DESCRIPTION

The Cretan trefoil can exist in different forms, depending on the habitat. Its most important quality is that it is covered in grey or whitish trichomes (small hair). Stems can be up to 70 cm tall and they are usually lying on the sand. They have a lot of branches. As this is a leguminous plant, leaves appear in groups of five called leaflet (foliole). Flowers are small, yellow and bear a fruit in the shape of a long legume.

DISTRIBUTION AND HABITAT

This species’ typical habitat are meadows and thicket on sandy beaches and dunes (moving dunes), very dry and salty soils which stretch from the sea level up to the altitude of 50 m.

HOW THEY LIVE

Considering the rough conditions in which these plants live, they can adapt to long periods of draught, strong winds and high levels of salinity. The plants that live on the dunes and sand are perfectly adapted to this environment and can colonize moving substrata, as well as those that easily filter water. Cretan trefoils have a net of roots and cover the ground with their stems, which holds the sand steady and helps the growth of other plants by making the environment stabler.

WHERE THEY CAN BE SEEN IN MÁLAGA

They are distributed all over the Mediterranean. On the coast of Málaga, they can be found everywhere where beaches are sandy and wide enough for them to grow. They are more common on the western coast.

INTERESTING FACTS

Their ashen appearance is due to tough conditions and a long sunlight exposure on beaches. It is their way to protect from the sun, and allows them to project the unnecessary light they receive and avoid loss of water as vapour.
This species can be used as food by many herbivore animals, such as rabbits.

SIMILAR SPECIES

Species that are from the legume family are common on this coast. They mix and can be confused one with another in the areas with plenty of vegetation. However, not all of them have trichomes that are typical of the above species. There is one plant that is difficult to be told apart from this species and it is called coastal medick or sea medick (Medicago marina), but unlikely the Cretan trefoil, it has a rolled-up fruit.