Astragalus sinuatus

Last updated

Astragalus sinuatus
Status TNC G1.svg
Critically Imperiled  (NatureServe)
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Fabales
Family: Fabaceae
Genus: Astragalus
Species:
A. sinuatus
Binomial name
Astragalus sinuatus

Astragalus sinuatus is a species of flowering plant in the legume family known by the common name Whited's milkvetch. It is endemic to Washington in the United States, where it is limited to one creek drainage on the western edge of the Columbia Basin. Its range measures about ten square miles in Chelan and Kittitas Counties in the central part of the state. [1]

This perennial herb has stems up to about 45 centimeters long. In April and May it produces yellowish or cream-colored flowers with purple-tinged keels. [1] The fruit is a legume pod which is so tough it sometimes requires pliers to crack it open. [2] The pod is 2.4 to 2.7 centimeters in length. [3]

This plant grows on harsh, dry, rocky land in the shrubsteppe. Other plants in the habitat may include Lupinus sulphureus , Erigeron linearis , Phlox longifolia , Woodsia oregana , Balsamorhiza sagittata , Lomatium dissectum , Lithophragma bulberifera , and Astragalus purshii . Precipitation amounts to only about 9 inches per year. [2]

There are about 8 populations of the plant, totalling about 5000 individuals. [1] [2] Threats to the species include fire suppression, which has led to a buildup of organic matter that facilitates hotter fires when they do occur now. Other threats include habitat loss, invasive species of plants (such as Bromus tectorum ), [4] herbicides, and predation of seed pods by insects. [2]

Related Research Articles

<i>Astragalus albens</i> Species of legume

Astragalus albens is a species of milkvetch known by the common names Cushenbury milkvetch and silvery-white milkvetch.

<i>Astragalus brauntonii</i> Species of legume

Astragalus brauntonii is a rare species of milkvetch known by the common name Braunton's milkvetch. It is endemic to California, where it is known from fewer than 20 extant occurrences in the hills and mountains surrounding the Los Angeles Basin in Southern California. This is a federally listed endangered species in the United States.

Astragalus breweri is a species of milkvetch known by the common name Brewer's milkvetch. It is endemic to northern California, where it is found in several counties surrounding the north edge of the San Francisco Bay Area. It grows in open habitat in the North Coast Ranges, sometimes on serpentine soils.

Astragalus crotalariae is a species of milkvetch known by the common name Salton milkvetch. It is native to the Colorado Desert in California and other Sonoran Deserts in Arizona and northern Mexico. It grows in desert scrub habitat, including the Salton Sink in the Coachella Valley.

<i>Astragalus purshii</i> Species of legume

Astragalus purshii is a species of milkvetch known by the common names woollypod milkvetch and Pursh's milkvetch.

<i>Astragalus pycnostachyus</i> Species of aquatic plant

Astragalus pycnostachyus is a species of milkvetch known by the common name marsh milkvetch. It is endemic to the coastline of California, where it grows in wet saline habitat such as marshes.

<i>Astragalus desereticus</i> Species of legume

Astragalus desereticus is a rare species of milkvetch known by the common name Deseret milkvetch. It is endemic to Utah County, Utah, where it is known from only one population. It was thought to be extinct until 1981 when this population was discovered. The population contains 5,000 to 10,000 plants on an area of land covering less than 300 acres. It is vulnerable to damage from grazing cattle, which eat the plant and trample the soil, and from development and erosion. This is a federally listed threatened species.

<i>Astragalus holmgreniorum</i> Species of endangered plant

Astragalus holmgreniorum is a rare species of milkvetch known by the common names Holmgren milkvetch and paradox milkvetch. It is native to a tiny section of desert shrub woodland on the border between Utah and Arizona, in the far northern Mojave Desert. There are six populations remaining. It is a federally listed endangered species.

<i>Astragalus osterhoutii</i> Species of legume

Astragalus osterhoutii is a rare species of milkvetch known by the common name Osterhout milkvetch. It is endemic to Grand County, Colorado, where it is known from a few populations in Middle Park, a mountain basin. There are five or six occurrences. It is a federally listed endangered species.

<i>Astragalus montii</i> Species of legume

Astragalus montii is a rare species of flowering plant in the legume family known by the common name heliotrope milkvetch. It is endemic to Utah in the United States, where there are only three known populations. It is a federally listed threatened species of the United States. This species is often treated as a variety of Astragalus limnocharis.

<i>Astragalus iselyi</i> Species of legume

Astragalus iselyi is a rare species of flowering plant in the legume family known by the common name Isely's milkvetch. It is endemic to Utah in the United States.

<i>Astragalus australis</i> Species of legume

Astragalus australis is a species of flowering plant in the legume family known by the common name Indian milkvetch. It is native to much of the Northern Hemisphere, including northern North America, Europe, and temperate Asia.

<i>Astragalus microcymbus</i> Species of legume

Astragalus microcymbus is a species of flowering plant in the legume family known by the common name skiff milkvetch. It is endemic to Colorado in the United States, where it is known from Gunnison County and the edge of Saguache County.

<i>Astragalus mulfordiae</i> Species of legume

Astragalus mulfordiae is a species of flowering plant in the legume family known by the common name Mulford's milkvetch. It was so named after its discoverer Anna Isabel Mulford. It is native to the Snake River Plain in Idaho and Oregon in the United States.

Astragalus schmolliae is a species of flowering plant in the legume family known by the common name Schmoll's milkvetch. It is endemic to Colorado in the United States, where it is limited to Montezuma County. It grows only on Chapin Mesa in Mesa Verde National Park.

Astragalus tyghensis is a species of flowering plant in the legume family known by the common name Tygh Valley milkvetch. It is endemic to Oregon in the United States, where it is known only from the Tygh Valley of Wasco County.

Astragalus anisus is a species of flowering plant in the legume family known by the common name Gunnison milkvetch. It is endemic to Colorado in the United States, where it is limited to the Gunnison Basin of Gunnison and Saguache Counties.

Astragalus leptaleus is a species of flowering plant in the legume family known by the common name park milkvetch. It is native to the Rocky Mountains of the United States, where it occurs in Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado.

<i>Astragalus molybdenus</i> Species of legume

Astragalus molybdenus is a species of flowering plant in the legume family known by the common names Leadville milkvetch and molybdenum milkvetch. It is endemic to Colorado in the United States. If the separate species Astragalus shultziorum and Astragalus lackschewitzii are included in A. molybdenum the range expands into Wyoming and Montana.

<i>Astragalus ripleyi</i> Species of legume

Astragalus ripleyi is a species of flowering plant in the legume family known by the common name Ripley's milkvetch. It is native to southern Colorado and northern New Mexico in the United States.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Astragalus sinuatus. The Nature Conservancy.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Astragalus sinuatus. Archived October 26, 2011, at the Wayback Machine Center for Plant Conservation.
  3. Astragalus sinuatus. Washington Burke Museum.
  4. Combs, J. K., et al. (2011). Invasive competitor and native seed predators contribute to rarity of the narrow endemic Astragalus sinuatus Piper. Ecological Applications 21:2498–2509.