White Mountains cinquefoil, Potentilla morefieldii

Description:

White Mountains cinquefoil, Potentilla morefieldii, elevation 3530 m (11580 ft). Also visible are King sandwort (Eremogone kingii var. compacta), compact phlox (Phlox condensata), pygmy rockjasmine (Androsace septentrionalis), and leaves of Sierra beardtongue (Penstemon heterodoxus var. heterodoxus). Substrate is carbonate (Reed Dolomite).This species is endemic to the high subalpine and alpine of the White Mountains, and to a small segment of the Sierra Nevada directly to the west across Owens Valley. Named by Dr. Barbara Ertter in 1992 (Brittonia 44: 432-434) as part of her work to sort out the variation in the Potentilla drummondii/breweri complex, it was previously misidentified by me and others as P. drummondii var. bruceae or P. pseudosericea. It will forever be an honor to have an eponymous species residing on top of my favorite mountain range!