Pinus balfouriana
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Pinus balfouriana, the foxtail pine, is a rare high-elevation pine that is endemic to California, United States. It is closely related to the Great Basin and Rocky Mountain bristlecone pines, in the subsection Balfourianae.
Description
P. balfouriana is a tree to Template:Convert tall, exceptionally Template:Convert, with a trunk up to Template:Convert across. Its leaves are needle-like, in bundles of five (or sometimes four, in the southern Sierra) with a semi-persistent basal sheath, and Template:Convert long, deep glossy green on the outer face, and white on the inner faces; they persist for 10–15 years. The cones are Template:Convert long, dark purple ripening red-brown, with soft, flexible scales each with a Template:Convert central prickle.
Distribution
P. balfouriana occurs in the subalpine forest at an elevation of Template:Convert in the Klamath Mountains, and at Template:Convert in the Sierra Nevada. In the Sierra Nevada, Foxtail pines are limited to the area around Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks. In both areas, it is often a tree line species.
There are two disjunct populations:
| Image | Subspecies | Distribution |
|---|---|---|
| File:Pinus balfouriana Trinity Alps Wilderness.jpg | Pinus balfouriana var. balfouriana | southern Klamath Mountains |
| File:Foxtail pine Pinus balfouriana subsp austrina Big Arroyo.jpg | Pinus balfouriana var. austrina | the southern Sierra Nevada<ref name="Moore2008">Template:Cite book</ref> |
A small outlying population was reported in southern Oregon, but was proven to have been misidentified.<ref>Kauffmann, Michael E. (2012). Conifer Country. Kneeland, CA: Backcountry Press. Template:ISBN. Template:OCLC.</ref>
Age
It is thought that P. balfouriana can live up to 3000 years in the Sierra Nevada, although the highest currently proven age is 2110 years. In the Klamath Mountains, ages are only known to about 1000 years.
Related species
P. balfouriana is closely related to the bristlecone pines, being classified in the same subsection Balfourianae; it has been hybridised with the Great Basin Bristlecone Pine in cultivation, though no hybrids have ever been found in the wild.
References
Further reading
- Template:Cite book
- Bailey, D.K. 1970. Phytogeography and taxonomy of Pinus subsection Balfourianae. Ann. Missouri Bot. Gard. 57: 210–249.
- Mastrogiuseppe, R.J. & Mastrogiuseppe, J.D. 1980. A study of Pinus balfouriana Grev. & Balf. (Pinaceae). Systematic Botany 5: 86–104.
- Richardson, D.M. (ed.). 1998. Ecology and Biogeography of Pinus. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. 530 p. Template:ISBN.
- Template:FEIS
External links
- Calflora: Pinus balfouriana CalFlora Database: Pinus balfouriana (foxtail pine)
- Gymnosperm Database – Pinus balfouriana
- USDA Plants Profile for Pinus balfouriana (foxtail pine)
- Arboretum de Villardebelle – photos of cones
- High Elevation White Pine Educational Website: Pinus balfouriana
- Template:Usurped
- Template:CalPhotos