Flower profile
Mountain deathcamas
Anticlea elegans
Mountain deathcamas (Anticlea elegans) is a flowering plant in the Melanthiaceae family, native in the lower 48 states, blooming mostly June–August across the U.S.
Mountain deathcamas is a wildflower that USDA PLANTS lists as native in the lower 48 states.
*iNaturalist research-grade observations, as of October 17, 2026.
On our lists for: Montana
Quick look
Anticlea elegans, commonly known as mountain deathcamas, elegant camas, or glaucous death-camas, is a trillium-relative in the flowering plant family Melanthiaceae. Three distinct subspecies are included Anticlea elegans subsp. elegans, the type subspecies, plus Anticlea elegans subsp. glauca and Anticlea elegans subsp. vaginata. Anticlea elegans subsp.
- It belongs to the Melanthiaceae family. iNaturalist
- USDA PLANTS describes it as an herb (forb) with a perennial life cycle. USDA PLANTS
- USDA PLANTS lists it as native in the lower 48 states and records it in 17 states. USDA PLANTS
- NatureServe lists it as native to Montana. NatureServe
- iNaturalist has 628 research-grade sightings of it in Montana, ranking #70 among the 128 flowers on our Montana list. iNaturalist
When does it bloom?
Conservation status
- Federal (U.S. ESA)
- Not listed No U.S. Endangered Species Act listing in the USFWS ECOS database. USFWS ECOS
- NatureServe global
- GNR Not yet ranked worldwide. NatureServe
- Montana
- No list Montana has no state law listing endangered or threatened plants, so we show NatureServe's Montana ranks instead. NatureServe: S4, apparently secure in Montana.
- Rare elsewhere
- Other states where NatureServe ranks it rare or missing: IL (S1), NE (S1), NY (S2), VT (S1), WV (S2). (S1 critically imperiled, S2 imperiled, SH possibly extirpated, SX presumed extirpated.)
Checked October 17, 2026. Rankings and lists can change, so follow the links for the latest.
Can you eat it?
None of the sources we checked (NC State Extension (no page for this plant), USDA PLANTS) say whether it's edible or poisonous for people.
It isn't on the ASPCA plant list.
🌿 Never eat a wild plant unless you're certain of its ID; this isn't medical advice. Worried about a person? Call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222. Worried about a pet? Call your vet.
Where does it grow?
USDA PLANTS records mountain deathcamas in 17 states.
recorded by USDA PLANTS on our state lists not recorded
See the full list of states
Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wyoming.
Montana counties with USDA records: Beaverhead, Big Horn, Blaine, Carbon, Carter, Cascade, Chouteau, Custer, Daniels, Flathead, Gallatin, Glacier, Granite, Hill, Judith Basin, Lewis and Clark, Madison, Powell, Richland, Rosebud, Teton.
Names, range and relatives
Native status by region (USDA PLANTS): Alaska: Native; Canada: Native; Lower 48 states: Native.
Other scientific names (synonyms in USDA PLANTS): Anticlea coloradensis, Zigadenus alpinus.
County records: USDA PLANTS lists it in 165 counties across 13 states; the most are in Colorado (33), Idaho (21), Montana (21).
More from the Melanthiaceae family (18 on Bloomipedia; most observed first): Pacific trillium, Large white trillium, Red trillium, Painted trillium, Green false hellebore, Prairie trillium, Corn lily, Fremont's death camas.
More Montana flowers
Sources
- USDA, NRCS. PLANTS Database, profile ZIELE.
- iNaturalist, Anticlea elegans: taxonomy, research-grade observation counts and “Flowering” annotations, retrieved October 17, 2026.
- Wikipedia, Anticlea elegans (lead quoted under CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Montana: Montana noxious weed list (Admin. R. Mont. 4.5.206–4.5.210).
- USFWS, ECOS species database (ESA listing check), October 17, 2026.
- NatureServe Explorer, Anticlea elegans (global and state ranks).
- Edibility and toxicity: no source found (marked "not well documented").
- Photo: Laura Holloway via iNaturalist · CC0 · resized.