''Lupinus formosus'', the summer lupine or western lupine, is a species of flowering plant in the

legume A legume () is a plant in the family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae), or the fruit or seed of such a plant. When used as a dry grain, the seed is also called a pulse. Legumes are grown agriculturally, primarily for human consumption, for livestock f ...

family,

Fabaceae The Fabaceae or Leguminosae,International Code of Nomenc ...

. It is native to

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

and

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

in the United States. ''Lupinus formosus'' has been cited as a poisonous plant. Although it is not endangered it faces eradication in some areas at the hands of cattle farmers as it has been implicated in crooked calf disease. This lupine, along with five others, is poisonous from the time it starts growth in the spring until the

seed pods This page provides a glossary of plant morphology. Botanists and other biologists who study plant morphology use a number of different terms to classify and identify plant organs and parts that can be observed using no more than a handheld magnify ...

shatter in late summer or early fall. However, the younger the plant the more toxic it is. Summer lupine is one of three piperidine alkaloid containing plants that have poisonous effects on livestock. It, along with

poison hemlock ''Conium maculatum'', colloquially known as hemlock, poison hemlock or wild hemlock, is a highly poisonous biennial herbaceous flowering plant in the carrot family Apiaceae, native to Europe and North Africa. A hardy plant capable of living in ...

(''Conium maculatum'') and tree tobacco (''Nicotiana glauca''), induced "multiple congenital contractures (MCC) and palatoschisis in goat kids when their dams were gavaged with the plant during gestation." The skeletal abnormalities included fixed extension of the

carpal The carpal bones are the eight small bones that make up the wrist (or carpus) that connects the hand to the forearm. The term "carpus" is derived from the Latin carpus and the Greek καρπός (karpós), meaning "wrist". In human anatomy, th ...

, tarsal and

fetlock Fetlock is the common name in horses, large animals, and sometimes dogs for the metacarpophalangeal and metatarsophalangeal joints (MCPJ and MTPJ). Although it somewhat resembles the human ankle in appearance, the joint is homologous to the ba ...

joints,

scoliosis Scoliosis is a condition in which a person's spine has a sideways curve. The curve is usually "S"- or "C"-shaped over three dimensions. In some, the degree of curve is stable, while in others, it increases over time. Mild scoliosis does not t ...

lordosis Lordosis is historically defined as an ''abnormal'' inward curvature of the lumbar spine. However, the terms ''lordosis'' and ''lordotic'' are also used to refer to the normal inward curvature of the lumbar and cervical regions of the human spi ...

torticollis Torticollis, also known as wry neck, is a dystonic condition defined by an abnormal, asymmetrical head or neck position, which may be due to a variety of causes. The term ''torticollis'' is derived from the Latin words ''tortus, meaning "twisted ...

and rib cage problems. The clinical signs of toxicity in sheep, cattle and pigs included,

ataxia Ataxia is a neurological sign consisting of lack of voluntary coordination of muscle movements that can include gait abnormality, speech changes, and abnormalities in eye movements. Ataxia is a clinical manifestation indicating dysfunction of ...

, incoordination, muscular weakness,

prostration Prostration is the gesture of placing one's body in a reverentially or submissively prone position. Typically prostration is distinguished from the lesser acts of bowing or kneeling by involving a part of the body above the knee, especially t ...

and death. It inhabits areas of dry slopes beneath pine trees, clay soils, grasslands,

coniferous Conifers are a group of cone-bearing seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the division Pinophyta (), also known as Coniferophyta () or Coniferae. The division contains a single extant class, Pinopsida. All extant ...

forests, and areas in the San Jacinto,

Santa Rosa Santa Rosa is the Italian, Portuguese and Spanish name for Saint Rose. Santa Rosa may also refer to: Places Argentina *Santa Rosa, Mendoza, a city * Santa Rosa, Tinogasta, Catamarca * Santa Rosa, Valle Viejo, Catamarca *Santa Rosa, La Pampa * Sa ...

and

San Gabriel Mountains The San Gabriel Mountains ( es, Sierra de San Gabriel) are a mountain range located in northern Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County and western San Bernardino County, California, United States. The mountain range is part of the Tr ...

. Its distribution extends across the state of California except for the eastern deserts and the plateaus east of the

Sierra Nevada The Sierra Nevada () is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primarily ...

. This lupine blooms from April to August. It is one of the foodplants of the endangered

mission blue butterfly The Mission blue (''Icaricia icarioides missionensis'') is a blue or lycaenid butterfly subspecies native to the San Francisco Bay Area of the United States. The butterfly has been declared as endangered by the US federal government. It is a su ...

. There are two varieties. ''Lupinus formosus'' var. ''robustus'' is confined to the Sierra Nevada and the Southern Coast Ranges of California, while var ''formosus'' is more widespread. It is a larval host to the

Acmon blue ''Icaricia acmon'', the Acmon blue, is a North American butterfly. It ranges mainly in California but can be seen north to Oregon and south through Baja California. Wingspan is 17-30 mm. The tops of the wings are blue with dark edges in males a ...

arrowhead blue ''Glaucopsyche piasus'', the arrowhead blue, is a western North American butterfly of the family Lycaenidae. It is a locally common butterfly that favors prairie, open woodland, and woodland edges and trails. Larvae feed on lupine (''Lupinus'') ...

Melissa blue The Melissa blue (''Plebejus melissa'') is a butterfly of the family Lycaenidae. It is found in western North America, from Canada to Mexico. Taxonomy The Karner blue (''Plebejus samuelis'') was traditionally considered a subspecies of the ...

silvery blue ''Glaucopsyche lygdamus'', the silvery blue, is a small butterfly native to North America. Its upperside is a light blue in males and a dull grayish blue in females. The underside is gray with a single row of round spots of differing sizes depen ...

, and

sooty hairstreak ''Satyrium fuliginosum'', the sooty hairstreak, is a butterfly of the family Lycaenidae. It is found in western North America from British Columbia to central California, east to Wyoming and northern Colorado. Adults are on wing from July to Au ...

.The Xerces Society (2016), ''Gardening for Butterflies: How You Can Attract and Protect Beautiful, Beneficial Insects'', Timber Press.

References

External links

The Jepson eFlora 2013: ''Lupinus formosus''''Lupinus formosus'' — CalPhotos

formosus Pope Formosus (896) was the bishop of Rome and ruler of the Papal States from 6 October 891 until his death on 4 April 896. His reign as pope was troubled, marked by interventions in power struggles over the Patriarchate of Constantinople, the K ...

Flora of California Flora of Oregon Flora of the Cascade Range Flora of the Sierra Nevada (United States) Plants described in 1891 Flora without expected TNC conservation status {{Lupinus-stub