Gierisch's globemallow

Sphaeralcea gierischii is a perennial plant. It produces clumps of dark reddish purple stems up to about a meter tall with a few bright green, lobed leaves. The flowers have petals up to 2.5 centimeters long. They are orange, or sometimes described as "grenadine".

There are only five known occurrences, with 90% of the population located within Mohave County, Arizona. It is threatened by open-pit mining for gypsum. The single occurrence in Utah is also threatened by off-road vehicle use and dumping.

Associated species include creosote bush, blackbrush, saltbush, yucca, ragweed, ephedra, rabbitbrush, prairie-clover, James' galleta, cheesebush, Anderson's desert thorn, prickly pear, indigo bush, and cliffrose. The plant is nearly an obligate gypsophile, mainly limited to the gypsum soils of the Kaibab Limestone; it has also been seen on limestone soils. The gypsum is sought after and extensively mined in the area by a process that involves removing the top layer of rock, mining the gypsum-rich deeper layers, and filling the pit with the rubble of the top layer. This process is very destructive to the local habitat.