Dalea formosa
Dalea leporina
feather-plume, indigobush
fox-tail prairie-clover, foxtail dalea, hare's-foot dalea
1.5–9 dm, eglandular or sparsely glandular-tuberculate distally.
(1.5–)2.5–10(–15) dm, ± sparsely glandular-verruculose distally.
spikes, loosely flowered, 2–9-flowered, not involucrate, 8 mm diam.;
axis usually visible, 0.2–0.8(–3.5) cm;
bracts early deciduous or ± persistent, brown, 2–6 mm, glandular.
spikes, relatively densely flowered, not involucrate, 8–12(–15) mm diam.;
axis usually not visible, (0.8–)1.5–7(–10) cm;
bracts deciduous by anthesis, 2.5–7 mm.
0–1(–1.8) cm.
(1.5–)3–12(–15) cm.
10, 9–12.5 mm, filaments distinct to 2.4–4.5 mm, anthers 0.8–1.2 mm.
9 or 10, 5–6.8 mm, filaments distinct to 0.6–1 mm, anthers 0.2–0.4 mm.
bicolored, banner cream to pale yellow, reddish in age, epistemonous petals rose- or magenta-purple; papilionaceous;
banner (6.6–)7–8.8 mm, blade deltate-obcordate, (4–)4.3–5.5 × (3.4–)4–6.4 mm; epistemonous petals attached proximal to middle of stamen tube;
wings 5.2–7.4 × 2.4–3.7 mm;
keel connate valvately, blades (6–)6.3–7.6 × 3.2–4.5 mm.
white to purple or blue;
not conventionally papilionaceous;
banner (3.4–)4.4–6 mm, blade ovate to oblong-elliptic, (1.7–)2–3.7 × 1.2–2.4 mm; epistemonous petals attached near or distal to middle of stamen tube, blades (1.3–)1.6–2.4 × (0.4–)0.5–1 mm, laterals often slightly narrower than abaxials.
asymmetric, not recessed opposite banner, opening oblique, (7.5–)8.5–13.5(–16.2) mm, long-pilose;
tube (3–)3.5–5(–5.2) mm, with 3 or 4(or 5) prominent blister glands between ribs, lobes lanceolate-acuminate, becoming aristate, plumose, with pointed projecting glands laterally.
asymmetric, recessed opposite banner, 3–5.2 mm, sparsely to densely pilose or pilosulous;
tube (1.7–)2–2.5(–2.8) mm, with (1 or)2 irregular rows of 2–6 small glands between ribs, sometimes merging into fewer, larger glands, lobes ovate-triangular to lanceolate-acuminate.
3–3.5 mm, pilosulous and gland-dotted distally.
1.4–3 mm, pilosulous distally and, sometimes, glandular-punctate.
2.8–3 mm.
1.7–2.4 mm.
leaves 0.3–1.1 cm;
leaflets (5 or)7–13(or 15), blades obovate-cuneate to oblanceolate, 1–6(–7) mm.
leaves 2–9.5 cm;
leaflets (17–)21–35(–49), blades oblanceolate to obovate, (2–)3–12 mm.
herbs, erect, glabrous proximal to inflorescences.
= 14, 21, 42.
= 14.
Dalea formosa
Dalea leporina
As R. C. Barneby (1977c) pointed out, Dalea formosa is distinctive in appearance. It is complex cytologically, with diploid plants known from Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, and Mexico; tetraploid plants from Texas and Mexico; and hexaploid plants from New Mexico, Texas, and Mexico (R. Spellenberg 1981). In Texas, the species is known from widespread areas of the western half of the state.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Dalea leporina has the broadest range of any member of Dalea, from the interior of the United States and Mexico to Costa Rica, and is disjunct in the Andes Mountains of South America. It varies in some characters, most of which were regarded by R. C. Barneby (1977c) as trivial or not taxonomically useful. It has been found on occasion as a weed far east of its range, for example, in Massachusetts (D. E. Snyder 1950).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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