Fabaceae
Chamaecrista
Chamaecrista nictitans

Chamaecrista nictitans var. aspera (Muhl. ex Elliott) H.S.Irwin & Barneby

First published in Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 35: 838 (1982)
This variety is accepted
The native range of this variety is SE. U.S.A., Caribbean, Central America. It is an annual and grows primarily in the wet tropical biome.

Descriptions

George R. Proctor (2012). Flora of the Cayman Isands (Second Edition). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

Vernacular
WILD SHAME-FACE
Morphology General Habit
A small woody herb or subshrub, the villous-pubescent stems ascending or rigidly erect, branched or unbranched. Leaves much longer than wide, 2.5–6.5 cm long, short- petiolate, the pubescent petioles with 1 or 2 stalked glands; rhachis pubescent; leaflets glabrous, in 10–25 pairs, linear, unequal-sided, 6–12 mm long, aristate at the apex
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Flowers solitary on axillary peduncles shorter than the petioles; calyx ca. 5 mm long, hairy; petals yellow, the larger 7–8 mm long
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens
Perfect stamens 10
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Pods compressed, hairy, linear-oblong, 15–25 mm long, 3–4 mm wide, 2-valved and elastically dehiscent; seeds 4–7, flattened obovoid, dark brown, ca. 3 mm long.
Distribution
Grand Cayman. Southeastern U.S.A., Bahamas and Jamaica.
Ecology
In pastures and sandy clearings.
[Cayman]

Sources

  • Flora of the Cayman Islands

    • Flora of the Cayman Islands
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    • 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

  • 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