Astragalus lentiginosus var. micans

Shining milkvetch

Family: Fabaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 1B.2

Shining milkvetch is a rare (CNPS 1B.2) California native perennial found in northern Death Valley's Eureka Valley in sandy dune habitats at elevations of 850 to 1,200 meters. Flowering from April to June, this plant produces white flowers with delicate pink-lavender tips, creating elegant clusters of 12 to 35 blooms. Growing in clumped, ascending stems 20 to 40 centimeters tall with dense silvery-white silky hairs, it forms compact clusters in the desert landscape. Its compound leaves feature 11 to 17 widely ovate leaflets, each 5 to 14 millimeters long, creating a soft, textured appearance. The fruit is an inflated, stiff-papery pod 15 to 20 millimeters long, densely covered in silky hairs that shimmer in the desert sunlight.

Habitat: Dunes

Bloom period: Apr-Jun

Elevation: 850-1200 m

Bioregions: n DMoj (Eureka Valley).

California counties: Inyo

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