Anemone tuberosa  Desert Anemone, Pulsatilla
PERENNIAL.  Sprouts in late winter from a small tuber.  Leaves are dark green, triangular, dissected into several coarsely toothed segments, smooth and almost succulent.  Flowers are white to pink, borne singly on long stems, followed by conelike seedheads that disintegrate into a cloud of gray-plumed seeds. Blooms in March-April, completely gone by the end of May.  Absent after dry winters.
FAMILY:  Ranunculaceae (Buttercup Family)