Lupinus stiversii

Lupinus stiversii is a species of lupine known by the common names harlequin annual lupine[1] and harlequin lupine. The plant was named for Army physician Dr. Charles Austin Stivers, who first collected it in 1862 near Yosemite.[2]

Lupinus stiversii
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Fabales
Family: Fabaceae
Subfamily: Faboideae
Genus: Lupinus
Species:
L. stiversii
Binomial name
Lupinus stiversii

Distribution

Lupinus stiversii is endemic to California, where it has a disjunct distribution in several separate mountain ranges. It is a plant of the Sierra Nevada and its foothills, and populations also occur in the Transverse Ranges above Los Angeles and the Santa Lucia Mountains of Monterey County.[2]

It grows in open, dry habitat, such as chaparral and forest clearings and exposed slopes.

Description

Lupinus stiversii is a hairy annual herb growing 10 to 50 centimeters tall with an erect, branching stem. Each palmate leaf is made up of usually 7 leaflets measuring 2 to 5 centimeters in length.

The inflorescence is a dense array of a few flowers, often just one or two layers. The unique flower is between 1 and 2 centimeters long and is pink with a yellow banner. The fruit is a legume pod around 2 centimeters long containing usually 5 seeds.

References
  1. USDA, NRCS (n.d.). "Lupinus stiversii". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team. Retrieved 24 June 2015.
  2. Unique & Noteworthy Plants of the Santa Lucia Mountains: Lupinus (Lupines)


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