Fabaceae
Kotschya

Kotschya coalescens Dewit & P.A.Duvign.

First published in Bull. Soc. Roy. Bot. Belgique 86: 213 (1954)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Tanzania to Zambia. It 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
Perennial erect or rambling herb or subshrub 0.75–1.8 m. tall.
Morphology Stem
Stems covered with bristly tubercular-based hairs.
Morphology Leaves
Leaves subfasciculate on very short reduced shoots, 10–18-foliolate; leaflets narrowly oblong or lanceolate, somewhat falcate, 2–6 mm. long, 0.7–2 mm. wide, rounded or acute at the apex, cuneate at the base, setulose ciliate, punctulate; basal nerves 3–4; petiole and rhachis together 0.5–2.1 cm. long; petiolules very short; stipules ovate-lanceolate, 5–7 mm. long, 1–2.5 mm. wide, acuminate, scarious, pubescent, persistent.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescences axillary, few-flowered in axils of normal leaves or leaves reduced to stipules, dense, subsessile, 2 cm. long; pedicels 2–3 mm. long; bracts ovate, 4–5 mm. long, 2–2.5 mm. wide, acute, pubescent; bracteoles joined for three-quarters of their length, ovate, 4–5 mm. long, 2 mm. wide, acute, pubescent.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Calyx pubescent or densely hairy, 1–1.3 cm. long, 2-lipped; lips divided for one-half to two-thirds of their length, the upper oblong, divided into 2 obtuse or subacute lobes, the lower almost round, divided into 3 obtuse to acute ovate or lanceolate lobes.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Standard blue, obovate-oblong or rounded, 1–1.2 cm. long, 6–8 mm. wide, glabrous or with some hairs on the margins and main nerve; wings blue, hairy at the apex; keel blue.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Pods of 1–2(–3) articles, each rounded, 3–3.5 mm. long and wide, pubescent.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
Seeds grey-brown, rounded reniform, longest dimension 2.5 mm., shorter dimension 2 mm., 1.2 mm. thick.
Habitat
Upland grassland and thicket at forest edges; 1980–2250 m.
Distribution
T4 T7
[FTEA]

International Legume Database and Information Service

Conservation
Not Threatened
Ecology
Africa: Afromontane grassland, Afromontane(upland) bushland and thicket.
Morphology General Habit
Perennial, Not climbing, Herb/Shrub
[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]

Leguminosae, B. Verdcourt. Flora Zambesiaca 3:6. 2000

Morphology General Habit
Erect or rambling perennial herb or subshrub, 0.75–1.8 m tall.
Morphology Stem
Stems covered with bristly tubercular-based hairs.
Morphology Leaves
Leaves subfasciculate on very short reduced shoots, 10–18-foliolate; leaflets 2–6 × 0.7–2 mm, narrowly oblong or lanceolate, somewhat falcate, rounded or acute at the apex, cuneate at the base, setulose-ciliate, punctulate; basal nerves 3–4; petiole and rhachis together 5–21 mm long; petiolules very short; stipules 5–7 × 1–2.5 mm, ovate-lanceolate, acuminate, scarious, pubescent, persistent.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescences axillary, few-flowered in axils of normal leaves or leaves reduced to stipules, dense, subsessile, 2 cm long; pedicels 2–3 mm long; bracts 4–5 × 2–2.5 mm, ovate, acute, pubescent; bracteoles joined for three-quarters of their length, 4–5 × 2 mm, ovate, acute, pubescent.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Calyx pubescent or densely hairy, 10–13 mm long, 2-lipped; lips divided for one-half to two-thirds of their length, the upper oblong, divided into 2 obtuse or subacute lobes, the lower almost round, divided into 3 obtuse to acute ovate or lanceolate lobes.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Standard blue, 10–12 × 6–8 mm, obovate-oblong or rounded, glabrous or with some hairs on the margins and main nerve; wing blue, hairy at the apex; keel blue.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Fruit of 1–2(3) articles; articles 3–3.5 mm long and wide, rounded, pubescent.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
Seeds grey-brown, 2.5 × 2 × 1.2 mm, rounded-reniform.
[FZ]

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