Swainsona elegans

Swainsona elegans
	Near Peak Hill
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Fabales
Family:	Fabaceae
Subfamily:	Faboideae
Genus:	Swainsona
Species:	S. elegans
Binomial name
	Swainsona elegans; A.T.Lee

Last updated September 14, 2024

Swainsona elegans is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a prostrate or ascending annual with imparipinnate leaves, usually with 7 to 15 egg-shaped or elliptic leaflets, and racemes of up to 15 blue or reddish-purple flowers.

Description

Swainsona elegans is a prostrate or ascending annual plant that typically grows to a height of up to 25 cm (9.8 in) with stems about 2 mm (0.079 in) in diameter. Its leaves are imparipinnate, up to about 100 mm (3.9 in) long with 7 to 15 egg-shaped or elliptic leaflets with the narrower end towards the base, the lower leaflets 10–20 mm (0.39–0.79 in) long and 2–5 mm (0.079–0.197 in) wide. There are variably-shaped stipules more than 10 mm (0.39 in) long at the base of the petiole. The flowers are arranged in racemes mostly 100–200 mm (3.9–7.9 in) of up to 15 on a peduncle 1–2 mm (0.039–0.079 in) long, each flower 8–10 mm (0.31–0.39 in) long. The sepals are joined at the base, forming a tube about 2 mm (0.079 in) long, the sepal lobes about the same length as the tube. The petals are pale blue, dark blue or reddish-purple, the standard petal 10–13 mm (0.39–0.51 in) long and 9–12 mm (0.35–0.47 in) wide, the wings 8–9 mm (0.31–0.35 in) long, and the keel about 10 mm (0.39 in) long and 3 mm (0.12 in) wide. Flowering occurs from July to October, and the fruit is a pod 15–20 mm (0.59–0.79 in) long and 4–6 mm (0.16–0.24 in) wide with the remains of the style about 5 mm (0.20 in) long.^[2]^[3]

Taxonomy and naming

Swainsona elegans was first formally described in 1948 by Alma Theodora Lee in Contributions from the New South Wales National Herbarium , from specimens collected east of Carnarvon in 1937.^[4] The specific epithet (elegans) means "fine" or "elegant".^[5]

Distribution and habitat

This species of pea grows in damp, often salty and on stony, hilly places in the Avon Wheatbelt, Carnarvon, Gascoyne, Murchison and Yalgoo bioregions of Western Australia.^[2]^[3]

Related Research Articles

Swainsona behriana, commonly known as Behr's swainsona, is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to south-eastern continental Australia. It is a prostrate or low-growing perennial herb with imparipinnate leaves usually with 9 to 13 narrowly elliptic to egg-shaped leaflets with the narrower end towards the base, and racemes of 2 to 7 purple flowers.

Swainsona brachycarpa, commonly known as slender swainson-pea, is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to eastern Australia. It is a prostrate or ascending perennial herb with imparipinnate leaves usually with 9 to 13 egg-shaped to narrowly elliptic or egg-shaped leaflets, and racemes of up to 12 white, purple or dark red flowers.

Swainsona calcicola is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to north-western Western Australia. It is a prostrate or ascending, low-growing perennial with many stems, imparipinnate leaves usually with 7 to 11 broadly egg-shaped leaflets with the narrower end towards the base, and racemes of usually 4 or 5 pink, purple or red flowers.

Swainsona cyclocarpa is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to northern inland areas of Australia. It is a prostrate or low-growing annual with imparipinnate leaves usually with up to 7 usually egg-shaped leaflets with the narrower end towards the base, and racemes of 4 to 16 purple flowers.

Swainsona forrestii is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to the central northern Western Australia. It is an erect or spreading, single-stemmed annual herb, with imparipinnate leaves with about 13 to 17 narrowly egg-shaped or narrowly ellipitic leaflets, and racemes of dark brownish red to purple or pink flowers in racemes of 30 or more.

Swainsona gracilis is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a prostrate or ascending perennial herb with imparipinnate leaves with up to 15 wedge-shaped or narrowly oblong leaflets, and racemes of up to 4 purple or blue flowers.

Swainsona halophila is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to inland areas of Western Australia. It is usually a prostrate annual herb with imparipinnate leaves with 9 to 13 egg-shaped to broadly wedge-shaped leaflets, and racemes of 2 to 9 purple flowers.

