Lotus corniculatus L., 1753

Common names

• 🇬🇧 Common Bird’s-foot-trefoil
• 🇫🇷 Lotier corniculé, Pied-de-poule, Sabot-de-la-mariée

Taxonomy

• Kingdom: Plantae
• Clade: Tracheophytes
• Clade: Angiosperms
• Clade: Eudicots
• Clade: Superrosids
• Clade: Rosids
• Clade: Fabids
• Order: Fabales
• Family: Fabaceae
• Subfamily: Faboideae
• Tribe: Loteae
• Genus: Lotus
• Species: Lotus corniculatus

Presence

Present.

Conservation status

• Red List (Metropolitan France): LC Least Concern
• Red List (Europe): LC Least Concern

Notes

Possible confusion with L. pedunculatus Cav., 1793, which has 8-12 flowers per inflorescence and a hollow stem, while L. corniculatus has 4-6 flowers per inflorescence and a solid stem.

The following infraspecific taxa are accepted:

• L. corniculatus subsp. afghanicus Chrtková, 1967;
• L. corniculatus subsp. carpetanus (Lacaita) Rivas Mart., 1963;
• L. corniculatus subsp. corniculatus
  • var. alandicus Chrtková, 1971;
  • var. alpicola Beck, 1892;
  • var. corniculatus L., 1753, P;
  • var. crassifolius Pers., 1807;
  • var. fallax Chrtková, 1971;
  • var. hirsutus (Wallr.) Hartm., 1832;
  • var. kochii Chrtková, 1973;
  • var. norvegicus Chrtková, 1971;
  • var. posoniensis Chrtková, 1971;
  • var. sativus Hyl., 1950;
• L. corniculatus subsp. fruticosus Chrtková, 1967;
• L. corniculatus subsp. glacialis (Boiss.) Valdés, 2000.

Photographs

Sources

• Kell, S.P. (2011). Lotus corniculatus (Europe assessment). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, 2011. https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/176445/7243415

• Tison, J.M., & de Foucault, B. (2014). Flora Gallica : Flore de France (p. 736). Biotope.