Crotalaria tsavoana Polhill

First published in Kew Bull. 25: 284 (1971)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is SE. Kenya to NE. Tanzania. It is a perennial and grows primarily in the seasonally dry tropical biome.

Descriptions

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

Morphology General Habit
Much-branched woody perennial herb 0·3–1·2 m. tall.
Morphology Branches
Branches tomen-tellous with short appressed silvery-white hairs.
Morphology Leaves
Leaves 3-foliolate; leaflets elliptic-obovate, mostly 3·5–6 cm. long, 2–3·5 cm. wide, glabrous or sparsely puberulous above, conspicuously appressed puberulous beneath; petioles mostly 3–6·5 cm. long.
Morphology Leaves Stipules
Stipules absent.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Racemes shortly pedunculate, 8–22 cm. long, subdensely many-flowered; bracts linear, 1–1·5 mm. long, caducous before the flowers open; bracteoles at the base of calyx, minute.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Calyx becoming basally truncate and deflexed against the pedicel, 4·5–5·5 mm. long, densely covered with very short appressed hairs; lobes broadly triangular, slightly acuminate, shorter than the tube.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Standard broadly elliptic or obovate-elliptic, rich yellow inside, sometimes flushed crimson-brown outside, medially puberulous; wings nearly as long as the keel; keel rather shallowly rounded about the middle, with a narrow untwisted beak only slightly incurved at the tip, 1·2–1·4 cm. long, flushed crimson-brown.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Pod clavate-fusiform, narrowed to a 4–5 mm. long stipe, prolonged into a straight stylar beak, altogether 2·6–3 cm. long, 0·7–0·8 cm. across, pubescent, ± 22–28-seeded.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
Mature seeds not seen.
Habitat
Deciduous bushland and wooded grassland; 250–900 m.
Distribution
K4 K7 T2 not known elsewhere
[FTEA]

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/179659/1585858

Conservation
NT - near threatened
[IUCN]

International Legume Database and Information Service

Conservation
Not Threatened
Ecology
Africa: Somalia-Masai wooded grasslands., Somalia-Masai bushland and thicket
Morphology General Habit
Perennial, 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: threatened. Confidence: confident
[AERP]

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

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

  • 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/

  • IUCN Categories

    • IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/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