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Species Image Gallery (opens in a new window) |
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| THE FIGWORT FAMILY | ||
| The figwort family is very common in Saskatchewan. The leaves are usually opposite, though they may be alternate, whorled, or all basal. The leaf margin may be entire to pinnately or palmately lobed. The flowers are irregular and are commonly 2-lipped. The upper lip usually has two lobes and the lower lip three lobes. Each flower has two or four stamens. If four stamens are present, they are in two groups of two and are usually attached to the petals. The sepals and the petals are commonly fused together. In some species, large, brightly-coloured bracts hide the flowers. The fruit is a many-seeded capsule. | ||
| ELEPHANT’S HEAD | ||
| LATIN NAME: Pedicularis groenlandica ssp. groenlandica | ||
| WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE? | ||
| Elephant’s head grows as tall as 50 cm. The lower leaves are stalked but the upper leaves are sessile. The leaves are deeply lobed and the divisions are narrow and toothed. The petals are 2-lipped and are reddish-purple or pink in colour. The upper lip is beaked and looks like an elephant head. . The fruit is a capsule. | ||
| WHERE DOES IT GROW? | ||
| Elephant’s head grows in moist fens, sedge-meadows, open coniferous woods, and muskegs. | ||
| WHERE IS IT FOUND IN SASKATCHEWAN? | ||
| This plant is found in west-central Saskatchewan in the Boreal Transition and Mid-Boreal Upland ecoregions. | ||
| WHY IS IT RARE? | ||
| Elephant’s head is threatened because of rarity in Saskatchewan. This species is regionally restricted and local populations can be small. No immediate threats are known but may occur in the future. | ||
| HOW TO IDENTIFY ELEPHANT’S HEAD | ||
| * Are the lower leaves stalked and the upper leaves
sessile? * Are the petals reddish-purple to pinkish? * Do the petals look like an elephant head in outline? * Did you find it in west-central Saskatchewan? |
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| If you answered yes to all of these questions, you may have found elephant’s head! | ||
