USDA lists three varieties: (eFlora has only two as it combines both var. acaritca and var. exscapa as var. acaulis)
var. acaulis: AK
var. exscapa: WA, ID, OR, CN, AK
var. subacaulesceus: Rocky Mtn. of NA
Note white stigmas (Douglasii laevigata has yellow) extending well beyond petals. Slight notch on end of petals and small stiff hairs on almost succulent, glossy green, leaf edges.
from eFlora.org
Silene acaulis is a variable species, and most workers have recognized infraspecific taxa in North America: subsp. acaulis (subsp. exscapa and subsp. arctica), which is predominantly arctic; and subsp. subacaulescens, which extends down the Rocky Mountains from Alaska to Arizona and New Mexico. In subsp. acaulis, the leaves are flat and short and the flowers are subsessile and smaller in size. Subspecies subacaulescens is typically a larger, less-compact plant with longer, narrower leaves and larger, pedunculate flowers. However, in many populations, these two variants are poorly differentiated, and in others both occur together, connected by intermediates.
Silene acaulis is widely distributed in arctic and alpine Europe.
Olympics; west North Cascades
TRAIL: Mt Townsend; Mt. Larabee
HABITAT: Subalpine rocky
ELEVATION: 1,690 - 1,883 m (5,550 - 6,176 ft)
