Trillium hibbersonii

Trillium hibbersonii is a species of flowering plant in the bunchflower family Melanthiaceae. The specific epithet hibbersonii honors the English Canadian surveyor John Arthur Hibberson (1881–1955) who first collected this plant in 1938 on Vancouver Island in British Columbia. Hibberson and his son propagated the trilliums, selling them to buyers in England and other European countries. In 1968, Leonard Wiley coined the Latin name Trillium hibbersonii, a name that has since been used by horticulturists without reservation. When botanists finally became aware of Hibberson's trillium in 1974, it was circumscribed as a dwarf form of Trillium ovatum that occurs occasionally throughout the range of the species (which spans some nine states and provinces in western North America). Apart from Vancouver Island, no such trillium has ever been found. In 1995, Darlene O'Neill showed conclusively that Trillium "hibbersonii" is endemic to Vancouver Island, and moreover, it is distinct from Trillium ovatum. Her results languished for 25 years before it was finally concluded that not only is Trillium hibbersonii a distinct species, but it is more closely related to Trillium erectum of eastern North America than it is to Trillium ovatum.

No narrative description available for this taxon yet.