Pedro or Rio San Pedro, is a river in Tulare County in the U.S. state of California. The river originates in the Sierra Nevada east of Porterville and consists of three forks, North, Middle and South. Th ...

. It is quite rare in the wild. Its common names include Tulare lavender iris and Munz's iris. Its flowers grow in inflorescences of three to four per stem, and are usually lighter shades of purple and blue with darker veining. Albinos are known.

Taxonomy

It was first published and described by

Robert Crichton Foster The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' () "fame, glory, honour, praise, reno ...

in his book 'Iridis Species Novae' (published in

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is a suburb in the Greater Boston metropolitan area, located directly across the Charles River from Boston. The city's population as of the 2020 United States census, ...

) on page 2 in 1938. The Latin

specific epithet In Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin gramm ...

''munzii'' is in honour of the American botanist Philip A. Munz. ''Iris munzii'' is a tentatively accepted name by the

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr ...

in the UK, and was last listed in the RHS Plant Finder in 2000. It was verified by

United States Department of Agriculture The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an executive department of the United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commercial farming and livestock food production, promotes agricultural trade and producti ...

and the

Agricultural Research Service The Agricultural Research Service (ARS) is the principal in-house research agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). ARS is one of four agencies in USDA's Research, Education and Economics mission area. ARS is charged with ext ...

on 4 April 2003.

Distribution and habitat

It is

native Native may refer to: People * '' Jus sanguinis'', nationality by blood * '' Jus soli'', nationality by location of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Nat ...

to the temperate region of Northern America.

Range

It is 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 ...

Habitat

It is found growing on dry to moist partially wooded slopes and rarely along stream banks. At elevations of above sea level.

References

Other sources

* FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America. URL: http://floranorthamerica.org/Main_Page * Hickman, J. C., ed. 1993. The Jepson manual: higher plants of California * Mathew, B. 1981. The Iris. 98.

External links

Calflora Database: ''Iris munzii'' (Munz's iris)Jepson Manual eFlora (TJM2) treatment of ''Iris munzii''USDA Plants Profile for ''Iris munzii'' (Munz's iris)Flora of North AmericaUC Photos gallery — ''Iris munzii''
{{Taxonbar, from=Q10952648 munzii Endemic flora of California Flora of the Sierra Nevada (United States) Natural history of Tulare County, California Plants described in 1938