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Galactia smallii
Also called Small's Milk Pea
Galactia smallii is a rare species of flowering plant in the legume family known by the common name Small's milkpea. It is endemic to Florida, where it is known only from a few small patches of remaining habitat in Miami-Dade County. It is threatened by the destruction and inadequate management of its habitat. It was federally listed as an endangered species of the United States in 1985.
This species grows in Florida's pine rockland habitat, an increasingly rare type of ecosystem dominated by the slash pine (Pinus elliottii). The trees are narrow and the canopy is open, providing sunlight to the understory. Among the pines are over 100 species of trees, including many palms, and a diverse array of herbs, including many rare and endemic species. The habitat is maintained by a natural fire regime of periodic wildfire which prevents the succession of the pine rockland to a hammock ecosystem. Fire clears overgrown tall and woody vegetation to maintain the characteristic open canopy. Less than 2% of the pine rocklands of Florida remain today.
Erect Milkpea · Elliott's milkpea · Erect milkpea · Soft milkpea · Eastern milkpea · Galactia tenuiflora · Downy milkpea · Milkpea
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Galactia smallii by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts are shared under the same licence.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
