Alpine Besseya

Alpine kittentails are subscapose herbs, a plant with a flowering stem that is almost leafless, that are perennials. Its unbranched flowering stems grow 5 to 20 centimeters (2–8 in) tall. The basal leaves are 2.5 to 6 cm (1–2.5 in) long and 1 to 4 cm wide on leaf stalks 3 to 10 cm (1–4 in) long. The blue, bluish purple, lavender, or reddish flowers usually have four petals, but might have three or five. More than 100 can be densely packed on the inflorescence.

Alpine kittentails are native to the Rocky Mountains of southern Wyoming, Colorado, and Northern New Mexico. Additionally, an isolated population grows in the LaSal Mountains in southeastern Utah. They range from as low as 2,800 meters (9,200 ft) to as high as 4,300 meters (14,100 ft). Its habitat is moist rocky meadows, boulder fields, and the scree as the base of cliffs.