Erodium cicutarium
Encyclopedia
Erodium cicutarium, also known as Redstem filaree, Common Stork's-bill, is an herbaceous annual
, and in warm climates a biennial
member of the Geranium Family
of flowering plant
s. It is native to the Mediterranean Basin
and was introduced to North America
in the eighteenth century,
where it has since become invasive, particularly of the deserts
and arid
grasslands of the southwestern United States
. The seeds of this annual are a species collected by various species of harvester ants
.
The entire plant is edible with a flavor similar to sharp parsley if picked young. The plant is widespread across North America. The plant grows as an annual in the northern half of North America. In the Southern areas of North America, the plant tends to grow as a biennial with a more erect habit and with much larger leaves, flowers and fruits. It flowers from May until August.
It is a hairy, sticky annual. The stems bear bright pink flowers, arranged in loose cluster, and often have dark spots on the bases. The leaves are pinnate and fern-like, and the long seed-pod, shaped very much like the bill of a stork, bursts open in a spiral when ripe, sending the seeds (which have little feathery parachutes attached) into the air.
Seed launch is accomplished using a spring mechanism powered by shape changes as the fruits dry
. The spiral shape of the awn can unwind during daily changes in humidity, leading to self-burial of the seeds once they are on the ground. The two tasks (springy launch and self-burial) are accomplished with the same tissue (the awn), which is hygroscopically active and warps upon wetting and also gives rise to the draggy hairs on the awn.
Common stork's-bill can be found in bare, sandy, grassy places both inland and around the coasts. It is a food plant for the larvae of the Brown Argus
butterfly. According to John Lovell's "Honey Plants of North America" 1926, "the pink flowers are a valuable source of honey (nectar), and also furnish much pollen".
Annual plant
An annual plant is a plant that usually germinates, flowers, and dies in a year or season. True annuals will only live longer than a year if they are prevented from setting seed...
, and in warm climates a biennial
Biennial plant
A biennial plant is a flowering plant that takes two years to complete its biological lifecycle. In the first year the plant grows leaves, stems, and roots , then it enters a period of dormancy over the colder months. Usually the stem remains very short and the leaves are low to the ground, forming...
member of the Geranium Family
Geraniaceae
Geraniaceae is a family of flowering plants placed in the order Geraniales. The family name is derived from the genus Geranium. It includes both the genus Geranium and the garden plants called geraniums, which modern botany classifies as genus Pelargonium, along with other related genera.There are...
of flowering plant
Flowering plant
The flowering plants , also known as Angiospermae or Magnoliophyta, are the most diverse group of land plants. Angiosperms are seed-producing plants like the gymnosperms and can be distinguished from the gymnosperms by a series of synapomorphies...
s. It is native to the Mediterranean Basin
Mediterranean Basin
In biogeography, the Mediterranean Basin refers to the lands around the Mediterranean Sea that have a Mediterranean climate, with mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers, which supports characteristic Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub vegetation...
and was introduced to North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
in the eighteenth century,
where it has since become invasive, particularly of the deserts
Déserts
Déserts is a piece by Edgard Varèse for brass , percussion , piano, and tape. Percussion instruments are exploited for their resonant potential, rather than used solely as accompaniment...
and arid
Arid
A region is said to be arid when it is characterized by a severe lack of available water, to the extent of hindering or even preventing the growth and development of plant and animal life...
grasslands of the southwestern United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The seeds of this annual are a species collected by various species of harvester ants
Harvester ant
Ants known as Harvester ants include:species*Red harvester ant *Florida harvester ant *Maricopa harvester ant , the most venomous insect in the world....
.
The entire plant is edible with a flavor similar to sharp parsley if picked young. The plant is widespread across North America. The plant grows as an annual in the northern half of North America. In the Southern areas of North America, the plant tends to grow as a biennial with a more erect habit and with much larger leaves, flowers and fruits. It flowers from May until August.
It is a hairy, sticky annual. The stems bear bright pink flowers, arranged in loose cluster, and often have dark spots on the bases. The leaves are pinnate and fern-like, and the long seed-pod, shaped very much like the bill of a stork, bursts open in a spiral when ripe, sending the seeds (which have little feathery parachutes attached) into the air.
Seed launch is accomplished using a spring mechanism powered by shape changes as the fruits dry
. The spiral shape of the awn can unwind during daily changes in humidity, leading to self-burial of the seeds once they are on the ground. The two tasks (springy launch and self-burial) are accomplished with the same tissue (the awn), which is hygroscopically active and warps upon wetting and also gives rise to the draggy hairs on the awn.
Common stork's-bill can be found in bare, sandy, grassy places both inland and around the coasts. It is a food plant for the larvae of the Brown Argus
Brown Argus
The Brown Argus is a butterfly in the family Lycaenidae.-Appearance, behaviour and distribution:Although one of the "Blues" both sexes are brown on the uppersides with a band of orange spots at the border of each wing...
butterfly. According to John Lovell's "Honey Plants of North America" 1926, "the pink flowers are a valuable source of honey (nectar), and also furnish much pollen".