Eremalche rotundifolia

Classification System: APG IV

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Plantae
Cladus: Angiosperms
Cladus: Eudicots
Cladus: Core eudicots
Cladus: Rosids
Cladus: Eurosids II
Ordo: Malvales

Familia: Malvaceae
Subfamilia: Malvoideae
Tribus: Malveae
Genus: Eremalche
Species: Eremalche rotundifolia
Name

Eremalche rotundifolia (A.Gray) Greene, Leafl. Bot. Observ. Crit. 1: 208 (1906)
References

Greene, E.L. 1906. Certain Malvaeous Types. Leaflets of Botanical Observation and Criticism 1: 208. BHL
USDA, ARS, Germplasm Resources Information Network. Eremalche rotundifolia in the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN), U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service. Accessed: 07-Oct-06.

Vernacular names
English: Desert five-spot

Eremalche rotundifolia, the desert five-spot, is a flowering plant in the family Malvaceae, native to the Mojave Desert and Colorado Desert in the Southwestern United States.

Thisa dicot and annual herb [1] is found in scrublands, desert flats, washes and open stony areas between 50 and 1,500 m in elevation. It can be found in Anza-Borrego Desert State Park and in Death Valley National Park in southern California. It can also be found in Nevada and Utah.

Generally this wildflower is only found between March and May.[2]
Description
5-spot flower, leaves, seedpods

Eremalche rotundifolia is an annual plant growing to 8–60 cm tall, with rounded leaves 1.5–6 cm broad with a toothed margin.

The flowers are dark-pink to lilac with five overlapping petals, each with a dark red/purple spot near the base. When fully open the petals are slightly in-curved, giving the flower a nearly spherical shape. The center contains a ring of light pink stigmas around a group of smaller pink stamens.

The leave are round and green with a covering of short bristly hairs, while the red/brown stems have similar but longer hairs. Stems are usually unbranched.

Petals close at night, reopening the next morning, and the leaves move during the day to receive the maximum amount of sunlight.[2]
Flowering in Death Valley super bloom, March 2016
References

"Eremalche rotundifolia". calflora. March 26, 2016. Retrieved March 26, 2016.

Southwest, The American. "Desert Five-Spot, Eremalche Rotundifolia". www.americansouthwest.net. Retrieved 2016-03-26.

Jepson Flora Project: Eremalche rotundifolia
USDA Plant Profile: Eremalche rotundifolia
Mojave Desert Wildflowers, Jon Mark Stewart, 1998, pg. 132