# Spider Lupine (*Lupinus benthamii*)

Spider Lupine is a beautiful plant with bright blue flowers that look like little spiders! It grows in sunny places and is loved by bees and butterflies.

- **Category:** [Plants](https://www.snappit.app/explore/categories/plant)
- **Rarity:** Common
- **Danger:** 1/5 · Very low
- **Habitat:** Grasslands

![Spider Lupine](https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Redirect/file/Lupinusbenthamii.jpg&width=800)

Photo: Unknown author Unknown author, Public domain · [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lupinusbenthamii.jpg)

## Appearance

The Spider Lupine has tall, slender stems topped with dense spikes of vibrant violet-blue, pea-like flowers. Its distinctive leaves are palmately divided into 7-11 narrow, hairy leaflets, radiating like spokes from a central point.

## Taxonomy

- **Kingdom:** Plantae
- **Phylum:** Tracheophyta
- **Class:** Magnoliopsida
- **Order:** Fabales
- **Family:** Fabaceae
- **Genus:** Lupinus

## Interesting facts

- Its common name "Lupine" means "wolf-like," but this plant actually helps enrich the soil!
- Its leaves can fold up at night, performing a "sleeping" trick until the sun rises again!
- Some ancient peoples learned to prepare its seeds, turning them into a food source!
- The beautiful flowers are like special landing strips, guiding buzzing bees right to their nectar.

## Special abilities

- **Nitrogen Ninja:** Spider Lupine has tiny helpers in its roots that can "fix" nitrogen from the air, enriching the soil for other plants.
- **Bitter Bite:** Spider Lupine can produce special bitter chemicals called alkaloids, which make it taste bad to hungry animals, protecting itself.
- **Seed Sprinter:** When its seed pods dry, they can explosively twist open, flinging seeds several feet away to find new homes.

## Measurements & details

- **Height:** 20-60 cm
- **Spread:** 15-30 cm
- **Flower Size:** 1-1.5 cm
- **Bloom Season:** Spring-early summer
- **Edible:** No
- **Toxicity:** Moderate
- **Lifecycle:** Annual
- **Pollination Method:** Insect

## Ecological connections

- **Pollinates:** Yellow-faced Bumblebee (*Bombus vosnesenskii*) — Sips nectar, carrying pollen to other flowers.
- **Symbiotic with:** Nitrogen-fixing bacteria (*Rhizobium leguminosarum*) — Lives in roots, helping create soil nutrients.
- **Depends on:** Lupine Blue butterfly (*Plebejus lupini*) — Its caterpillars munch on the leaves to grow big.
- **Eaten by:** [Mule Deer](https://www.snappit.app/explore/mule-deer) (*Odocoileus hemionus*) — May browse leaves despite their bitter taste.

## Traits

- [Herbaceous](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/herbaceous): Herbaceous plants are non-woody plants with soft stems that typically die back to the ground at the end of the growing season.
- [Flowering](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/flowering): Flowering plants are any plants that produce flowers as part of their reproductive cycle.
- [Nitrogen Fixing](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/nitrogen-fixing): Describes organisms capable of converting atmospheric nitrogen into compounds usable by plants.
- [Spring Blooming](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/spring-blooming): Spring blooming plants produce their flowers during the spring season, often signifying the end of winter and the start of new growth.
- [Colorful](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/colorful): Colorful describes organisms or objects displaying a wide range of bright and distinct colors.
- [Grassland](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/grassland): Grassland habitats are terrestrial biomes dominated by grasses and herbaceous plants, supporting a variety of grazing animals.
- [Pollinator Magnet](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/pollinator-magnet): Describes plants that are particularly attractive and beneficial to a wide range of pollinating organisms.

## Collections

- [Plants](https://www.snappit.app/explore/collections/plants)

## Safety

**Danger:** 1/5 · Very low

Always look but don't touch plants without asking an adult first.

## Frequently Asked Questions

### How to identify Spider Lupine?

Start with the whole plant, then compare leaf arrangement, leaf edges, stems and any flowers or fruit. Opposite leaves grow in pairs; alternate leaves come one at a time along the stem. These details tell you far more together than a single green leaf does. Plant Identifier: upload a photo and compare the visible details.

### How tall is Spider Lupine?

20-60 cm

### How wide does Spider Lupine spread?

15-30 cm

### How big are the flowers on Spider Lupine?

1-1.5 cm

### When does Spider Lupine bloom?

Spring-early summer

### Is Spider Lupine edible?

No

### Is Spider Lupine toxic?

Moderate

### What is Spider Lupine's lifecycle?

Annual

## More Plants

- [white snakeroot](https://www.snappit.app/explore/white-snakeroot) (*Ageratina altissima*)
- [tree-of-heaven](https://www.snappit.app/explore/tree-of-heaven) (*Ailanthus altissima*)
- [western sword fern](https://www.snappit.app/explore/western-sword-fern) (*Polystichum munitum*)
- [common milkweed](https://www.snappit.app/explore/common-milkweed) (*Asclepias syriaca*)

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Source: [Spider Lupine: Facts & Places to See — Snappit](https://www.snappit.app/explore/spider-lupine)