Swainsona incei is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to inland Western Australia. It is an erect or ascending annual, sometimes perennial herb with imparipinnate leaves with 5 to 9 lance-shaped to elliptic leaflets, and racemes of 2 to 30 purple flowers.

Swainsona katjarra, commonly known as Birriliburu swainsona, is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to inland Western Australia. It is an erect annual herb with imparipinnate leaves with 4 to 6 lance-shaped to egg-shaped to elliptical leaflets, and racemes of 15 to 25 magenta flowers.

Swainsona kingii is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is native to Western Australia and South Australia. It is a prostrate or ascending annual or perennial herb, with imparipinnate leaves with usually 5 egg-shaped leaflets with the narrower end towards the base, and racemes of 1 to 3 pink to purple flowers.

Swainsona laciniata is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to north-western Australia. It is a prostrate or ascending perennial herb with imparipinnate leaves with 7 to 13 broadly elliptic to broadly egg-shaped leaflets, and racemes of 3 to 8 purple flowers.

Swainsona leeana is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Australia. It is a small prostrate perennial, possible perennial with imparipinnate leaves with 5 to 7 broadly egg-shaped or elliptic leaflets, and racemes of up to 3 purple or yellow flowers.

Swainsona microcalyx, commonly known as wild violet, is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to southern mainland Australia. It is a prostrate or low-growing perennial herb, with imparipinnate leaves with 5 to 9 broadly egg-shaped to wedge-shaped leaflets and racemes of 5 to 15 purple flowers.

Swainsona pedunculata is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to inland areas of Western Australia. It is a small, ascending annual herb with imparipinnate leaves with 3 to 7 narrowly elliptic or lance-shaped leaflets, and racemes of 2 to 3 purple flowers.

Swainsona pterostylis is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to northern parts of Western Australia. It is a low-growing or prostrate perennial herb, with imparipinnate leaves with mostly 11 to 19 broadly elliptic leaflets, and racemes of 5 to more than 30 purple or violet flowers.

Swainsona reticulata, commonly known as kneed Swainson-pea, is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to south-eastern mainland Australia. It is a prostrate perennial herb, with imparipinnate leaves with 5 to 15 egg-shaped, elliptic or very narrowly linear leaflets, and racemes of 3 to 7 purple flowers.

Swainsona rostellata is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to inland areas of Western Australia. It is a prostrate perennial herb with imparipinnate leaves with 7 to 13 wedge-shaped leaflets, and racemes of usually up to 3 purple flowers.

Swainsona rostrata is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to Central Australia. It is a prostrate or low-growing annual or perennial plant with imparipinnate leaves with 7 to 9 egg-shaped leaflets with the narrower end towards the base, and racemes of usually up to 5 purple or cream-coloured flowers.

Swainsona tanamiensis is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to north-western Australia. It is a prostrate or erect perennial plant with imparipinnate leaves with 5 to 13 broadly egg-shaped to elliptic, or almost round leaflets, and racemes of up to 8 purple flowers.

Swainsona tenuis is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to western continental Australia. It is a prostrate perennial herb with many stems, imparipinnate leaves with 5 to 9 egg-shaped leaflets with the narrower end towards the base, to linear or elliptic leaflets, and racemes of up to 7 purple flowers.

References

↑ "Swainsona elegans". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
1 2 Thompson, Joy (1993). "A revision of the genus Swainsona (Fabaceae)". Telopea. 5 (3): 475–476. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
1 2 "Swainsona elegans". FloraBase . Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
↑ "Swainsona elegans". Australian Plant Name Index. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
↑ Sharr, Francis Aubi; George, Alex (2019). Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings (3rd ed.). Kardinya, WA: Four Gables Press. p. 190. ISBN 9780958034180.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[APC-1] "Swainsona elegans". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 11 December 2023.

[Telopea-2] 1 2 Thompson, Joy (1993). "A revision of the genus Swainsona (Fabaceae)". Telopea. 5 (3): 475–476. Retrieved 11 December 2023.

[FB-3] 1 2 "Swainsona elegans". FloraBase . Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.

[APNI-4] "Swainsona elegans". Australian Plant Name Index. Retrieved 11 December 2023.

[Sharr-5] Sharr, Francis Aubi; George, Alex (2019). Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings (3rd ed.). Kardinya, WA: Four Gables Press. p. 190. ISBN 9780958034180.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]