Veronica besseya

Life-forms

Classification System: APG IV

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Plantae
Cladus: Angiosperms
Cladus: Eudicots
Cladus: Core eudicots
Cladus: Asterids
Cladus: Lamiids
Ordo: Lamiales

Familia: Plantaginaceae
Genus: Veronica
Subgenus: V. subg. Synthyris
Species: Veronica besseya
Name

Veronica besseya M.M.Mart.Ort. & Albach, 2004.
Synonyms

Homotypic
Besseya alpina (A.Gray) Rydb., Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 30: 279. 1903.
Synthyris alpina A.Gray, Amer. J. Sci. II. 34: 251. 1862.
Wulfenia alpina (A.Gray) Greene, Erythea 2: 83. 1894.

References

Martínez Ortega, M.M. & Albach, D.C. 2004. Taxon 53(2): 441.

Vernacular names
English: Alpine besseya

Veronica besseya, commonly known as Alpine coral drops[1] and Alpine kitten tails, is a species of flowering plant belonging to the genus Veronica in the family Plantaginaceae.[2]

Description

Veronica besseya was first discovered for science by Charles Parry in 1861, in the headwaters of South Clear Creek, Colorado.[3]
Range

Endemic to Western North America, with populations found in Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming.[4]
Habitat and ecology

Veronica besseya is quite diminutive, growing 2-8 inches in height in the alpine tundra of the Rocky Mountains. Leaves and stem range from glabrous (lacking hairs) to densely pilose (with long hairs).[3]
Taxonomy

After its discovery, Veronica besseya was first named Synthyris alpina by Asa Gray. In 1903, it was renamed Besseya alpina by Axel Rydberg.[5] However, it was proposed in 2004 that all Besseya species actually belong in the genus Veronica, the speedwells.[6]
References

"Alpine Coraldrops Veronica besseya" at the Encyclopedia of Life
"Veronica besseya (Alpine Besseya)". iNaturalist. Retrieved 2022-05-23.
"Southwest Colorado Wildflowers, Veronica besseya".
"2013 BONAP North American Plant Atlas. TaxonMaps". bonap.net.
Rydberg, P. A. “Some Generic Segregations.” Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club, vol. 30, no. 5, 1903, pp. 271–81. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/2478553. Accessed 24 May 2022.
Albach, Dirk C., et al. “A New Classification of the Tribe Veroniceae: Problems and a Possible Solution.” Taxon, vol. 53, no. 2, 2004, pp. 429–52. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/4135620. Accessed 23 May 2022.