There are several species within genus Pedicularis commonly encountered in the Cascades. They range from the low, creeping sickletop lousewort (P. racemosa) to the tall, spiky bracted lousewort (P. bracteosa), and many of them have rather whimsical flowers resembling elephant heads.

Remembering which one is which in the moment is not one of my strengths, so I made an illustrated version of the identification key. I encounter sickletop lousewort most frequently, and luckily it is readily identifiable because its leaves are only toothed and do not have deep lobes. However, if it’s not flowering time, distinguishing the others can be fairly tricky, as they have similar leaves and habitats.

On my most recent backpacking trip, I encountered three lousewort species, shown above. Note the deep purple flowers on P. bracteosa – this species can be quite variable and most reference photos I’ve found show it with pale yellow flowers.