Holmgren milk-vetch (Astragalus holmgreniorum)
Taxonomy:
Listing Status:
Where Listed: WHEREVER FOUND
General Information
A member of the pea family, this species grows close to the ground and is a herbaceous, non-woody perennial that produces small purple flowers in the spring, and dies back to the root crown after the flowering season. The plant’s pinnately compound (arranged on opposite sides of the stem in a row) leaves arise directly from the root crown. The leaves are pressed close to the ground, and are 4 to 13 cm (1.5 to 5.1 in) long, and have 9 to 15 leaflets. The leaflets are 0.8 to 1.6 cm (0.3 to 0.6 in) long and are broadly obovate (oval with the narrow end towards the base of the leaf) in shape. The flowers are purple, 1.8 to 2.4 cm (0.7 to 0.9 in) long, and 0.6 to 0.9 cm (0.2 to 0.4 in) wide and have the distinctive pea-like flowers with 5 petals. Flowers occur along the stalk in groups of 6 to 16. The fruits are pods 3 to 5 cm (1 to 2 in) long and 0.6 to 0.9 cm (0.2 to 0.4 in) across. The pods retain seeds even after the pods fully open up along the margin. With age, each pod eventually drys out and opens up at both the top and bottom ends (Barneby 1989; Stubben 1997).
- States/US Territories in which the Holmgren milk-vetch, Wherever found is known to or is believed to occur: Arizona , Utah
- US Counties in which the Holmgren milk-vetch, Wherever found is known to or is believed to occur: View All
| Status | Date Listed | Lead Region | Where Listed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001-09-28 | Mountain-Prairie Region (Region 6) | Wherever found |
» Federal Register Documents
» Recovery
| Date | Title | Plan Action Status | Plan Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006-09-22 | Astragalus holmgreniorum (Holmgren Milk-Vetch) and Astragalus ampullarioides (Shivwits Milk-Vetch) Recovery Plan | View Implementation Progress | Final |
| Date | Citation Page | Title | Document Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006-09-29 | 71 FR 57557 57558 | Recovery Plan for Holmgren milk-vetch (Astragalus holmgreniorum) and Shivwits milk-vetch (Astragalus ampullarioides) |
|
| 2006-04-07 | 71 FR 17900 17902 | Initiation of a 5-Year Review of Maguire Daisy, Holmgren Milk-Vetch, Shivwits Milk-Vetch, Virgin River Chub, Woundfin, and Kanab Ambersnail |
|
| 2016-05-27 | 81 FR 33698 33700 | ETWP; Initiation of 5-Year Status Reviews of 21 Species in the Mountain-Prairie Region |
|
| 2006-08-01 | 71 FR 43514 43515 | Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Draft Recovery Plan for Astragalus holmgreniorum (Holmgren milk-vetch) and Astragalus ampullarioides (Shivwits milk-vetch) |
|
| Date | Title |
|---|---|
| 2007-04-21 | Shivwits milk-vetch and Holmgren milk-vetch 5-Year Review |
» Critical Habitat
| Date | Citation Page | Title | Document Type | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006-12-27 | 71 FR 77972 78012 | Final Designation of Critical Habitat for Astragalus ampullarioides (Shivwits milk-vetch) and Astragalus holmgreniorum (Holmgren milk-vetch) | Final Rule | Final designated |
| 2006-03-29 | 71 FR 15966 16002 | Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Designation of Critical Habitat for Astragalus ampullarioides (Shivwits Milk-Vetch) and Astragalus holmgreniorum (Holmgren Milk-Vetch): Proposed rule. | Proposed Rule | Not Required |
To learn more about critical habitat please see http://ecos.fws.gov/crithab
» Conservation Plans
No conservation plans have been created for Holmgren milk-vetch.
» Petitions
» Life History
Habitat Requirements
Grows on the shallow, sparsely vegetated soils derived primarily from the Virgin limestone member of the Moenkopi Formation. The species is a principal member of a warm-desert shrub vegetative community.
Movement / Home Range
The number of individual plants in all the species’ populations varies considerably from year to year. Three small populations exist in Washington County, Utah and adjacent Mohave County, Arizona.
Reproductive Strategy
An extremely short-lived perennial herb with low survivorship from germination to 1 year-old juvenile or reproductive adult. Few plants live past two growing seasons. Capable of producing seed in more than 1 year. Nonseedlings, i.e., plants entering their second year of growth or older plants, appear several weeks before seedlings, generally in late February or early March, although some emerge as early as mid-January. Seedlings are present several weeks following adult emergence. The best time to detect the species is while it is producing flowers and fruit. Flowering occurs between March and April, and the majority of plants set fruit by the end of April. Seed pods persist until the end of May. Plants then die back to roots between late May and mid-June.
» Other Resources
NatureServe Explorer Species Reports -- NatureServe Explorer is a source for authoritative conservation information on more than 50,000 plants, animals and ecological communtities of the U.S and Canada. NatureServe Explorer provides in-depth information on rare and endangered species, but includes common plants and animals too. NatureServe Explorer is a product of NatureServe in collaboration with the Natural Heritage Network.
ITIS Reports -- ITIS (the Integrated Taxonomic Information System) is a source for authoritative taxonomic information on plants, animals, fungi, and microbes of North America and the world.
FWS Digital Media Library -- The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's National Digital Library is a searchable collection of selected images, historical artifacts, audio clips, publications, and video.
