Taxon: Calliandra eriophylla Benth.

Summary

Genus:

Calliandra

Family:

Fabaceae (alt. Leguminosae)

Subfamily:

Caesalpinioideae

Tribe:

Ingeae

Nomen number:

8505

Place of publication:

London J. Bot. 3:105. 1844

Verified:

12/08/1998 ARS Systematic Botanists.

Accessions:

14 (2 active, 0 available) in National Plant Germplasm System. (Map it)

Other conspecific taxa

Autonyms (not in current use), synonyms and invalid designations

Images (1 total. Click on image for more.)

Conservation Status

Reference(s)

Barneby, R. C. 1998. Silk tree, guanacaste, monkey's earring: a generic system for the synandrous Mimosaceae of the Americas. Part III. Calliandra. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 74(3):44.
Delorit, R. J. & C. R. Gunn. 1986. Seeds of continental United States legumes (Fabaceae)
Huxley, A., ed. 1992. The new Royal Horticultural Society dictionary of gardening
Isely, D. 1973. Leguminosae of the United States: I. Subfamily Mimosoideae. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 25(1):79.
Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium. 1976. Hortus third. A concise dictionary of plants cultivated in the United States and Canada
McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
Rico, L. & T. Pennington. 2012. Review of Fabaceae Neotropical Mimosoideae data for World Economic Plants, ed. 2. pers. comm.
Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:559-902.

Common names

Language	Name	seq	Citation
English	fairy-duster	1	Delorit, R. J. & C. R. Gunn. 1986. Seeds of continental United States legumes (Fabaceae)
English	mock mesquite	1	Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium. 1976. Hortus third. A concise dictionary of plants cultivated in the United States and Canada
Spanish	gatillo	2	Rico, L. & T. Pennington. 2012. Review of Fabaceae Neotropical Mimosoideae data for World Economic Plants, ed. 2. pers. comm.
Spanish	mesquitella	2	Delorit, R. J. & C. R. Gunn. 1986. Seeds of continental United States legumes (Fabaceae)
Spanish	rama mansa	2	Rico, L. & T. Pennington. 2012. Review of Fabaceae Neotropical Mimosoideae data for World Economic Plants, ed. 2. pers. comm.

Distribution

order_code	Status	Continent	Subcontinent	Country	State	Note	Reference
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Baja California (Norte)	n.	McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Baja California Sur		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:559-902.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Chihuahua		McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Coahuila de Zaragoza		McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Durango		McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Nuevo León		McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	San Luis Potosí		McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Sinaloa		McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Sonora	n. & w.	McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Tamaulipas	s.w.	McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Zacatecas		McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	South-Central U.S.A.	United States	New Mexico	s.w.	Barneby, R. C. 1998. Silk tree, guanacaste, monkey's earring: a generic system for the synandrous Mimosaceae of the Americas. Part III. Calliandra. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 74(3):44.
1	Native	Northern America	South-Central U.S.A.	United States	Texas		Barneby, R. C. 1998. Silk tree, guanacaste, monkey's earring: a generic system for the synandrous Mimosaceae of the Americas. Part III. Calliandra. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 74(3):44.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Aguascalientes		McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Chiapas		McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Colima		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:559-902.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Guanajuato		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:559-902.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Guerrero		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:559-902.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Hidalgo		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:559-902.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Jalisco		McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	México		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:559-902.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Morelos		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:559-902.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Nayarit		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:559-902.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Oaxaca		McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Puebla		McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Querétaro		McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:559-902.
1	Native	Northern America	Southwestern U.S.A.	United States	Arizona	s.	Barneby, R. C. 1998. Silk tree, guanacaste, monkey's earring: a generic system for the synandrous Mimosaceae of the Americas. Part III. Calliandra. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 74(3):44.
1	Native	Northern America	Southwestern U.S.A.	United States	California	s.	Barneby, R. C. 1998. Silk tree, guanacaste, monkey's earring: a generic system for the synandrous Mimosaceae of the Americas. Part III. Calliandra. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 74(3):44.
2	Cultivated					also cult.

Native
Northern America

SOUTH-CENTRAL U.S.A.: United States [New Mexico (s.w.), Texas]
SOUTHWESTERN U.S.A.: United States [Arizona (s.), California (s.)]
NORTHERN MEXICO: Mexico [Chihuahua, Coahuila de Zaragoza, Durango, Nuevo León, San Luis Potosí, Sinaloa, Sonora (n. & w.), Tamaulipas (s.w.), Zacatecas, Baja California (Norte) (n.), Baja California Sur]
SOUTHERN MEXICO: Mexico [Aguascalientes, Chiapas, Colima, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, México, Morelos, Nayarit, Oaxaca, Puebla, Querétaro, Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave]

Cultivated (also cult.)

Reference(s)

Barneby, R. C. 1998. Silk tree, guanacaste, monkey's earring: a generic system for the synandrous Mimosaceae of the Americas. Part III. Calliandra. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 74(3):44.
McVaugh, R. 1983-. Flora Novo-Galiciana.
Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:559-902.

Economic Uses

Usage	Type	Note	Reference
Environmental	ornamental		Huxley, A., ed. 1992. The new Royal Horticultural Society dictionary of gardening
Environmental	ornamental		Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium. 1976. Hortus third. A concise dictionary of plants cultivated in the United States and Canada

Cite as: USDA, Agricultural Research Service, National Plant Germplasm System. 2026. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN Taxonomy). National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland.
URL: https://npgstest.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/taxon/taxonomydetail?id=8505. Accessed 17 April 2026.