Castilleja exserta (purple owl's clover) ( )

Purple owl's clover is a California grassland species that extends its range into the wester Mojave Desert. This is a showy annual species with bright magenta flowers with white or yellow markings on the petals. In wet years it often occurs in dense populations that color the landscape. Like other root parasites it appears as any other plant, with foliage indicating the presence of chlorophyll and active photosynthesis. However they supplement nutrient and carbohydrate supplies with parasitic roots that tap the below-ground tissues of other species. "California Desert Plants, Philip W Rundel, Robert J Gustafson, Michael E Kauffmann."