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Taxon  Report  
Fritillaria recurva  Benth.
Scarlet fritillary
Fritillaria recurva is a perennial herb that is native to California, and also found elsewhere in western North America.
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Bloom Period
Genus: Fritillaria
Family: Liliaceae  
Category: angiosperm  
PLANTS group:Monocot
Jepson eFlora section: monocot

Ultramafic affinity: 2.7 - strong indicator

Habitat: slopes

Communities: Yellow Pine Forest, Foothill Woodland, Chaparral

Name Status:
Accepted by JEF + PLANTS

Alternate Names:
PLANTSFritillaria coccinea
JEF + PLANTSFritillaria recurva var. coccinea
Information about  Fritillaria recurva from other sources
Nursery availability from CNPLX
This plant is available commercially.
Jepson eFlora

USDA PLANTS Profile (FRRE)

Photos on Calflora

Photos on CalPhotos

Google Images

Photos on iNaturalist

ID Tips on PlantID.net

[Wikipedia] Description, Range: Fritillaria recurva, the scarlet fritillary, is a North American bulb-forming herbaceous perennial plant in the lily family Liliaceae.[2][3] It is native to the western United States, from southwest Oregon down to northern California where it grows in the Klamath Mountains, Northern Coast Ranges, Cascade Range, and Sierra Nevada. Most of the known Californian locations are in the northern half of the state, as far south as Solano and El Dorado Counties, but there are isolated populations in Tulare and Mariposa Counties.[4] The species has also been reported from Douglas and Washoe Counties in Nevada.[5][6] It grows in dry, open woodlands and chaparral at 300 to 2,200 metres (980 to 7,220 ft), and it blooms in spring from February to July.[2] Description Fritillaria recurva is a bulb-forming perennial.[3] The leaves are arranged in whorls and are linear to narrowly lanceolate. The tepals are scarlet, checkered with yellow on the inside, and form a bell shape, and are usually nodding and pendent.[3] The Latin specific epithet "recurva" means "bent backwards".[3] The fruit is a winged capsule.[3] The plant blooms from June to October,[3] about two weeks earlier than F. gentneri, which has a different reddish color. Throughout its range it is distinguishable from other Fritillaria species by its scarlet red color, checkered with yellow on the inside, and recurved tepals.[2][7] Hybrids among the 10 species of Fritillaria make identification challenging.[3] In southwest Oregon F. recurva is similar to the rare F. gentneri. The latter can be distinguished from F. recurva by its branching style and longer nectary glands. (contributed by Mary Ann Machi)


Suggested Citation
Calflora: Information on California plants for education, research and conservation, with data contributed by public and private institutions and individuals. [web application]. 2024. Berkeley, California: The Calflora Database [a non-profit organization]. Available: https://www.calflora.org/   (Accessed: 04/20/2024).