NotesRead full entry CommentsSilene 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.