Medicago orbicularis (L.) Bartal.
Diagnostic description:
A hairless or sparsely hairy annual. Stems decumbent or ascending; 10 to 70 cm long. Leaves trifoliate; leaflets 5 to 20 mm long, obovate to wedge-shaped, toothed at the apex. Stipules deeply cut into slender teeth. Flowers yellow, 2 to 5 mm long; solitary or in clusters of up to 5. Pedicels 1 to 3.5 cm long; awned. Seed pods hairless, pale green, turning brown, disc-shaped, 10 to 18 mm diameter; spirally coiled with 3 to 6 turns; without spines.
Distribution:
Local: Rare in Gibraltar. Found in scattered places on the Upper Rock and in cultivated plots, on imported soil.
Global: Grows in cultivated and grassy places; waysides. Found throughout the Mediterranean region and the Canary Islands.
Ecology:
Flowers from March, April to May (June).