Lotus nuttallianus
Encyclopedia
Lotus nuttallianus is a species of legume
Faboideae
Faboideae is a subfamily of the flowering plant family Fabaceae or Leguminosae. One acceptable alternative name for the subfamily is Papilionoideae....

 known by the common names Beach Lotus, Nuttall's Lotus, and Wire Bird's-foot Trefoil. It is native to Baja California
Baja California
Baja California officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is both the northernmost and westernmost state of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1953, the area was known as the North...

 and just into San Diego County, California
San Diego County, California
San Diego County is a large county located in the southwestern corner of the US state of California. Hence, San Diego County is also located in the southwestern corner of the 48 contiguous United States. Its county seat and largest city is San Diego. Its population was about 2,813,835 in the 2000...

, where it is a resident of coastal habitats, such as beaches and bluffs.

It is a rare plant of the highly developed coastline in and around the city of San Diego
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...

, where threatened populations are known at Mission Bay, the Silver Strand
Silver Strand (San Diego)
Silver Strand, or simply The Strand, is a low, narrow, sandy isthmus long in San Diego County, California partially within the Silver Strand State Beach. It connects Coronado "Island" with Imperial Beach. Together with the Point Loma peninsula it shelters and defines San Diego Bay...

 and Imperial Beach
Imperial Beach, California
Imperial Beach is a residential beach city in San Diego County, California, with a population of 26,324 at the 2010 census. The city is the most southern beach city in Southern California and the West Coast of the United States...

.

This is an annual herb lined with leaves made up of oval leaflets one half to one centimeter long. The inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...

 bears 3 to 8 red and yellow flowers each about a centimeter in length. The fruit is a slender, curved legume pod containing usually 2 small beanlike seeds.

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