Ornithopus Perpusillus. Common Bird’s-Foot. 
ORNITHOPUS Linn. Gen. Pi. Diadelehia Decandria. 
Legumen articulatum, teres, arcuatum. 
Rail Syn. Gen. 23. Herbie Flore Papilionaceo seu Leguminosaj. 
ORNITHOPUS perptjillus foliis pinnatis, leguminibus incurvatis. Linn. Syft. Vege tab. ed. 14. Murr. 
p. 670. Spec. Pl. p. 1049. 
ORNITHOPODIUM caule prollrato, foliis pinnatis, filiquis umbellatis, articulatis. Hali. Hijl. n. 393. 
ORNITHOPODIUM majus — , minus — , radice tuberculis nodofa. Bauh. Pin. 350. 
ORNITHOPODIUM minus. Ger.emac. 1241. 
ORNITHOPODIUM radice nodofa. Park. 1093. Raii Syn. p. 326. Birds-foot. Hudfon FI. Angi, 
ed. 2. p. 321. Ligbtfoot FI. Scot. p. 399. 
RADIX annua, tenuis, fibrofa; fibris longis, albidis, 
tuberculiferis. 
CAULES plures, fubpalmares, proftrati, fimplices, 
teretes, pubefcentes. 
FOLIA pinnata, radicalia proflrata, fubpetiolata, cau- 
lina alterna, fefliha ; foliola 6 ad 9 juga, fiepe 
cum impari, ovalia, fubcarinata, per lentem 
pilofa. 
FLORES parvi, ex albo, rubro, et luteo pulchre va- 
riegati ; pedunculi ex axillis foliorum 3-5 
flori, longitudine folii. 
CALYX: Umbella fimplex. Perianthium mo- 
nophyllum, tubulatum, pilofum, perfiftens, 
ore quinquedentato, fubcequali, Jig. 1. 
COROLLA papilionacea : Vexillum obcordatum, 
vix emarginatum, album, venis rubris pi&um, 
Jig. 2. Al^e ovatas, reHse, albas, magnitu- 
dine vix vexilli, jig. 3. Carina comprefla, 
flavefcens, minima, jig. 4. 
STAMINA : Filamenta diadelpha, fimplex et no- 
vemfidum, jig. 5. An tii e r^e fimplices, fla- 
vefcentes, jig. 6 . 
PISTILLUM: Germen lineare, viride,- Stylus feta- 
ceus, afcendens ; Stigma punftum terminale, 
ad lentem fubcapitatum, jig. 7. 
PERICARPIUM : Legumen fubulatum, teres, arcu- 
atum, articulatum, iftthmifque interceptum, 
articulatim difcedens, jig. 8, 9. 
SEMINA folitaria, fub rotunda, jig. 10. 
ROOT annual, (lender, fibrous; fibres long, whitifh, 
befet with tubercles. 
STALKS feveral, about a hand’s -breadth in length, 
proftrate, fimple, round, downy. 
LEAVES pinnated, the radical ones fpread on the 
ground, and Handing on Ihort footftalks, thofe 
of the {talks alternate, feflile, compofed of 
from 6 to 9 pair of pinnas, and often termi- 
nated by an odd one, oval, fomewhat keeled, 
and hairy if magnified. 
FLOWERS fmall, prettily variegated with white, red, 
and yellow, peduncles proceeding from the 
ala: of the leaves and of the fame length, fup- 
porting from three to five flowers. 
CALYX : the Umbel fimple. The Perianthium 
monophyllous, tubular, hairy, permanent, 
the mouth having five teeth, nearly equal, 
fig- !■ 
COROLLA papilionaceous: the Standard obcor- 
date, fcarcely emarginated, white, marked 
with red veins, jig. 2. Wings ovate, ftraight, 
white, fcarcely fo long as the ftandard, jg-3- 
Keel flattened, yellowilh, very minute, jig. 4. 
STAMINA: Filaments diadelp'hous, nine united, 
one Angle, jig. 5. Anthers fimple and 
yellowilh, jig. 6 . 
PISTILLUM : Germen linear, green; Style taper- 
ing, afcending; Stigma a terminal point, 
forming when magnified a little head, jig. 7. 
SEED-VESSEL : an awl-lhaped, round, bowed, jointed 
Pod with crofs divifions, feparating at the 
joints. Jig . 8, 9. 
SEEDS one in each joint, roundilh, jig. \o. 
The Ornithopus pe-rpujillus abounds on moft of the heaths and commons near London, efpecially where the 
foil is gravelly or iandy. 
It flowers from June to September. 
The beauty of its flowers when clofely examined, and the flriking fimilitude which the feed-vefiels bear to 
the claws of a bird, render it an objett highly deferving of attention. 
It varies greatly in point of fize; the little knobs adhering to the roots are common to plants of the leguminous 
kind. 
