Microsteris is a monotypic genus of flowering plants in the phlox family containing the single species Microsteris gracilis, known by the common name slender phlox. The segregation of this species into a genus of its own is controversial, and many botanists continue to include the plant in genus Phlox.Prather, L. A., C. J. Ferguson, and R. K. Jansen. (2000). Polemoniaceae phylogeny and classification: implications of sequence data from the chloroplast gene ndhF. American Journal of Botany 87 1300-08.Ferguson, C. J. and R. K. Jansen. (2002). A chloroplast DNA phylogeny of eastern Phlox (Polemoniaceae): implications of congruence and incongruence with the ITS phylogeny. American Journal of Botany 89 1324-35. Genetic analysis is continuing.
No narrative description available for this taxon yet.
A DNA barcode is a short, standardised stretch of genes that works like a fingerprint — enough to tell one species from another. Below is the molecular trace Phlox gracilis has left across the world's sequence archives.
At a glance
DNA specimens23
Marker genes7
GenBank sequences10
eDNA detections13
Countries2
The DNA barcodea real sequence read deposited for this species
★ the standard DNA barcode for this group — the short region actually read to tell this species apart. The rest are extra genes sequenced along the way.
★matK★rbcL6★rbcLa★trnL-F★ITS4★ITS2trnH-psbA
plant barcodefungal barcodemarker
06Genome at a glanceCCDB
The complete instruction manualPhlox gracilis carries — its genome. We read it from three angles — how big it is, how the DNA is packed into chromosomes, and how completely it has been sequenced — and explain how to read each value as you go.
Chromosomes & ploidyhow the DNA is packaged
2n is the full chromosome count in a normal body cell; n is a gamete (egg or sperm), which carries half. Ploidy is how many complete chromosome sets each cell holds — 2× (diploid) is typical for animals, while higher levels (polyploidy) are common in plants. Click any value below to see the underlying records and sources.
How far back this lineage goes — and how we know. Everything here is measured in Ma, short for “mega-annum”: millions of years ago. The chart reads left to right like a calendar of the Earth, from the deep past on the left to today at the right edgetop to bottom like a core drilled through the Earth, from the deep past at the top down to today at the bottom.
At a glance
DNA clock origin15.6 Ma TimeTree
When this lineage existed
How to read this: the coloured strip along the bottomdown the left is the geological calendar — the standard epochs (Pliocene, Pleistocene…) every museum uses, shown so you can see which chapter of Earth's history this lineage lived in. This lineage is a young one, so the strip is zoomed in to epochs — the finer subdivisions inside a period. The orange marker is the DNA clock: DNA accumulates mutations at a roughly steady rate, so comparing this species' DNA with its relatives estimates when the lineage split off — independently of any fossil.
DNA clock origin
08Occurrence & distribution
Record type732 records
Wild obs. + sensor81
Museum / vouchered651
Origin
Native2
Range
Area of Occupancy AOO2 260 km²
Wildobservation + sensor
Human sightings and records, or camera-trap / sensor detections — someone (or a device) saw or captured the species in the wild.
Coordinate accuracy100% within 1 km
≤1 km 1
1 georeferenced · 80 without coordinates
Open the mapobservation + sensor81
Museum / Voucheredphysical evidence
Backed by a physical specimen — a herbarium sheet, sample or voucher held in a collection. “Vouchered” means supported by material evidence, not just an observation.
Coordinate accuracy49% within 1 km
≤100 m 22≤1 km 139≤10 km 159>10 km 9
329 georeferenced · 322 without coordinates
Open the institutions mapphysical evidence651
Wildobservation + sensor
Human sightings and records, or camera-trap / sensor detections — someone (or a device) saw or captured the species in the wild.
10Collections & institutions
Holding institutions28 of 48 geolocated
Institutions and collections holding physical, vouchered specimens of this species — click a row to fly to it on the map.
