Trifolium microcephalum
species of plant
Trifolium microcephalum is a species of clover known by the common names smallhead clover and small-headed clover.
Description
Trifolium microcephalum is an annual herb taking a decumbent or erect form. It is coated in hairs. The leaves are made up of oval leaflets with notched tips, each measuring up to 2 centimeters (3⁄4 in) long, and bristle-tipped stipules.
The inflorescence is a head of flowers borne in a bowl-like involucre of wide, hairy bracts. The head is not more than 1 cm wide. Each flower has a calyx of sepals with lobes narrowing into hairy bristles. The flower corolla is pinkish or purplish and measures 4 to 7 millimeters (1⁄8 to 1⁄4 in) in length.
Distribution and habitat
It is native to western North America from southern Alaska and British Columbia to California, Montana, Arizona, and Baja California, where it occurs in many types of habitat, becoming common to abundant in some regions. It can grow in disturbed habitat and become a casual roadside weed.
The public source identifies “Trifolium microcephalum” as species of plant. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Trifolium, microcephalum and species.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Trifolium microcephalum”, the useful work is to connect “species of plant” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
The date and method of observation matter as much as the stated conclusion, especially where classification or consensus has changed. The source revision retrieved here is dated Apr 11, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q7841543. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
Current terminology should not be projected backward without checking the classification used when the underlying evidence was created. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
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Primary datasets, specimen catalogues, standards bodies and the most recent peer-reviewed literature.
Three-step research path
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Questions for further research
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This entry incorporates text from “Trifolium microcephalum” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.