Rudbeckia auriculata (Perdue) Kral

Eared Coneflower; Alabama Coneflower; Swamp Black Eyed Susan

Herb

Perennial

Vascular

Eared Coneflower is a native herbaceous perennial in the Sunflower family (Asteraceae). It is a rare species found in Alabama, Florida, and Georgia. The majority of the range of this species is in Alabama, where it occurs in the Birmingham area and in southeast Alabama. Eared Coneflower grows in open, wet sites along creeks and beaver ponds, under power line right-of-way’s, in pitcher plant bogs, and on marl seeps. It is a large plant, producing clusters of basal leaves up to 1 ½ feet long from short rhizomes. The basal leaves are petiolate, elliptic to lanceolate in outline, entire or toothed, and pubescent with short, stiff hairs primarily on the upper surface. Flowering stems are commonly over six feet in height. The smooth, often glaucous stems have alternate auriculate clasping leaves. The stem leaves are sessile, ovate to pandurate in outline, with toothed or entire margins. The stem leaves are reduced in size upwards on the stem. Flowers are produced in heads arranged in open panicles. Individual flowers resemble those of Black-Eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta Linnaeus), but are larger. Each head has 8-15 yellow ray flowers and 150-200 purple-black disc flowers. The fruit is an achene. Eared Coneflower is ranked as a S2 species in Alabama (typically 6 to 20 occurrences, few remaining individuals or factors demonstrably making it very vulnerable) and globally as a G1 species (critically imperiled globally because of extreme rarity (5 or fewer occurrences), or especially vulnerable to extinction because of some factor of its biology). Eared Coneflower is sometimes available from wildflower nurseries. It requires a consistently wet to moist soil in full sun.—A. Diamond

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Native FACW (NWPL) S2 (State Rank) G1 (Global Rank)

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