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Home/Species/ Starveling Milkvetch

Astragalus jejunus

S. Wats.

Starveling Milkvetch

G3Vulnerable Found in 1 roadless area NatureServe Explorer →
G3VulnerableGlobal Rank
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.145617
Element CodePDFAB0F4G0
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVascular Plant
KingdomPlantae
PhylumAnthophyta
ClassDicotyledoneae
OrderFabales
FamilyFabaceae
GenusAstragalus
Other Common Names
starveling milkvetch (EN)
Concept Reference
Kartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.
Taxonomic Comments
Astragalus jejunus is a generally accepted species with two varieties (Dorn 1988, 1992; Fertig 1994; Kartesz 1999): Astragalus jejunus var. articulatus Dorn and var. jejunus. Although Barneby (1989) did not mention var. articulatus (considered endemic to Wyoming), he notes that the plants in Idaho and Nevada have a terminal leaflet with a constriction or articulation.
Conservation Status
Review Date1999-09-17
Change Date1998-09-18
Edition Date1999-05-05
Edition AuthorsKim Fayette; revised by Bruce MacBryde, 99-09-27.
Rank Reasons
There seem to be at least 80 occurrences, collections or mapped dots of the species in 5 states. Little is known about possible threats to either the local var. articulatus or the widespread var. jejunus.
Range Extent Comments
This species is known from Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah and Nevada (USDA NRCS 2012).
Occurrences Comments
About 80 total occurrences. Wyoming NDD recognizes 71 occurrences (pers. com. W. Fertig to K. Fayette 1999). From adjacent Rich County, Utah, there are 5 map dots in Albee et al. (1988) and 10 collections in Welsh et al. (1993). Although no occurrences are documented in the CONHP database (CONHP 1999), there were two specimens from Moffat and Montezuma counties at the CSU Herbarium (1999). There are no detailed locational data for Idaho or Nevada, but it is reported from one Idaho and two Nevada counties.
Threat Impact Comments
Livestock grazing does not seem to be much of a direct threat to this species in Idaho due to sparse vegetation characterizing its habitat. In Idaho the species is more or less restricted to shaley, erosive outcrops of Twin Creek Limestone, which was unsuccessfully prospected at one time; mining is not known to be a current threat. Some plants may have been killed (in about 1989) at a site during a prescribed burn to eradicate sagebrush. Another small occurrence is surrounded by a crested wheatgrass planting; it is unknown whether portions of this population were destroyed with that planting (pers. com. M. Mancuso, Idaho CDC to K. Fayette 1999). Threats at other locations are unknown.
Ecology & Habitat

Description

Low-growing, densely tufted, multi-stemmed perennial with a woody, branching caudex and stout taproot. Inflorescence a 3-7 flowered raceme; flowers 5-7 mm long; calyx tube 1.5-2 mm long, banner purple, wings white, keel lavender. Pods bladdery-inflated, papery, purplish or red-mottled, almost spherical. The rachises of the leaves of the previous year persist as dried straws, but they are hardly rigid or spine-like. The terminal leaflets are continuous with the rachis. (Ackerfield 2012, Weber and Wittmann 2012, Spackman and Anderson 2002).

Habitat

This species (mainly var. jejunus) is found on dry hilltops, ridges and bluffs or river terraces, of tuff, shale, sandstone, limestone, derived gumbo clay or cobblestones, at about 5800-7400 feet (Barneby 1964, 1989), in sagebrush or sagebrush-juniper communities (Welsh et al. 1993), or in White Pine Co., Nevada on calcareous clay knolls in the pinyon-juniper zone (Barneby 1989). The variety articulatus is known from sparsely vegetated stony ridges and barren red clay slopes at 4900-5900 feet (Fertig 1994).
Other Nations (1)
United StatesN3
ProvinceRankNative
WyomingS4Yes
ColoradoS1Yes
UtahSNRYes
IdahoS2Yes
NevadaS2Yes
Plant Characteristics
Economic Value (Genus)Yes
Roadless Areas (1)
Wyoming (1)
AreaForestAcres
0401036Ashley National Forest6,309
References (9)
  1. Ackerfield, J. 2015. Flora of Colorado. Botanical Research Institute of Texas, Fort Worth, TX. 818 pp.
  2. Barneby, R.C. 1964. Atlas of North American Astragalus. 2 Vols. New York Botanical Garden, Bronx, New York. 1188 pp.
  3. Barneby, R.C. 1989. Fabales. In A. Cronquist, A.H. Holmgren, N.H. Holmgren, J.L. Reveal, and P.K. Holmgren (eds.). Intermountain flora: Vascular plants of the Intermountain West, U.S.A. Vol. 3, Part B. New York Botanical Garden, Bronx. 279 pp.
  4. Dorn, R.D. 1992. Vascular plants of Wyoming, 2nd edition. Mountain West Publishing, Cheyenne, Wyoming.
  5. Kartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.
  6. Kartesz, J.T. 1999. A synonymized checklist and atlas with biological attributes for the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. First edition. In: Kartesz, J.T., and C.A. Meacham. Synthesis of the North American Flora, Version 1.0. North Carolina Botanical Garden, Chapel Hill, N.C.
  7. Weber, W.A., and R.C. Wittmann. 1996a. Colorado flora: Eastern slope. Revised edition. Univ. Press of Colorado, Niwot, Colorado. 524 pp.
  8. Weber, W.A., and R.C. Wittmann. 2012a. Colorado Flora, Eastern Slope, a field guide to the vascular plants, fourth edition. University of Colorado Press. Boulder, Colorado. 555 pp.
  9. Welsh, S.L., N.D. Atwood, S. Goodrich, and L.C. Higgins (eds.) 1993. A Utah flora. 2nd edition. Brigham Young Univ., Provo, Utah. 986 pp.