Flora-Fauna

Astragalus caprinus L.

(Nouvelle Flore du Liban et de la Syrie, vol. 2; 1969)

• Life-form & habit : Perennial chamaephyte forming low, cushion-like or diffuse tufts; stems short, ascending to prostrate, densely covered with appressed silky hairs, giving a greyish aspect.

• Leaves : Imparipinnate; leaflets numerous (10–20 pairs), small, oblong to elliptic (4–10 mm), densely sericeous on both surfaces; rachis and petiole similarly hairy; stipules membranous, partly adnate.

• Inflorescence & flowers : Axillary racemes, short to moderately elongated, few- to several-flowered; peduncles shorter than or equalling the leaves; flowers pale yellow to creamy-white; calyx tubular, densely hairy with narrow subulate teeth; standard slightly exceeding wings and keel.

• Fruit : Legumes ovoid to oblong, slightly inflated, densely pubescent, often somewhat curved; containing several seeds; dehiscent at maturity.

• Phenology : Flowers from April to June; fruiting from May to July.

• Habitat & elevation : Dry rocky slopes, steppe formations, and open limestone terrains; 800–1800 m.

• Lebanese distribution : Likely confined to the Beqa‘a plain margins and Anti-Lebanon slopes; scattered and local.

• Native range : Algeria, Cyprus, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon-Syria, Libya, Morocco, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Sicilia, Sinai, Tunisia, Türkiye.

• Conservation notes : Not formally assessed; potentially under-recorded due to taxonomic complexity within the genus.

• Diagnostic remarks : Characterised by its densely silky foliage, compact habit, and relatively short racemes; part of a complex of closely related species requiring careful comparison of indumentum and fruit morphology.