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sensitive plant, shameplant

Habit Herbs or subshrubs, erect or decumbent, 0.3–1 m, armed. Herbs or subshrubs, prostrate, 0.5–1.5 m, armed or unarmed.
Stems

ribbed to striate, hispid or glabrous;

prickles infrastipular, paired, also sparse along internodes, recurved.

ribbed, glabrous;

prickles sparse along ribs, recurved.

Leaves

stipules lanceolate, 7–12 mm, glabrous to sparsely setose;

petiole 1–4.5 cm;

primary rachis 0–2.5 mm;

pinnae 1 or 2 pairs, digitate;

leaflets 15–25 pairs, blades obliquely linear-oblong, 5–10 × 2–2.5 mm, margins setose, 1 eccentric vein prominent abaxially, apex acute to mucronate, surfaces glabrous.

stipules linear or filiform, 2–3.5 mm, glabrous;

petiole (2–)2.5–3(–4) cm;

primary rachis 2.5–3.5 cm;

pinnae 1–3 pairs;

leaflets 9–14 pairs, blades obliquely linear, 3.5–6 × 0.7–1(–1.4) mm, margins ciliate, 1 eccentric vein evident abaxially, apex acute, mucronulate, surfaces glabrous.

Inflorescences

95–125-flowered, axillary, globose or subglobose capitula, solitary or fascicles of 2 or 3, also disposed in racemiform branches, 10–15 mm diam.;

bracts linear to lanceolate, 1/2–2/3 corolla length.

35–40-flowered, axillary, globose capitula, solitary, 10–12 mm diam.;

bracts spatulate, 1/4–1/3 corolla length.

Peduncles

1–3 cm.

1–5 cm.

Pedicels

0 mm.

0.2 mm.

Flowers

bisexual;

calyx campanulate, lobes 4, 1/10 corolla length;

corolla pink, glabrous, lobes 4, 1/4 corolla length;

stamens 4, filaments distinct to base, lilac;

ovary sessile to shortly stipitate, glabrous;

style attenuate at apex;

stigma poriform.

bisexual and staminate;

calyx campanulate, lobes 5, 1/5–1/4 corolla length;

corolla pink, glabrous, lobes 5, 1/4–1/3 corolla length;

stamens 10, filaments connate at bases, pink;

ovary stipitate, glabrous;

style attenuate at apex;

stigma tubular.

Legumes

sessile, straight, linear-oblong, 10–15 × 3–4 mm, constricted between seeds, valves with 2–5 segments, margin armed, long-setose, apex acuminate, faces glabrous.

sessile, straight, linear-oblong, tetragonal, (45–)70–90(–100) × 4–4.5(–5) mm, not constricted between seeds, valves entire, 1–2.5 mm wide, margin 2.5–3.5 mm wide, prickly or unarmed, apex rostrate, rostrum 5–10 mm, faces glabrous.

Seeds

2–5, ochre, lenticular, 3–3.2 × 2.5–3 × 1–1.2 mm, testa smooth or porous, fissural line 90%.

(6–)10–16, dark brown, oblong or subrhomboid, 5–6 × 2.5–3 × 1.5 mm, testa porous, fissural line 90%.

Mimosa pudica

Mimosa monclovensis

Phenology Flowering Jul–Jan; fruiting Jul–Jan. Flowering Apr–Jun; fruiting May–Aug.
Habitat Pinelands, secon­dary vegetation, burned or cleared pinelands. Dry sandy or gravelly places.
Elevation 0–40 m. (0–100 ft.) 100–200 m. (300–700 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
FL; MD; Mexico; Central America; South America; West Indies [Introduced in North America; introduced also in tropical Asia, Africa, Australia]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
TX; Mexico (Coahuila)
Discussion

Mimosa pudica is a pantropical species that has become established in Florida; C. F. Reed (1964) included M. pudica in the flora of the chrome and manganese ore piles at Canton, in the Port of Baltimore, Maryland; his record from Newport News, Virginia, cannot be verified, as that is an immature plant, probably corresponding to another species.

Varieties of Mimosa pudica were distinguished by J. P. M. Brenan (1959) in tropical East Africa. R. C. Barneby (1991) proposed a modified key to varieties; however, they are not clearly delimited in American populations. Available specimens from the flora area cannot be determined at the infraspecific level.

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

Mimosa monclovensis occurs in southern Texas, southward from San Antonio, according to R. C. Barneby (1991, treated as M. quadrivalvis var. nelsonii).

Mimosa subinermis (S. Watson) B. L. Turner, not M. subinermis Bentham (1841), is an illegitimate name that pertains to M. monclovensis.

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

Source FNA vol. 11. FNA vol. 11.
Parent taxa Fabaceae > subfam. Caesalpinioideae (Mimosoid clade) > Mimosa Fabaceae > subfam. Caesalpinioideae (Mimosoid clade) > Mimosa
Sibling taxa
M. biuncifera, M. borealis, M. distachya, M. dysocarpa, M. emoryana, M. grahamii, M. hystricina, M. latidens, M. malacophylla, M. microphylla, M. monclovensis, M. nuttallii, M. pigra, M. quadrivalvis, M. roemeriana, M. rupertiana, M. strigillosa, M. texana, M. turneri
M. biuncifera, M. borealis, M. distachya, M. dysocarpa, M. emoryana, M. grahamii, M. hystricina, M. latidens, M. malacophylla, M. microphylla, M. nuttallii, M. pigra, M. pudica, M. quadrivalvis, M. roemeriana, M. rupertiana, M. strigillosa, M. texana, M. turneri
Synonyms M. pudica var. unijuga Schrankia subinermis, Leptoglottis nelsonii, L. subinermis, M. quadrivalvis var. nelsonii
Name authority Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 1: 518. (1753) R. Grether & Marc. F. Simon: Phytoneuron 2018-39: 2. (2018)
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