It is native to the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico, where it grows in sandy habitats from desert to beach.

The large white flowers turn pinkish as they mature.

When the plants die, the stems curl upward and form the "birdcage" for which the common name is derived.

howellii), is a federally listed endangered species known from a few sandy spots in the Antioch Dunes National Wildlife Refuge just inland from the San Francisco Bay Area in California.

[1] Oenothera caespitosa is very similar, but lacks stems and has slightly larger flowers.