Crotalaria kirkii Baker

First published in D.Oliver & auct. suc. (eds.), Fl. Trop. Afr. 2: 36 (1871)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is E. Kenya to Mozambique. It is an annual or perennial and grows primarily in the seasonally dry tropical biome.

Descriptions

Leguminosae, various authors. Flora Zambesiaca 3:7. 2003

Morphology General Habit
Erect annual or short-lived perennial, up to 60 cm tall, with few ascending ribbed appressed puberulous branches.
Morphology Leaves
Leaves 3-foliolate (rarely a few of the uppermost 1-foliolate), estipulate; leaflets mostly 6–13 × 0.4–1 cm, linear-lanceolate, but the lower ones up to 2 cm wide, elliptic to ovate, appressed puberulous beneath; petiole shorter than the leaflets.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Racemes up to 17–30 cm long, many-flowered; bracts filiform, 0.5–2 mm long; bracteoles at the base of the calyx, less than 1 mm long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Flowers similar to C. trichotoma.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Pods subsessile, 2.4–3 × 0.5–0.6 cm, cylindrical, appressed puberulous, c. 50-seeded.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
Seeds c. 2.5 mm long, oblique-cordiform, smooth, terra-cotta.
[FZ]

Leguminosae, J. B. Gillett, R. M. Polhill & B. Verdcourt. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1971

Morphology General Habit
Erect annual, up to 6 dm. tall, with ascending branches.
Morphology Stem
Stem ribbed, appressed puberulous.
Morphology Leaves
Leaves 3-foliolate, rarely with a few of the uppermost 1-foliolate; leaflets mostly linear-lanceolate, with the upper ones longer and proportionally narrower, up to 60–130 mm. long, 5–10 mm. wide, the lower ones sometimes elliptic to ovate, up to 20 mm. wide, glabrous above, appressed puberulous beneath; petiole ± 30–58 mm. long.
Morphology Leaves Stipules
Stipules absent.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Racemes up to 17–30 cm. long, with many rather closely arranged flowers; bracts filiform, 0·5–2 mm. long; bracteoles inserted at the base of the calyx, less than 1 mm. long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Calyx becoming basally truncate and deflexed against the pedicel, 3–4(–4·5) mm. long, glabrous or sparsely appressed puberulous; lobes generally reduced to small widely spaced subulate teeth much shorter than the tube.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Standard broadly elliptic, yellow, fading buff, veined reddish-purple and glabrous outside; wings generally a little shorter than the keel, with a conspicuous dark mark at the base; keel shortly rounded about the middle, with a slightly incurved sharp untwisted beak, 12–14 mm. long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Pod subsessile, cylindrical, up to 24–30 mm. long, 5–6 mm. across, appressed puberulous, ± 50-seeded.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
Seeds oblique-cordiform, ± 2·5 mm. long, smooth, deep terracotta.
Habitat
Valley grassland and Brachystegia woodland, persisting on cultivated ground; 0–1020 m.
Distribution
K7 T3 T6 T8
[FTEA]

International Legume Database and Information Service

Conservation
Not Threatened
Ecology
Africa: Zambezian grassland, Zanzibar-Inhambane regional transition zone; grassland.
Morphology General Habit
Annual, Not climbing, Herb
[ILDIS]

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation
Predicted extinction risk: not threatened. Confidence: confident
[AERP]

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

    • Angiosperm Threat Predictions
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

  • Flora Zambesiaca

    • Flora Zambesiaca
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Flora of Tropical East Africa

    • Flora of Tropical East Africa
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

  • International Legume Database and Information Service

    • International Legume Database and Information Service (ILDIS) V10.39 Nov 2011
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • World Checklist of Vascular plants (WCVP)

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0