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Montana Field Guides

Ballhead Sandwort - Arenaria congesta var. congesta
Other Names:  Eremogone congesta var. congesta

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Native Species

Global Rank: G5T5?
State Rank: SNR
C-value:


Agency Status
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General Description
Perennial from a branched caudex, forming loose mats. Stems erect, simple, 5–30 cm. Leaves filiform, flexuous or rigid, glabrous, 2–8 cm long, shorter above. Inflorescence many-flowered, congested, glabrous; pedicels less than 0.5 mm long. Flowers: sepals glabrous, ovate to lanceolate, scarious-margined, 3–6 mm long, the tips rounded; petals oblong, 5–8 mm long. Capsules glabrous, 3–6 mm long (adapted from Lesica et al. 2012. Manual of Montana Vascular Plants. BRIT Press. Fort Worth, TX).

Diagnostic Characteristics
Variety congesta has capitate, congested flowers in the inflorescence and sepals with obtuse to rounded apices.

Range Comments
WA and MT south to CA and AZ; most abundant in the Rocky Moutains and northern Great Basin (Kartesz 2009).

Observations in Montana Natural Heritage Program Database
Number of Observations: 9

(Click on the following maps and charts to see full sized version) Map Help and Descriptions
Relative Density

Recency

 

(Observations spanning multiple months or years are excluded from time charts)



Habitat
Gravelly or sandy soil of plains, mountain slopes, and ridges (Hartman et al., 2005, Fl. North America, Vol. 5).

Ecology
POLLINATORS
The following animal species have been reported as pollinators of this plant species or its genus where their geographic ranges overlap: Bombus melanopygus and Bombus sylvicola (Wilson et al. 2010, Koch et al. 2012, Williams et al. 2014).

References
  • Literature Cited AboveLegend:   View Online Publication
    • Koch, J., J. Strange, and P. Williams. 2012. Bumble bees of the western United States. Washington, DC: USDA Forest Service, Pollinator Partnership. 143 p.
    • Lesica, P., M.T. Lavin, and P.F. Stickney. 2012. Manual of Montana Vascular Plants. Fort Worth, TX: BRIT Press. viii + 771 p.
    • Williams, P., R. Thorp, L. Richardson, and S. Colla. 2014. Bumble Bees of North America. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. 208 p.
    • Wilson, J.S., L.E. Wilson, L.D. Loftis, and T. Griswold. 2010. The montane bee fauna of north central Washington, USA, with floral associations. Western North American Naturalist 70(2): 198-207.
  • Additional ReferencesLegend:   View Online Publication
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    • Grove, A.J. 1998. Effects of Douglas fir establishment in southwestern Montana mountain big sagebrush communities. M. Sc.Thesis. Bozeman, MT: Montana State University. 150 p.
    • Johnson, T. W. 1982. An analysis of pack and saddle stock grazing areas in the Bob Marshall Wilderness. M.Sc.Thesis. Bozeman, MT: Montana State University. 105 p.
    • Lesica, P., M.T. Lavin, and P.F. Stickney. 2022. Manual of Montana Vascular Plants, Second Edition. Fort Worth, TX: BRIT Press. viii + 779 p.
    • Martin, S.A. 1985. Ecology of the Rock Creek bighorn sheep herd, Beartooth Mountains, Montana. M.Sc. Thesis. Bozeman, MT: Montana State University. 152 p.
    • Nyberg, H.E. 1980. Distribution, movements and habitat use of mule deer associated with the Brackett Creek winter range, Bridger Mountains, Montana. M.Sc. Thesis. Bozeman, MT: Montana State University. 106 p.
  • Web Search Engines for Articles on "Ballhead Sandwort"
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Citation for data on this website:
Ballhead Sandwort — Arenaria congesta var. congesta.  Montana Field Guide.  .  Retrieved on , from