Institution
Specimens
ASUlocation not on record
122
Flagstaff, US
60
Claremont, US
39
DOI/NPS, Little Rock Central High School National Historic Sitelocation not on record
38
WTUlocation not on record
37
Phoenix, US
23
Canadian Department of Agriculturelocation not on record
21
Boise, US
12
Victoria, CA
7
Bronx, US
7
Fredericton Stock Culture Collectionlocation not on record
5
Santa Cruz, US
4
Santa Barbara, US
3
Columbia, US
3
Research Collection of B. A. Bennettlocation not on record
3
Pocatello, US
3
EL PASO, US
3
Valparaiso, CL
3
Yellowstone National Park Herbariumlocation not on record
3
Moscow, US
3
Riverside, US
3
Ashland, US
3
Corvallis, US
2
Istituto Agrario Castelnuovolocation not on record
2
CASlocation not on record
2
Bangkok, TH
2
INFlocation not on record
2
Arequipa, PE
2
San Angelo, US
1
San Luis Obispo, US
1
VALElocation not on record
1
University of Stellenboschlocation not on record
1
Meguro Parasitological Museumlocation not on record
1
Bureau of Land Management, Medford District Officelocation not on record
1
La Paz, BO
1
Los Angeles, US
1
Logan, US
1
San Jose State University, Museum of Birds and Mammalslocation not on record
1
Fullerton, US
1
Paris, FR
1
Calabar, NG
1
GZUlocation not on record
1
Wuzhou, CN
1
Arcata, US
1
HJAEFlocation not on record
1
University of Alberta Museumslocation not on record
1
San Diego Natural History Museum, Herbariumlocation not on record
1
Moscow State Universitylocation not on record
1
48 institutions · 437 of 651 vouchered records shown · 214 without an institution code
09Environmental DNA13 detections
Where the DNA of Phlox gracilis was picked up in samples of water, soil or air — nobody saw the organism, only its DNA left behind. A trace is a clue that the species was near, not a confirmed sighting.
Signal
Detections DNA found13
Studies independent surveys1
Countries2
Signal confidence: weakweighed across independent studies, places & mapped detections
Where its DNA was found
0 of 13 detections have coordinates
Open the map2 countries0
Quercus agrifolia, Collinsia parviflorawith carex, rumex, open meadow with mycroste…Granite rocksDry meadow, west of cabin
How strong is each trace?
DNA read depthRead counts were not reported for this species — the map shows presence only, not how strong each trace was.
Modelled climatemodelled
−15°Ctemperature across detection sites+40°C
Temperature median14.0 °C 11.3–14.3
Seasonal swing summer↔winter23.9 °C
Max temp (day)20.1 °C 17.9–21.3
Min temp (night)7.10 °C 4.20–7.80
Precipitation65.7 mm/mo 49.3–116
Air humidity53.4 % 48.0–55.8
Moisture balance-76.2 mm/mo -93.4–-5.80
Vapour deficit750 Pa 627–817
Wind speed2.70 m/s 1.60–3.50
Cloud cover28.1 % 23.3–39.2
CHELSA 1981–2010, ~9 km grid, at location & month of 7 detection points · median with p10–p90 · reflects where sampling happened, not only the true niche
How to read this: each dot is one detection of this species' DNA in an environmental sample. The confidence meter weighs how many independent studies and places back up the signal — one detection in one study is a hint; many across several studies is solid. Records dated before 2008 (when eDNA methods began) are treated as likely mislabeled and left off the map.
WikipediaWikimedia Foundation2 languages↗
BioWikiNetmultilingual Wikipediamultilingual↗
GBIFGlobal Biodiversity Information Facility732 records↗
ENAEuropean Nucleotide Archive · EMBL-EBI13 eDNA detections↗
BOLD SystemsCentre for Biodiversity Genomics23 specimens↗
NCBIUS National Library of Medicinesequences↗
Open Tree of LifeOpenTreephylogeny backbone↗
CCDBChromosome Counts DB · Tel Aviv U.genome & karyotype↗
PloiDBPloidy Databasegenome & karyotype
GLoBIGlobal Biotic Interactionsbiotic interactions↗