Mouse'S Eye
(Bernardia myricifolia)
Description
Bernardia myricifolia is a species of flowering plant in the spurge family known by the common names mouse's eye. It is also called mouse ear, or oreja de ratón in Spanish. It is native to the desert southwest of the United States and northern Mexico. This is a shrub growing over two meters in maximum height. The small leaves are each up to three centimeters long, oval in shape, with scallop-shaped teeth along the edges. A dioecious species, male and female individuals produce different types of flowers. Staminate inflorescences are small clusters of male flowers, and pistillate inflorescences bear solitary female flowers. The fruit is a roughly rounded woolly capsule with three prominent chambers, each containing a seed.
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