Ononis viscosa L. subsp. breviflora (D.C.) Nyman
Family: LEGUMINOSAE
Genus: Ononis
Catalan common name: Botgeta.
Spanish common name: Melosa.
Province distribution: Alacant. Balearic Islands. Barcelona. València.
Distribution in the islands: Mallorca. Menorca. Ibiza. Formentera.
General distribution (Phytogeography): West Mediterranean
IUCN Category: Least concern
Flowering time: JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Life-forms: Terophyte.
Habitats: Cultivated fields, path and road sides, disturbed zones. Pine wood and shrubland with rosemary and thyme garigue. Therophytic calicole fields. Fields, path and road sides. Pine woods.
Characteristics: An annual cycle herb, although it can reach half a metre in height, it is generally small. Like all the species of the Ononis genus it has composite leaves with clearly dentate leaflets; in this case the upper and lower leaves only have one leaflet, whereas the others are trifoliate. All the leaves have a kind of wing at the base. A distinctive feature to distinguish it is the floral leaf-stalk which is very short but extended with an awn many times longer than the leaf-stalk. The flowers are yellow and as long as the calyx. It can be distinguished from Ononis ornithopodioides, which is viscous to the touch and has yellow flowers, because the leaves of the latter do not have a wing at their base, they are only stipulate. Moreover, the fruit clearly shows the presence of seeds (torulose) whereas in Ononis viscosa the fruit is clearly cylindrical. It flowers at the end of spring.