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Yellow Vetchling

Lathyrus aphaca

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Not native

Not native to Louisiana. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 24%

At a glance

Not yet recorded · Height · Spread · Light · Soil · Life cycle · Leaves · Bloom

This plant is missing most of its facts, so Quercus is looking them up in old botany books.

Recorded in 5 Louisiana parishes.

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

16CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including LA

Genus host records with ranges including LA · Lathyrus

  • Apantesis phylliraPhyllira Tiger Moth
  • Cecropterus pyladesNorthern Cloudywing
  • Chloridea virescensTobacco Budworm Moth
  • Chrysodeixis includensSoybean Looper Moth
  • Colias eurythemeOrange Sulphur, Alfalfa Butterfly
  • Colias philodiceClouded Sulphur, Clover Butterfly
  • Cupido comyntasEastern Tailed-Blue
  • Elasmopalpus lignosellaLesser Cornstalk Borer
  • Epargyreus clarusSilver-Spotted Skipper
  • Gesta juvenalisJuvenal's Duskywing
Show all 16
  • Helicoverpa zeaCorn Earworm Moth
  • Heliothis phloxiphagaSpotted Straw Sun Moth, Darker Spotted Straw Moth
  • Spodoptera albulaWhite-Spotted Armyworm, Gray-Streaked Armyworm
  • Spodoptera eridaniaSouthern Armyworm Moth
  • Trichoplusia niNi Moth, Cabbage Looper Moth
  • Urbanus proteusLong-Tailed Skipper, Bean Leaf Roller
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
—BeesSoutheastern regional records
1Specialist beesPollen specialists

Pollen specialists · Lathyrus

  • 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
2BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

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

  • Agelaius phoeniceusRed-winged Blackbird
  • Callipepla californicaCalifornia Quail
Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Fabaceae

What its natural habitat tells you

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

Also known as

Yellow Pea; Yellow Vetch

Conservation status

Louisiana rankSNA
Global rankNot available
LA statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source

Native alternatives

Find natives for your garden

Sources