Fauna
Plant · GBIF taxon 3912996

Trailing Fuzzy-bean

Strophostyles helvola

Also known as Amberique Bean, Annual Sand Bean, Trailing Wild Bean, Pink Wild Bean

Trailing fuzzy-bean sprawls across coastal sand dunes and riverbanks, binding loose sands with vigorous trailing stems and nitrogen-fixing root nodules. Its distinctive pinkish to greenish-purple blossoms possess an asymmetrical, twisted keel petal designed to dust visiting bumblebees with pollen. In late summer and autumn, the mature velvety pods dry out and split with sudden elastic force, flinging nutrient-dense seeds several meters away.

Climbing VineNitrogen-FixerWildflower
Trailing Fuzzy-bean reference1 / 7
Licensed reference(c) Dilrukshan Priyantha Wijesinghe, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Dilrukshan Priyantha Wijesinghe · cc-by
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Least ConcernConservation statusIUCN Red List categoriesLCNTVUENCREWEXLeast ConcernRed List categories, explained →
Key facts
Diet & prey
  • Photoautotrophic
Predators
  • Northern Bobwhite
  • White-tailed Deer
  • Wild Turkey
ThreatsCoastal development, shoreline hardening, invasive plant competition
HabitatsCoastal sand dunes, beaches, riverbanks, open woodlands, disturbed sandy soils
Life spanAnnual
Classification
  1. OrderFabales
  2. FamilyFabaceae
  3. GenusStrophostyles
  4. SpeciesStrophostyles helvola
Range & activity
Range data is not available yet.
Safe observation
Interaction riskLow
  1. Low
  2. Moderate
  3. High
  4. Very high
Why interaction risk is low
Wild legume pods have toxic look-alikes; never eat wild plants based on app identification alone.
Responsible observation
  • Finding along dunes: Search sunny, well-drained sandy shores and river margins from midsummer to early autumn when the trailing stems bloom.
  • Watching seed dispersal: Look closely at dark, mature pods on warm sunny days to witness the valves coil and flick seeds outward.
Related species
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