''Mimosa nuttallii'', the Nuttall's sensitive-briar, catclaw brier, or sensitive brier, is an

herbaceous Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition of t ...

perennial A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

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 ...

in the subfamily Mimosoideae native to the central United States. It has a trailing semi-woody vine covered with small recurved prickles that can be painful to bare skin. The ribbed stems of this plant usually grow to or more and are branched. Plants rarely reach more than in height. The

frond A frond is a large, divided leaf. In both common usage and botanical nomenclature, the leaves of ferns are referred to as fronds and some botanists restrict the term to this group. Other botanists allow the term frond to also apply to the lar ...

-like

leaves A leaf (plural, : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant plant stem, stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", wh ...

are alternate with prickly stalks. The bipinnate leaf blades are divided into four to nine pairs of small segments, and these are again divided into 8–15 pairs of tiny leaflets. Leaflets are elliptic and glabrous with a prominent midrib. Like a few other species of ''Mimosa'' (such as ''M. pudica''), the leaves exhibit

nyctinastic Nyctinasty is the circadian rhythmic nastic movement of higher plants in response to the onset of darkness, or a plant "sleeping". Nyctinastic movements are associated with diurnal light and temperature changes and controlled by the circadian clo ...

movement, folding up quickly when touched or disturbed. It is also said that the roots of ''M. nuttallii'' give off an acrid, garlic-like smell when disturbed. This may be an additional defense mechanism of the plant. The tiny

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...

s occur in congested bunches. Before they open, they look much like small green bramble fruits. Each individual flower has five minute petals and eight to ten conspicuous

stamen The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filame ...

s. When open, the pink-purple stamens form a globelike cluster at the tip of their leafless stalk. Yellow pollen can often be seen highlighting the tips. The globes are about across. Flowers and

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

s appear from May to September. The fruit of the catclaw brier is a long, slender, rounded pod that has a covering of dense prickles, typically about long. Habitat includes disturbed areas of sandy or silty soils, roadsides, grasslands, prairies and forest margins. It is known to be very nutritious for livestock, who will seek it out. On rangeland, its absence can also be a good indicator of

overgrazing Overgrazing occurs when plants are exposed to intensive grazing for extended periods of time, or without sufficient recovery periods. It can be caused by either livestock in poorly managed agricultural applications, game reserves, or nature res ...

. Other common names for this plant include Nuttall's sensitive briar and shame-boy, a reference to the sensitive foliage that closes upon touch. Former synonyms include ''Schrankia nuttallii''. The species name ''nuttallii'' is in honor of

Thomas Nuttall Thomas Nuttall (5 January 1786 – 10 September 1859) was an England, English botany, botanist and zoologist who lived and worked in America from 1808 until 1841. Nuttall was born in the village of Long Preston, near Settle, North Yorkshire, S ...

, an English botanist who lived in the United States for many years.

References

External links

Oklahoma Biological Survey: ''Mimosa nuttallii''

* Ajilvsgi, Geyata. ''Wildflowers of Texas''. Shearer Publishing, revised edition 2003. {{Taxonbar, from=Q6862335 nuttallii