Screwbean mesquite

Prosopis pubescens

Deciduous leguminous shrub to tree with spines, 20-30 ft. tall with dense cluster-spikes of small yellow flowers, blooming April to October. Named for its coiled seed pods. Prefers well-drained soils but adapted to a wide range of sand to heavy clay textures in moderately saline to alkaline floodplains, creek bottoms and washes within desert riparian, woodland and scrub habitats; up to 5,500 ft. elevation. Drought tolerant yet also survives months of flooding. Sometimes a dominant species, but also often associated with Velvet mesquite (P. velutina) Creosote bush (Larrea tridentata), wolfberries (Lycium spp.), White bursage (Ambrosia dumosa), Fourwing saltbush (Atriplex canescens), Quailbush (A. lentiformis), Desert saltbush (A. polycarpa), Blue palo verde (Parkinsonia florida) and Skunkbrush sumac (Rhus aromatica). Good cover and nesting for birds and small mammals and leaves and sweet pods are browsed by livestock and numerous wildlife. Caterpillar host and nectar source for Palmer's metalmark butterfly.