Flora of North America species comparison

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Crotalaria avonensis

Crotalaria retusa

avon park rattlebox

rattleweed
Habit Herbs perennial. Herbs annual.
Stems

erect to slightly spreading, 2–10 cm, strigose to sericeous.

erect, 30–90 cm, strigose to strigose-sericeous.
Leaves

unifoliolate;

stipules absent;

blade oblong, elliptic to ovate, or suborbiculate, (5–)8–19 mm, length 1.3–3.5 times width, surfaces loosely strigose-sericeous.

unifoliolate;

stipules sometimes absent, setaceous, not decurrent on stem, 1–2 mm;

blade obovate to spatulate or oblanceolate, 30–80 mm, length 2.2–3(–4) times width, surfaces strigose abaxially, glabrous adaxially.
Racemes

(1 or)2–8-flowered, terminal, subterminal, or lateral, 2–6 cm;

bracts persistent, linear-triangular.

5–24-flowered, terminal, subterminal, or lateral, 10–20(–30) cm;

bracts caducous, linear, 2–3 mm.
Flowers

calyx cylindrical, 7–8 mm, lobes triangular-lanceolate, loosely strigose;

corolla bright yellow, 8–9 mm.

calyx broadly cylindrical, 12–15 mm, basally truncate, lobes triangular-lanceolate, glabrous or slightly puberulous;

corolla bright yellow, with prominent reddish lines to strongly red-tinted, 20–25 mm.
Legumes

14–25 × 6–8 mm, glabrous or sparsely strigose on abaxial suture.

25–40(–50) × 10–14 mm, glabrous.
2n

= 16.

Crotalaria avonensis

Crotalaria retusa
Phenology Flowering Mar–Jun. Flowering Jul–Oct, Jan–Apr.
Habitat White sands, scrub dominated by Florida rosemary, oaks, and/or sand pine, disturbed areas along roads and trails. Fallow fields, roadsides, sandy wastes.
Elevation 30–50 m. (100–200 ft.) 0–100 m. (0–300 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
FL
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
FL; GA; KY; LA; MS; NC; SC; TX; Africa [Introduced in North America; introduced also in Mexico, West Indies, Central America, South America, Asia, Indian Ocean Islands, Pacific Islands, Australia]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Crotalaria avonensis is known only from northern Highlands and southern Polk counties on the Lake Wales Ridge; it is in the Center for Plant Conservation’s National Collection of Endangered Plants.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

In the flora area, Crotalaria retusa is commonly found in subtropical Florida but much more rarely in temperate areas, where it does not persist.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 11. FNA vol. 11.
Parent taxa Fabaceae > subfam. Faboideae > Crotalaria Fabaceae > subfam. Faboideae > Crotalaria
Sibling taxa
C. incana, C. juncea, C. lanceolata, C. ochroleuca, C. pallida, C. pumila, C. purshii, C. retusa, C. rotundifolia, C. sagittalis, C. spectabilis, C. trichotoma, C. verrucosa, C. virgulata
C. avonensis, C. incana, C. juncea, C. lanceolata, C. ochroleuca, C. pallida, C. pumila, C. purshii, C. rotundifolia, C. sagittalis, C. spectabilis, C. trichotoma, C. verrucosa, C. virgulata
Name authority DeLaney & Wunderlin: Sida 13: 315, figs. 1–5. (1989) Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 2: 715. (1753)
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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