Subshrubs. Stems sprawling or twining, gland-dotted, rarely vis­cid, villous or villosulous, hairs silvery or grayish and sil­very intermixed. Leaves trifolio­late; stipules early deciduous, ovate or lanceolate, 4–6 × 1.5–2 mm, apex acute or acuminate, surfaces villosu­lous; petiole 1–7 mm, rarely viscid, villous or villosu­lous; leaflet blades obovate to ovate-lanceolate or ovate-rhombic to rhombic, 20–130 × 15–100 mm, leathery, gland-dotted, base rounded to obtuse or cuneate, apex acute to acuminate, surfaces villous or villosulous abax­ially, villous or villosulous adaxially, rarely glabrescent. Inflorescences racemes, longer than leaves, 5–30 cm. Pedicels 1–2 mm. Flowers: calyx 4–5 mm, villosulous, often viscid, tube 2–2.5 mm, lobes lanceolate, laterals 2–3 mm, lengths to 2.5 times tube, adaxials 1–1.5 mm; corolla green-yellow, streaked purple or brown; banner orbiculate, 8–9 × 6–7 mm, emarginate, villosulous, gland-dotted; wings oblong, 6–7 × 2–2.5 mm, often gland-dotted, puberulent apically; keel 6–8 × 3–3.5 mm, puberulent apically; stamens 8–9 mm. Legumes brown or greenish, widely ovoid-oblong, subinflated, con­stricted, 20–30 × 7–12 mm, gland-dotted, rarely viscid, densely villosulous to puberulent. Seeds red and black, subglobose to ovoid, plump, 5–8 × 4–6 mm.

Phenology: Flowering spring–summer.
Habitat: Sandy soils or limestone, open areas, thickets, forests.
Elevation: (0–20) or 600–1200 m.

Distribution

• Generated Map
• Legacy Map

Ariz., Fla., Mexico (Baja California Sur, Chiapas, Chihuahua, Colima, Guerrero, Jalisco, México, Michoacán, Nayarit, Oaxaca, San Luis Potosí, Sonora, Veracruz), Central America, South America.

Discussion

Rhynchosia precatoria is native in Santa Cruz County, Arizona; it is considered introduced in Florida, where it is found in Miami-Dade County.

Glycine precatoria Humboldt & Bonpland ex Willdenow is a superfluous and illegitimate name that pertains here.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa

None.