# Spanish clover

*Acmispon americanus*

Despite its common name, Spanish clover is not a true clover of the genus Trifolium, but is actually a member of the deervetch genus.

- **Taxonomy:** Plantae › Tracheophyta › Magnoliopsida › Fabales › Fabaceae › Acmispon
- **IUCN Red List status:** Least Concern
- **Population trend:** stable
- **Biome:** grassland
- **Habitat:** Dry open grasslands, sandy flats, coastal chaparral, and disturbed soils.
- **Diet:** Autotrophic (photosynthesis, nourished by root-associated nitrogen-fixing bacteria).
- **Range:** Western North America, Pacific Coast of the United States, Southwestern Canada, Northern Mexico
- **Size:** 10 to 60 cm in height, often forming spreading mats.
- **Lifespan:** 1 year (annual)
- **Active:** diurnal
- **Threats:** Invasive plant encroachment, habitat fragmentation from urban development, and intensive agriculture.
- **Safe to approach?:** This plant is entirely harmless and safe to approach. You can closely examine its small, pinkish-white flowers. Avoid trampling the plants or harvesting wild specimens to preserve local biodiversity.

## About

Acmispon americanus , known by the common names American bird's-foot trefoil and Spanish clover , is a species of legume native to most habitats of California, the Western United States, Western Canada, and northern Mexico.

## Sources

- Plate: https://gaia-dex.com/species/52d525b6-0d6c-4a2b-ab07-a28255448c45
- iNaturalist: https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/57049
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acmispon americanus
- Conservation status: IUCN Red List category, as recorded by Gaia-Dex
- Photo: https://inaturalist-open-data.s3.amazonaws.com/photos/76010957/medium.jpeg (Ken-ichi Ueda, CC-BY, via iNaturalist)

Habitat, diet, size and similar notes are AI-written summaries; check them against the linked sources before relying on them.