Kingdom Plantae Scientific name Chelone Rank Genus | Family Plantaginaceae Higher classification Plantaginaceae Order Lamiales | |
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Lower classifications Chelone glabra, Chelone obliqua | ||
Chelone is a genus of four species of perennial herbaceous plants native to eastern North America. They all have similarly shaped flowers (which led to the name turtlehead due to their resemblance to the head of a turtle), which vary in color from white to red, purple or pink. C. cuthbertii, C. glabra, and C. lyonii are diploid and C. obliqua is either tetraploid or hexaploid.
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Relationships to other plants
The closest relatives of Chelone are Chionophila and Nothochelone from western North America. It is also more closely related to Collinsia than to other members of the family such as snapdragons, plantains, and foxglove.
Species
C. glabra is the most widely distributed species of the genus: from Georgia to Newfoundland and from Mississippi to Manitoba; the other three are found in more restricted areas.
C. lyonii is found in the Blue Ridge of Tennessee, North Carolina, and South Carolina.
C. cuthbertii is found in two areas: the Blue Ridge of North Carolina and the coastal plain of Virginia.
C. obliqua is found as tetraploids in the Blue Ridge, or hexaploids in two areas: Tennessee to Arkansas and Michigan, or the Atlantic coastal plain from South Carolina to Maryland.
The relationship between the different populations is complicated and it appears that C. obliqua in fact has arisen several times from diploid ancestors of the other three species. The four species seem to have diverged recently.