Cryptantha genus of flowering plants in the borage family , Boraginaceae. They are known commonly as cat's eyes and popcorn flowers (the latter name is also used to refer to the closely related genus Plagiobothrys North America and western South America , but they are absent from the regions in between.
These are annual or perennial herbs usually coated in rough hairs and bearing rounded flower corollas that are almost always white, but are yellow in a few species . Several morphological characters are used to distinguish species from one another, but the most definitive is the form of the nutlet, which varies in shape, size, color, and pattern of attachment.
The genus has been reorganized several times. As of 2012 there are about 200 species. About 130 are limited to western North America, and about 70 species occur in western South America; three species are found on both continents.
Species include:
Cryptantha affinis – slender catseye, common cryptantha, quill cryptanthaCryptantha albida – New Mexico catseyeCryptantha alfalfalis Cryptantha alyssoides Cryptantha ambigua – basin cryptantha, obscure cryptantha, Wilke's cryptanthaCryptantha angustifolia – bristlelobe cryptantha, narrowleaf pick-me-not, Panamint catseye, narrow-leaved popcorn flowerCryptantha aprica Cryptantha argentea Cryptantha aspera Cryptantha axillaris Cryptantha barbigera — bearded catseyeCryptantha calycina Cryptantha calycotricha Cryptantha capituliflora Cryptantha carrizalensis Cryptantha chaetocalyx Cryptantha chispae Cryptantha chrysantha Cryptantha clandestina Cryptantha clevelandii – Cleveland's cryptanthaCryptantha clokeyi – Clokey's cryptanthaCryptantha collina Cryptantha congesta Cryptantha corollata – Coastrange cryptanthaCryptantha crassisepala – deertongue, thick-sepal catseyeCryptantha crinita – Sacramento cryptanthaCryptantha cynoglossoides Cryptantha decipiens – gravel cryptantha, gravel-bar catseyeCryptantha debilis Cryptantha dichita Cryptantha diffusa Cryptantha dimorpha Cryptantha dissita Cryptantha divaricata Cryptantha dolichophylla Cryptantha dumetorum – bush-loving catseyeCryptantha echinella – hedgehog cryptantha, prickly cryptanthaCryptantha excavata – deepscar cryptanthaCryptantha fallax Cryptantha fendleri – Fendler's cryptantha, sand-dune catseyeCryptantha filaginea Cryptantha filiformis Cryptantha flaccida – weakstem cryptanthaCryptantha flava Cryptantha floribunda Cryptantha foliosa Cryptantha ganderi – Gander's cryptanthaCryptantha gayi Cryptantha gilliesii Cryptantha glareosa Cryptantha globulifera Cryptantha glomerata Cryptantha glomeriflora – Truckee cryptanthaCryptantha glomerulifera Cryptantha gnaphalioides Cryptantha gracilis – narrowstem catseye, narrowstem pick-me-notCryptantha granulosa Cryptantha gypsites Cryptantha haplostachya Cryptantha hispidula – Napa cryptanthaCryptantha hooveri – Hoover's cryptanthaCryptantha humilis – Payson roundspike cryptanthaCryptantha incana – Tulare cryptanthaCryptantha inconspicua Cryptantha intermedia – Clearwater catseye, common cryptanthaCryptantha involucrata Cryptantha kelseyana – Kelsey's cryptanthaCryptantha kingii Cryptantha latefissa Cryptantha leiocarpa – coastal cryptanthaCryptantha limensis Cryptantha linearis Cryptantha longifolia Cryptantha macrocalyx Cryptantha marioricardiana Cryptantha mariposae – Mariposa cryptanthaCryptantha maritima – Guadalupe catseyeCryptantha maritima var. cedrosensis Cryptantha maritima var. maritima Cryptantha maritima var. pilosa Cryptantha marticorenae Cryptantha martirensis Cryptantha mendocina Cryptantha mexicana – Mexican catseyeCryptantha microcarpa Cryptantha microphylla Cryptantha microstachys – Tejon cryptanthaCryptantha milobakeri – Milo Baker's cryptanthaCryptantha minima – little catseye, small cryptanthaCryptantha mohavensis – Mojave cryptanthaCryptantha muricata – pointed catseye, prickly cryptanthaCryptantha muricata var. denticulata Cryptantha muricata var. jonesii – Jones' catseyeCryptantha muricata var. muricata Cryptantha nemaclada : Colusa cryptanthaCryptantha nevadensis : Nevada catseyeCryptantha nevadensis var. nevadensis Cryptantha nevadensis var. rigida Cryptantha oligantha Cryptantha oxygona – sharpnut cryptantha, sharpseed cryptanthaCryptantha papillosa Cryptantha patagonica Cryptantha patula Cryptantha peruviana Cryptantha phaceloides Cryptantha pterocarya – winged pick-me-not, wingnut catseyeCryptantha pterocarya var. cycloptera Cryptantha pterocarya var. pterocarya Cryptantha pterocarya var. stenoloba Cryptantha rattanii – Rattan's cryptanthaCryptantha recurvata – curvenut catseyeCryptantha rigida Cryptantha romanii Cryptantha rostellata – beaked catseyeCryptantha scoparia – desert cryptantha, pinyon desert cryptanthaCryptantha simulans – pine cryptantha, pinewoods cryptanthaCryptantha sparsiflora – slender cryptanthaCryptantha spathulata Cryptantha spithamaea Cryptantha subamplexicaulis Cryptantha taltalensis Cryptantha texana Cryptantha torreyana – Torrey's catseyeCryptantha traskiae – Trask's cryptanthaCryptantha utahensis – scented catseye, Utah cryptanthaCryptantha vidali Cryptantha virens Cryptantha volckmannii Cryptantha watsonii – Watson's cryptanthaCryptantha werdermanniana Cryptantha wigginsii
Many Cryptantha have been transferred to other genera:
Greeneocharis circumscissa (as Cryptantha circumscissa )Johnstonella angustifolia (as Cryptantha angustifolia )Johnstonella micromeres (as Cryptantha micromeres )Oreocarya confertiflora (as Cryptantha confertiflora )Oreocarya crassipes (as Cryptantha crassipes )Oreocarya flavoculata (as Cryptantha flavoculata )Oreocarya roosiorum (as Cryptantha roosiorum )Oreocarya subcapitata (as Cryptantha subcapitata )Oreocarya suffruticosa var. suffruticosa (as Cryptantha cinerea )Oreocarya virginensis (as Cryptantha virginensis )
