Pinus pungens is in Section Diploxylon, the hard or yellow pines. Its classification below section level varies considerably (Mirov, 1967). The range of Table Mountain pine is almost entirely within the ranges of two other hard pines, Pinus rigida and P. virginiana (Critchfield & Little, 1966). Throughout the common range of the three species, P. pungens is by far the rarest. There are large areas where it has not been reported, and, when it is present, it is usually in small populations restricted to the sites which appear least favorable for tree growth. These characteristics of habitat have caused interest in the species as a botanical curiosity and inspired romantic descriptions of the tree and its 304