''Swainsona greyana'', commonly known as Darling Pea or Hairy Darling Pea, is a shrubby perennial in the family

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

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. It grows to 1.5 metres high, has hairy stems and pinnate leaves that are 10 to 15 cm long. Racemes of 12 to 20 pea flowers are produced from September to March in the species' native range. These have white, pink or purple corollas. The pods that follow are elliptic in shape and 30 to 50 mm long. It occurs on the banks of the lower

Murray Murray may refer to: Businesses * Murray (bicycle company), an American manufacturer of low-cost bicycles * Murrays, an Australian bus company * Murray International Trust, a Scottish investment trust * D. & W. Murray Limited, an Australian who ...

and Darling Rivers in

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

and

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

. The species was first formally described in 1846 by English botanist

John Lindley John Lindley FRS (5 February 1799 – 1 November 1865) was an English botanist, gardener and orchidologist. Early years Born in Catton, near Norwich, England, John Lindley was one of four children of George and Mary Lindley. George Lindley w ...

in '' Edward's Botanical Register''. The plant contains the

alkaloid Alkaloids are a class of basic, naturally occurring organic compounds that contain at least one nitrogen atom. This group also includes some related compounds with neutral and even weakly acidic properties. Some synthetic compounds of similar ...

swainsonine Swainsonine is an indolizidine alkaloid. It is a potent inhibitor of Golgi alpha-mannosidase II, an immunomodulator, and a potential chemotherapy drug. As a toxin in locoweed (likely its primary toxin) it also is a significant cause of economi ...

causing

alpha-mannosidosis Alpha-mannosidosis is a lysosomal storage disorder, first described by Swedish physician Okerman in 1967.''Malm D, Nilssen O (2008). "Alpha-mannosidosis". Orphanet J Rare Dis. 3 (1): 21. doi:10.1186/1750-1172-3-21. PMC 2515294 . PMID 1865197 ...

, a risk to grazing livestock. In 2014, thousands of livestock mostly sheep were killed in western

region, after consuming darling pea, due to its addictive nature. As toxicity builds up it attacks an enzyme involved in metabolism, leading crippling of an animal's central nervous system, and symptoms like erratic behaviour, loss of co-ordination and depression. Previously in January 2013, a bush fire had burnt 53,000 hectares of the

Warrumbungle National Park Warrumbungle National Park is a heritage listed national park located in the Orana region of New South Wales, Australia. The national park is located approximately northwest of Sydney and contained within . The park attracts approximately vi ...

and farms at

Coonabarabran Coonabarabran is a town in Warrumbungle Shire that sits on the divide between the Central West and North West Slopes regions of New South Wales, Australia. At the 2016 census, the town had a population of 2,537, Material was copied from this s ...

leaving the weeds no competition and they rapidly spread in the area.

References

greyana Fabales of Australia Flora of New South Wales Flora of South Australia Flora of Victoria (Australia) Plants described in 1846 {{Australia-rosid-stub