No images found for this plant ID: 13055.
Ensure images are uploaded to the Media Library and tagged with "13055" in the "plant_image_tag" taxonomy.
gulf coast swallow-wort
Scientific Name: Cynanchum angustifolium
Family: Asclepiadaceae
Category: Dicot
Growth: Vine, Forb/herb
Duration: Perennial
Other Names:
Gulf Coast Swallow-wort (Cynanchum angustifolium)
Cynanchum angustifolium, commonly known as Gulf Coast Swallow-wort, is a native vine found along the Gulf Coast of the United States.
Considerations for Pets
- This plant is a member of the milkweed family (Asclepiadaceae/Apocynaceae).
- It's a climbing vine, which may present a hazard if pets become entangled.
Scientific Classification
- Scientific Name: Cynanchum angustifolium Pers.
- Common Name: Gulf Coast Swallow-wort
- Synonym: Seutera angustifolia (mentioned as a previous name in the provided text)
- Family: Asclepiadaceae (also listed as Apocynaceae in the text, a more recent classification)
- Kingdom: Plantae
- Taxonomic Rank: Species
Distribution and Habitat
- Found along the Gulf Coast (AL, FL, GA).
- Grows in dunes, salt marshes, coastal hammocks, brackish areas, and along roadsides.
Ecological Role
- May suppress native plants by shading them when growing in masses.
- The text mentions the dependence of the invasive nonnative vine pale swallow-wort on AMF (arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi), suggesting a potential influence on coastal transition ecosystems along the northern Gulf of Mexico.
Morphological Characteristics
- Climbing vine.
- Long flower stalks and notched inner flower structures (based on partial sentence and context).
- Seed pods are produced.
Interactions with Other Organisms
- Serves as a nectar source for insects.
- Host plant for caterpillars.
- Monarch butterflies may lay eggs on swallow-wort species (though the text is referencing other species of swallow-wort).
- Thread-waisted wasps (Sphecidae family, Prionyx) drink nectar from its blooms.
Landscape Uses
- Primarily recommended for natural landscapes and habitat restorations.
- Suitable for butterfly gardens in wet, brackish areas along the coast.
Resources and Further Information
- Discover Life: Offers information on biology, natural history, ecology, identification, and distribution.
- Dave's Garden: A community-based gardening website.
- National Wetland Plant List.
- Aquatic and Wetland Plants of the Western Gulf Coast (Stuyzenbaker, 1999).
- USDA Plants Database (mentioned as "Sce: USDA").
- World Register of Marine Species (mentioned as "Sce: World Register of Marine Species").