Quercus

Lentil Vetch

Vicia tetrasperma

Not native to Kentucky

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

17CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including KY

Genus host records with ranges including KY · Vicia

  • Anicla illapsaSnowy Dart
  • Archips argyrospilaFruit-Tree Leafroller Moth
  • Caenurgia chlorophaVetch Looper Moth
  • Cecropterus pyladesNorthern Cloudywing
  • Colias eurythemeOrange Sulphur, Alfalfa Butterfly
  • Colias philodiceClouded Sulphur, Clover Butterfly
  • Cupido comyntasEastern Tailed-Blue
  • Elasmopalpus lignosellaLesser Cornstalk Borer
  • Gesta baptisiaeWild Indigo Duskywing, Baptisia Duskywing
  • Glaucopsyche lygdamusSilvery Blue
Show all 17
  • Helicoverpa zeaCorn Earworm Moth
  • Hypena scabraGreen Cloverworm Bomolocha, Black Snout
  • Mocis latipesSmall Mocis, Striped Grass Looper
  • Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
  • Strymon melinusGray Hairstreak
  • Urbanus proteusLong-Tailed Skipper, Bean Leaf Roller
  • Micrurapteryx occulta
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
—BeesSoutheastern regional records
1Specialist beesPollen specialists

Pollen specialists · Vicia

  • Megachile melanophaea
Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
10BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Vicia

  • Bonasa umbellusRuffed Grouse
  • Callipepla californicaCalifornia Quail
  • Colinus virginianusNorthern Bobwhite
  • Columbina passerinaCommon Ground Dove
  • Cyrtonyx montezumaeMontezuma Quail
  • Francolinus francolinusBlack Francolin
  • Meleagris gallopavoWild Turkey
  • Oreortyx pictusMountain Quail
  • Perdix perdixGray Partridge
  • Zenaida macrouraMourning Dove
Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)
Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Fabaceae

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Lentil Vetch; Slender Vetch

Conservation status

Kentucky rankSNA
Global rankGNR
KY statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

Native alternatives

Find natives for your garden

Sources