Alhagi maurorum

Camel thorn

Family: Fabaceae · Type: shrub · Not Native

Conservation status: Cal-IPC Yes

Camel thorn is a naturalized shrub found in the southern San Joaquin Valley, southern Sierra Nevada, and desert regions in arid agricultural areas at elevations below 700 meters. Flowering from June to July, this plant produces red-purple flowers about 8 to 9 millimeters long. Growing with much-branched stems 30 to 100 centimeters tall and a light green color, it forms a dense, spreading structure. Its leaves are elliptic or obovate, measuring 7 to 20 millimeters long. The fruit develops as a distinctive pod 1 to 3 centimeters long, with narrow constrictions between seeds.

Habitat: Uncommon. Arid agricultural areas

Bloom period: Jun-Jul

Elevation: especially < 700 m

Bioregions: GV, s SNE, D

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.