Eriogonum inflatum (Desert trumpet)
Credit: Felipe Zapata
about the species
Eriogonum inflatum is a common desert plant, conspicuous because of its stark, leafless, gray-green, swollen stems. The swelling of the stems is a unique adaptation to concentrate CO2 for photosynthesis. It has a rosette of spoon-shaped leaves which lie flat against the ground and erect forked stems, which bear minuscule clusters of yellow-green flowers at the tips of a highly branched inflorescence. It occurs in the Mojave, Colorado, and Great Basin deserts of California, as well as in Arizona, Utah, Nevada, New Mexico, and Colorado. It is commonly used by some Native Americans as food, drinking tubes, and smoking pipes.
why species was selected
Because E. inflatum is widespread across all the deserts of California, our study will provide information about the genetic structure, connectivity, and dynamics of a plant that occurs in the biome that occupies 40% of the total State area. In addition, our study may shed light on the genetic mechanisms underlying adaptation to dry/arid life.
