Johanneshowellia

Description

Eriogonum is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the family of polygonaceae . It comprises 533 species described and of these, only 251 accepted. The genus is found in North America and is known as Wild Buckwheat. This is a genus very rich in species and there are indications that speciation continues. It includes some of the wildflowers, such as the California Buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum). Good news was received, in 2005, when Eriogonum truncatum , which was believed to be extinct, was rediscovered. Species of Eriogonum are a food source for the larvae of some lepidoptera ( butterflies and moths ). Several of these are [monophagus, which means that their caterpillars only feed on this genus, sometimes only on a single Eriogonum taxon . In some cases, the relationship is so close that the Eriogonum species and the dependent Lepidoptera are both in danger of extinction.