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Species Image Gallery (opens in a new window) |
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| THE GOOSEFOOT FAMILY | |||||||||
| The goosefoots are found in a wide variety of habitats around the world, but are especially common in dry or saline soil. Many species are considered weedy or invasive. This family contains over 1,150 fleshy herbs and shrubs. Some species may have kranz venation. This means that if you scrape the leaf with a sharp object you will see a dark network of veins if you look under a microscope at 10X magnification. This character is often used in the identification of plants in this family. The flowers are very small and are found in dense clusters in the leaf axils or at the ends or branches. The sepals and petals are not easily distinguishable, so they may be referred to as the perianth or as tepals. The flowers have five distinct stamens. There is a wide range of physical variation within species. | |||||||||
| AMERICAN BUGSEED | |||||||||
| LATIN NAME: Corispermum americanum var. americanum | |||||||||
| WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE? | |||||||||
| American bugseed grows 20 to 50 cm tall from a slender taproot. The stem is branched and is smooth to slightly grooved. The stem is covered in star-shaped hairs, but often becomes hairless and reddish in age. The leaves are alternate and sessile with a smooth margin. The flowers are in a loose, spike-like cluster. The stem is usually visible in the inflorescence. The lower bracts of the inflorescence are leafy and are narrower than the fruit. The fruits are yellowish, greenish or brown, often with reddish spots and whitish warts. | |||||||||
| WHERE DOES IT GROW? | |||||||||
| American bugseed grows on sandy shores and in prairies, sand dunes, disturbed roadsides, and old fields. | |||||||||
| WHERE IS IT FOUND IN SASKATCHEWAN? | |||||||||
| This plant grows in northwestern and southern Saskatchewan in the Mixed Grassland, Moist Mixed Grassland, Aspen Parkland, and Athabasca Plain ecoregions. | |||||||||
| WHY IS IT RARE? | |||||||||
| American bugseed is vulnerable in Saskatchewan because it is rare or uncommon and is regionally restricted. Plants are usually locally numerous within a population but are limited in area. No immediate threats are known at present, but are possible in the future. | |||||||||
| HOW TO IDENTIFY AMERICAN BUGSEED | |||||||||
| * Is the inflorescence interrupted (i.e. can you
see the stem in the inflorescence)? * Is the inflorescence loose and linear? * Are the fruits spotted and/or warty? * Did you find in northwestern or southern Saskatchewan? | |||||||||
| If you answered yes to all of these questions, you may have American bugseed! | |||||||||
