Facilitating the protection and restoration of species and ecosystems at risk on BC’s South Coast
Streambank lupine
Lupinus rivularis
Lupinus
rivularis
A member of the family Fabaceae (“pea”), this species is also referred to as “riverbank lupine.” Lupines as with most members of the pea family are adept at fixing nitrogen from the atmosphere into ammonia via “rhizobium-root nodule symbiosis.” Their root nodules host nitrogen fixing bacteria, fertilizing the soil for other plants. This adaption allows lupines to grow in poor soils as well as being pioneers in changing soil quality to support other plant species.
Height up to 60 cm. This herbaceous perennial carries spikes (racemes), of blue to lavender coloured flowers. Unlike many other species of lupine, the stems lack basal leaves. The alternate palmate leaves are divided into 6-9 leaflets, with the upper surface hairless and the underside bearing minute hairs. Seeds are produced in up to 5cm long pea-pod like structures which become blackened and hairy as they age. When fully mature, the pods split open explosively.
Download Species Fact Sheet in PDF
Status
Global Status:
G2G4
Provincial Status:
S1
SARA Status:
Endangered
BC List Status:
Red (Candidates for- Extirpated, Endangered, or Threatened status)
RESOURCES
For further information see:
A source for authoritative conservation information on thousands of plants and animals and hundreds of ecological communities in BC. From here connect to all provincial and federal recovery plans (including the SARA Registry), COSEWIC (Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada), Identified Wildlife guidance and conservation requirements for specific species and ecological communities of conservation concern impacted by forestry activities) and links to E-Flora and E-Fauna (the Electronic Atlas of the Plants and Wildlife of British Columbia).
A joint venture resource providing comprehensive information on a range of species and ecological communities specific to the Coast Region of BC (including the South, Central and North Coast, Vancouver Island and Haida Gwaii).
Environmental guidelines for urban and rural land development in BC.
Learn what species are at risk in your area, search by name, habitat type, regional district and forest district.
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