Trifolium owyheense |
Trifolium ornithopodioides |
|
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Owyhee clover |
bird clover |
|
Habit | Herbs perennial, 10–20 cm, glaucous, glabrous. | Herbs annual, 5–50 cm, glabrous or glabrescent. |
Stems | cespitose, spreading, branched proximally, sparsely branched distally. |
procumbent, ascending, or erect, branched. |
Leaves | palmate; stipules broadly obovate, 1–2 cm, fused at base, margins slightly lobed, apex acute; petiole 2–6 cm; petiolules 1–1.5 mm; leaflets 3, blades ovate, obovate, or orbiculate, slightly overlapping, 1–2 × 0.7–2.3 cm, base truncate to rounded, veins prominent, margins sparsely dentate, apex rounded, emarginate, surfaces glabrous. |
palmate; stipules obovate-lanceolate, 0.5–0.8 cm, margins entire, apex subulate or cuspidate; petiole 4–10 cm; petiolules 0.5 mm; leaflets 3, blades obcordate or obovate, 0.6–1 × 0.4–0.6 cm, base cuneate, veins fine, margins finely serrate, apex truncate or emarginate, surfaces glabrous. |
Inflorescences | terminal, 20–30-flowered, globose, usually formed of 2 sessile heads, 2.5–5 × 2.5–5 cm; involucres absent. |
axillary, 1–5-flowered, loose, oblong, 0.5–1.2 × 0.1–0.5 cm; involucres absent or bracteoles shallow, cuplike, ± equaling pedicels. |
Peduncles | 3–7 cm, surpassing subtending leaves. |
0.5–2 cm. |
Pedicels | erect, reflexed in proximalmost flowers, 1 mm; bracteoles cuplike, 0.5 mm. |
straight or slightly reflexed, 1–3 mm; bracteoles lanceolate, 1 mm. |
Flowers | 15–21 mm; calyx tubular-campanulate, 9–12 mm, pilose, veins 10, tube 4.5–6 mm, lobes subequal, abaxialmost longest, subulate, orifice open; corolla deep pink or magenta, 20–23 mm, banner tubular for most their length, 18–22 × 5–7 mm, apex flared. |
5–10 mm; calyx campanulate, 4–4.5 mm, glabrous, veins 10, tube 2.5–3 mm, lobes unequal, triangular, orifice open; corolla pink or white, 5–9 mm, banner oblong, 5–9 × 2–3 mm, apex rounded. |
Legumes | ellipsoid, 4–5 mm. |
stipitate, ellipsoid-oblong, 6–10 mm. |
Seeds | 1 or 2, yellow-mottled, mitten-shaped, 2–3 mm, smooth. |
4–9, black or dark brown, ellipsoid-globose, 1–1.5 mm, smooth, glossy. |
2n | = 16. |
|
Trifolium owyheense |
Trifolium ornithopodioides |
|
Phenology | Flowering May–Jun. | Flowering May–Jun. |
Habitat | Dry shale hillsides on diatomaceous earth. | Coastal slopes, roadsides. |
Elevation | 1000–2000 m. (3300–6600 ft.) | 0–50 m. (0–200 ft.) |
Distribution |
ID; OR
|
NB; Europe; n Africa [Introduced in North America; introduced also in Pacific Islands (New Zealand), Australia] |
Discussion | Trifolium owyheense is known from about 40 populations in a small portion of east-central Malheur County in Oregon, and immediately adjacent Owyhee County in Idaho (M. Mancuso 2001). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Trifolium ornithopodioides comprises small plants and has been considered a member of Trigonella by some authors; molecular studies by N. W. Ellison et al. (2006) showed that it is nested within Trifolium. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 11. | FNA vol. 11. |
Parent taxa | Fabaceae > subfam. Faboideae > Trifolium | Fabaceae > subfam. Faboideae > Trifolium |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | Melilotus ornithopodioides, Trigonella ornithopodioides | |
Name authority | Gilkey: Madroño 13: 169, fig. 1. (1956) | Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 2: 766. (1753) — (as M. ornithopodioides) |
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