Pinus Arizonica - Taxonomy

Taxonomy

The Arizona pine had been thought to be a variant of Ponderosa pine by some botanists, but is now recognized as a distinct species by most authorities.

Two varieties are described, possibly better treated as distinct species; see Ponderosa Pine for a table of characters:

• Pinus arizonica var. arizonica, in the Sierra Madre Occidental from Arizona south to Durango
• Pinus arizonica var stormiae, in the Sierra Madre Oriental from the Big Bend National Park in Texas south to San Luis Potosí.

Another related pine, Cooper's Pine (Pinus cooperi) is also treated as a variety of Arizona Pine by some authors, as Pinus arizonica var. cooperi, but other authors regard this as a distinct species, more closely related to Hartweg's Pine (Pinus hartwegii).