Penstemon pudicus is a rare species of flowering plant in the plantain family

Plantaginaceae

Plantaginaceae Juss. or plantain family, are a family of flowering plants in the order Lamiales. The type genus is Plantago L..In older classifications it used to be the only family of the order Plantaginales, but numerous phylogenetic studies, summarized by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group, have...

 known by the common names bashful beardtongue and Kawich Range beardtongue. It is endemic to Nevada

Nevada

Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...

 in the United States, where it is known only from the Kawich Range

Kawich Range

The Kawich Range is a mountain range in Nye County in southern Nevada in the United States, just south of the Hot Creek Range. The southern part of the range lies on the Nellis Air Force Range. The mountains cover an area of about and contain Kawich Peak, at above sea level. The Bureau of Land...

 in Nye County

Nye County, Nevada

-National protected areas:* Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge* Death Valley National Park * Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest * Spring Mountains National Recreation Area -Demographics:...

.

This perennial herb grows up to 50 centimeters tall and bears purple-blue flowers in June and July.

The plant grows in pinyon-juniper woodland

Pinyon-juniper woodland

A Pinyon-juniper woodland is a forest type characteristic of many parts the Western United States, often in higher elevations of desert ecoregions.-Locations:...

habitat in rocky soils and outcrops.

There are only about 6 known occurrences of this plant, all in the Kawich Mountains of central Nevada. While it may be locally abundant in its limited range, there are probably no more than about 1000 individuals in total.