Dr. Sarah Jacobs, a specialist in our western flora and assistant curator of botany and Howell Chair of Western North American Botany California Academy of Sciences will present this topic from California via zoom. Click here to join the meeting: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81509150792?pwd=oqhBehLzfzPaM5mPtzbiHy9nX2seew.1

The genus Castilleja, also known as “the paintbrushes,” is an iconic group of western wildflowers whose taxonomy has been historically challenging. My work aims to untangle species relationships to understand the evolution of this charismatic group of plants. My talk will cover what we do and don’t know about the biology, physiology, and evolution of Castilleja, as well as how we are beginning to quantify exactly why these species are so hard to tell apart. Along the way, we will ponder: What does it mean to be a species and how do we identify them? How do our expectations of species compare with what we see in the world around us? How does all of this fit into our worldview of conservation and management.