Tephrosia 
FABACEAE 
14. Leaflets <4 mm wide, filiform to narrowly oblanceolate; 
seeds 6-9 in pod; flowers in terminal and axillary pseudoracemes ........ssesserseeeeeeseeees 
14. Leaflets >4 mm wide, oblanceolate or elliptic; seeds 9-13 in pod; 
flowers in axillary fascicles and/or terminal pseudoracemes 
15. Inflorescences <60 mm long, few-flowered, rachis filiform ..... 
15. Inflorescences usually >60 mm long, many-flowered, rachis 
slender butinotifiliformEtecrsssretessrtsiesecseersscensercrereet testers 
16. Standard <6 mm long; pod <35 mm long; seeds <3 mm long... 
16. Standard >6 mm long; pod >35 mm long; seeds >3 mm long... 
T. subpectinata 
T. spechtii 
T. filipes 
16 
T. remotiflora 
T. brachyodon 
105 
T. brachyodon Domin var. longifolia (Benth.) Domin 
T. purpurea (L.) Pers. var. longifolia Benth. 
An erect annual or short-lived perennial shrub 0.5- 
1.5 m tall. All parts with sparse adpressed white hairs, 
inflorescence parts sometimes sericeous. Stipules 
setaceous, 4-8 mm long. Leaves oblong in outline; 
rachis to basal leaflets 8-18(28) mm, 35-120(170) mm 
overall; leaflets in (2)5-7(11) pairs, discolorous, 
narrowly oblanceolate to very narrowly elliptic, 20- 
55(65) mm long, 2-8 mm wide, L/W 4-28, 2° veins 
closely spaced, numerous, c. 30 degrees to midrib, 3° 
veins + obscure, base cuneate, apex emarginate, 
obtuse or acute. Inflorescences leaf-opposed, 
racemose, 170-370(500) mm long, flowers 1-3 per 
node; bracts caducous, setaceous, 1-4 mm long. 
Pedicels 5-9 mm long. Calyx 2-5 mm long. Corolla 
purple or mauve; standard 6-9 mm long. Pod pale 
brown, linear, upcurved toward apex, turgid, 35-50 
mm long, 3.5-4.5 mm wide, beak marginal, straight. 
Seeds 5-10, centres > pod width apart, weakly mottled, 
pale brown to olivaceous, subcylindrical to oblong, 
3-5 mm long, 2-3 mm wide; caruncle <0.5 mm; hilum 
central. Flowering: Dec - Apr; fruiting: Mar - July. 
Fig. 30 
A widespread, variable species occurring across 
tropical Australia, mostly south of 15° S. In the DR 
known only from Mt Bundey where it occurs on well 
drained coarse sandy soils derived from granite. 
Commonly on soils of coarse texture in a variety of 
habitats. Seeds of the DR form are subcylindrical and 
longer than those from the southern Gulf of 
Carpentaria. 
T. coriacea Benth. 
An erect perennial shrub to 1 m tall, often with 
annual above ground parts. All parts sparsely to 
densely sericeous with white or hyaline hairs, the 
leaves almost glabrous to thinly sericeous above, the 
pod sometimes tomentose. Stipules setaceous to 
filiform, 4-12 mm long. Leaves 1-foliolate, less often 
pinnately 3-foliolate; rachis to basal leaflets (4)17- 
31(42) mm, 4-72 mm overall; leaflets discolorous, 
elliptic, obovate or broadly ovate, 31-76 mm long, 
11-41 mm wide, L/W 1.4-3.1, 2° veins c. 45 degrees 
to midrib, 3° veins reticulate, base rounded, apex 
obtuse or emarginate. Inflorescences axillary, 
fasciculate, rarely also terminal and racemose to 100 
mm long, flowers 1-4 per node; bracts caducous, 
setaceous, c. 2 mm long. Pedicels 2-4 mm long. Calyx 
4-5 mm long; lobes acute to acuminate. Corolla 
orange; standard 6-9 mm long. Pod stramineous, 
linear-oblong, curved toward apex, flattened, raised 
over seeds, 32-45 mm long, 5-6 mm wide, beak 
marginal, straight. Seeds 5-6, centres > pod width 
apart, mottled pale and dark brown and black, oblong, 
3.5-4.5 mm long, 2.5-3.5 mm wide; caruncle small, 
white, annular. Flowering: Jan - Apr; fruiting: Mar - 
Apr. Fig. 30 
Occurs in the Kimberley, VRD and western Top 
End on sandstone ridges and plateaus. Known in 
the DR from Litchfield NP and from sandstone 
hills south of Adelaide River. This species, 
T. lamproloboides and T. “Hayes Ck” are closely 
related and specimens with intermediate characters 
sometimes occur. 
T. filipes Benth. 
An erect or prostrate annual or perennial herb to 
50 cm tall. All parts with a sparse indumentum of 
adpressed white hairs, the leaves glabrous above. 
Stipules setaceous, c. 3 mm long. Leaves oblong in 
overall shape; rachis to basal leaflets 0.5-6 mm long, 
1.5-30 mm overall; leaflets in 1-5(8) pairs, 
discolorous, narrowly lanceolate, narrowly elliptic, 
linear or filiform, 7-30(40) mm long, 1.3-2 mm wide, 
L/W 3.5-20(28), 2° veins red or green below, closely 
spaced, c. 15 degrees to midrib, 3° veins obscure, base 
narrowly cuneate, apex acute, mucro + oblique. 
Inflorescences leaf-opposed, racemose, unbranched, 
few flowered, to 60 mm long, flowers 1-2 per node, 
rachis filiform; bracts persistent, setaceous, c. 2 mm 
long. Pedicels c. 2 mm:long. Calyx 2-3 mm long. 
Corolla mauve or pink; standard c. 6 mm long. Pod 
stramineous to pale brown, linear, slightly curved 
toward apex, turgid, 20-25 mm long, 3-3.5 mm wide, 
beak marginal, straight. Seeds 6-8, centres c. pod 
