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Taxon  Report  
Pterospora andromedea  Nutt.
Pine drops,   Pine drops,   Woodland pinedrops
Pterospora andromedea is a perennial herb (parasitic) that is native to California, and also found elsewhere in North America and beyond.
Siskiyou Del Norte Modoc Humboldt Shasta Lassen Trinity Plumas Tehama Butte Mendocino Glenn Sierra Yuba Lake Nevada Colusa Placer Sutter El Dorado Yolo Alpine Napa Sonoma Sacramento Mono Amador Solano Calaveras Tuolumne San Joaquin Marin Contra Costa Alameda Santa Cruz Mariposa Madera San Francisco San Mateo Merced Fresno Stanislaus Santa Clara Inyo San Benito Tulare Kings Monterey San Bernardino San Luis Obispo Kern Santa Barbara Ventura Los Angeles Riverside Orange San Diego Imperial
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Bloom Period
Genus: Pterospora
Family: Ericaceae  
(Monotropaceae)
Category: angiosperm  
PLANTS group:Dicot
Jepson eFlora section: eudicot

Communities: Yellow Pine Forest, Red Fir Forest
Name Status:
Accepted by JEF + PLANTS + POWO

Information about  Pterospora andromedea from other sources
Nursery availability from CNPLX
Commercial availability unknown.
Jepson eFlora

USDA PLANTS Profile (PTAN2)

Photos on Calflora

Photos on CalPhotos

Google Images

Photos on iNaturalist

ID Tips on PlantID.net

[Wikipedia] Myco-heterotroph, Range, Description, Fungal Interactions: Pterospora, commonly known as pinedrops,[1] woodland pinedrops,[2] Albany beechdrops, or giant bird's nest is a North American genus in the subfamily Monotropoideae of the heath family, and includes only the species Pterospora andromedea.[3][4] It grows as a mycoheterotroph (relying on fungi rather than photosynthesis for nutrients) in coniferous or mixed forests. The fruits are five-celled woody capsules.The genus name is derived from the morphology of the seeds which have narrow flaps of tissue on the side and therefore appear winged: pteron (Gr.) = wing, spora (Gr.) = seed. The specific name andromedea derives from the resemblance of the flowers to those of another genus in the Ericaceae, Andromeda.[7][8] The visible portion of Pterospora andromedea is a fleshy, unbranched, reddish to yellowish flower spike (raceme) 30 to 100 cm (12 to 39.5 in) in height, though it has been reported to occasionally attain a height of 2 meters (6.6 feet). The above-ground stalks (inflorescences) are usually found in small clusters between June and August. The inflorescences are hairy and noticeably sticky to the touch. This is caused by the presence of hairs which exude a sticky substance (glandular hairs). The inflorescences are covered by scale-like structures known as bracts. The upper portion of the inflorescence has a series of yellowish, urn-shaped flowers that face downward. The fruit is a capsule.[8] Plants exist for most of their life as a mass of brittle, but fleshy, roots. Pterospora has consistently been shown to be more closely related to Sarcodes than any other member of the Monotropoideae.[9] Fungal Interactions P. andromedea, like all members of Monotropoideae, is a mycoheterotroph. This is a form of carbon acquisition that is parasitic on fungal organisms and epiparastic of photosynthetic plants which are symbionts to the fungal host. Because P. andromedea is achlorophyllous[10] this relationship is an obligate symbiosis for it, but is not ubiquitous in the fungal host. All monotropoideae are host specific to a select few fungal counterparts which in turn makes them specific to the photosynthetic organism associated with their fungal host. In the case of P. andromedea fungal host specificity leans heavily towards Rhizopogon salebrosus[11] in the western distribution and Rhizopogon kretzerae[12][13] in the eastern distribution but broadly seems to be ubiquitous symbionts with Rhizopogon subgenus Amylopogon.[8][9][14] Rhizopogon species also exhibit high host specificity and sub-genus Amylopogon is primarily associated with the Pinus genus. Fungal exoenzymatic activity has been shown to be required for seed germination of P. andromedea however the requisite enzymes are not exclusively produced within subgenus Amylopogon indicating that seed colonization by fungi outside of the observed host specificity is possible however ecologically restricted by some currently unknown mechanism.[15] (link added 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: 12/11/2024).