Strigose Bird's Foot Trefoil,
Bishop's Lotus, Hairy Lotus
Lotus strigosus
Color: Yellow
Common name: Strigose Bird's Foot Trefoil, Bishop's Lotus, Hairy Lotus
Latin name: Lotus strigosus
Family: FABACEAE
Height: About 2 feet
Description: This is a prostrate herb. It is sometimes roughly hairy with stiff flattened hairs but it may be somewhat woolly, fuzzy, or nearly hairless as well. The inflorescence bears one or two yellow to orange or red pealike flowers, each with a corolla one half to one centimeter across. The fruit is a legume pod 1-3 cm long.
Leaf: The plant's slender branches are lined with leaves each made of several small leaflets.
Range: Desert , Great Central Valley, Central Western California, Southwestern California
Habitat: Coastal scrub, chaparral, foothills, deserts, roadsides, other disturbed areas
Elevation: < 2300 m.
Flowering time: Mar–Jun
Notes: Lotus strigosus, a dicot, is an annual herb that is native to California and is also found outside of California, but is confined to western North America. Distribution outside California: Arizona, Mexico. This photo was taken on March 7, 2008.
We have an online wildflower field guide that is designed to help you identify desert wildflowers by color, scientific name, region and common name. The pictures are sized to work on the iPod, iPhone, iPad and similar devices. With your iPod or phone you will easily be able to identify wildflowers while in the desert. Links for downloads are on the bottom of the Wildflower Field Guide page.
Photo tips: Most digital point-and-shoot cameras have a macro function - usually symbolized by the icon of a little flower. When you turn on that function, you allow your camera to get closer to the subject, looking into a flower for example. Or getting up close and personal with a bug. More on desert photography.
Mojave Desert Wildflowers - This book is the standard by which all other wildflower books are measured. The author, Jon Mark Stewart, has combined super photography with concise information. This book has an entire color page for each wildflower covered, with a discussion of the wildflower. 210 pages with 200 color photos. More...
What's Blooming Now - Check the Wildflower Reports
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