''Swainsona murrayana'', commonly known as slender Darling-pea or slender Darling pea, is a species of flowering plant in the family

Fabaceae Fabaceae () or Leguminosae,International Code of Nomen ...

and is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to south-eastern mainland Australia. It is a prostrate, low-growing or erect

perennial In horticulture, the term perennial ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the year") is used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. It has thus been defined as a plant that lives more than 2 years. The term is also ...

herb Herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal purposes, or for fragrances. Culinary use typically distingu ...

, with

imparipinnate Pinnation (also called pennation) is the arrangement of feather-like or multi-divided features arising from both sides of a common axis. Pinnation occurs in biological morphology, in crystals, such as some forms of ice or metal crystals, and in ...

leaves with 3 to 11 linear to elliptic leaflets and

raceme A raceme () or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate growth, indeterminate type of inflorescence bearing flowers having short floral stalks along the shoots that bear the flowers. The oldest flowers grow close to the base and new flowers are ...

s of 3 to 11 pink or purple flowers.

Description

''Swainsona murrayana'' is a prostrate, low-growing or erect perennial herb that typically grows up to tall and is densely hairy. The leaves are imparipinnate, mostly long with 3 to 11 linear to elliptic leaflets, the side leaflets mostly long and wide with a

stipule In botany, a stipule is an outgrowth typically borne on both sides (sometimes on just one side) of the base of a leafstalk (the petiole (botany), petiole). They are primarily found among dicots and rare among monocots. Stipules are considered part ...

long at the base of the

petiole Petiole may refer to: *Petiole (botany), the stalk of a leaf, attaching the blade to the stem *Petiole (insect anatomy) In entomology, petiole is the technical term for the narrow waist of some hymenopteran insects, especially ants, bees, and ...

. The flowers are pink or purple, arranged in racemes of 3 to 11, on a peduncle wide, each flower about long on a

pedicel Pedicle or pedicel may refer to: Human anatomy *Pedicle of vertebral arch, the segment between the transverse process and the vertebral body, and is often used as a radiographic marker and entry point in vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty procedures ...

long. The

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 Etymology The term ''sepalum'' ...

s are joined at the base to form a tube about long, with teeth shorter than the tube. The standard petal is about long and wide, the

wings A wing is a type of fin that produces both lift and drag while moving through air. Wings are defined by two shape characteristics, an airfoil section and a planform. Wing efficiency is expressed as lift-to-drag ratio, which compares the bene ...

long and the

keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element of a watercraft, important for stability. On some sailboats, it may have a fluid dynamics, hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose as well. The keel laying, laying of the keel is often ...

long and broad. Flowering occurs from August to November, and the fruit is a narrowly elliptic pod long with the remains of the

style Style, or styles may refer to: Film and television * ''Style'' (2001 film), a Hindi film starring Sharman Joshi, Riya Sen, Sahil Khan and Shilpi Mudgal * ''Style'' (2002 film), a Tamil drama film * ''Style'' (2004 film), a Burmese film * '' ...

about long.

Taxonomy and naming

''Swainsona murrayana'' was first formally described in 1881 by

Heinrich Wawra von Fernsee Heinrich Wawra Ritter von Fernsee (born Jindřich Blažej Vávra; 2 February 1831 – 24 May 1887) was a Czechs, Czech-Austrians, Austrian ship surgeon, botanist and explorer. Biography Heinrich Wawra von Fernsee was born on 2 February 1831 in ...

in '' Österreichische botanische Zeitschrift'' from specimens collected near the

Murray River The Murray River (in South Australia: River Murray; Ngarrindjeri language, Ngarrindjeri: ''Millewa'', Yorta Yorta language, Yorta Yorta: ''Dhungala'' or ''Tongala'') is a river in Southeastern Australia. It is List of rivers of Australia, Aust ...

Distribution

Slender Darling-pea is usually found in seasonally wet areas and near lakes and is found on the western slopes and plains of New South Wales, in Northern and western Victoria and southern Queensland with an outlier in South Australia.

Conservation status

''Swainsona murrayana'' is listed as "vulnerable" under the Australian Government ''

Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 The ''Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999'' (Cth) is an Act of the Parliament of Australia that provides a framework for protection of the Australian environment, including its biodiversity and its natural and cult ...

'' and the New South Wales Government '' Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016''. The main threats to the species are grazing by domestic stock and by rabbits, weed invasion, agriculture and roadside maintenance.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15483119 murrayana Fabales of Australia Flora of New South Wales Flora of Victoria (state) Flora of Queensland Flora of South Australia Plants described in 1881 Taxa named by Heinrich Wawra von Fernsee