Psoralea sordida on the Swartberg

Psoralea sordida is one of the about 50 South African Psoralea species. This photo was taken in the Swartberg, the range that separates the Little Karoo from the Great Karoo that lies to the north of it. About a third of all Psoralea species occur in the Little Karoo. Seen near the roadside of the yet untarred Swartberg Pass, where frequent stopping for admiring the view is a common and recommended habit.

Much seemed to have happened in the evolution of Psoralea in the 2 million years of its existence, including hybridisation. The Little Karoo will probably feature in new knowledge about this interesting genus, likely to emerge not too far into the future (iSpot; Vlok and Schutte-Vlok, 2010).