Caesalpinia gilliesii (Wall. ex Hook.) Wall. ex D. Dietr.
Yellow bird-of-paradise, desert bird-of-paradise, bird-of-paradise shrub
The yellow bird-of-paradise is a small tree or shrub, originally from Argentina. The plant has become naturalized through much of the American southwest. It is popular as an ornamental plant. See also the red bird-of-paradise.
Plants: Plants are as high as 10′ (3 m), spreading 4–6′ (1.2–1.8 m).
Leaves: bipinnate—in opposing groups of opposing groups. They are 4–6″ (10–15 cm) long, with 3-10 pairs of pinnae. Each of those, in turn, has 6-10 pairs of leaflets ~3/16 ⨉ 1/16–⅛″ (5–6 ⨉ 2–4 mm).
Flowers: Racemes of flowers have five yellow petals and ten long thin red stamens.
Fruits: Curled fuzzy tan pods, dense with red hairs, have 8-10 seeds. The pods dry and explode, spreading the seeds.
Habitats: Disturbed areas, roadsides, and gravelly areas in arid climates.
By Stan Shebs 
Online References:
Poinciana gilliesii Wall. ex Hook.
5/24/2009 · Kaylors, Peoria, Arizona · ≈ 3½ × 6″ (9.4 × 14 cm) 
| Kingdom | Plantae | Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae (from Stearn's Botanical Latin) |
| Subkingdom | Tracheobionta | Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients |
| Division | Magnoliophyta | Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms |
| Class | Magnoliopsida | Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves |
| Subclass | Rosidae | Roses, legumes, proteas, dogwoods, hydrangeas, mistletoes, euphorbias, grapes, many more |
| Order | Fabales | Legumes (pea and bean families) |
| Family | Fabaceae | Legume family (peas and beans) |
| Genus | Caesalpinia | Named after Andrea Cesalpino (1519-1603) of Italy |
| Species | gilliesii | Several sources say it was named for John Gillies, an early 19th century botanist in Argentina; but the Darwin Correspondence Online Database has a reference to a John Gillies (1792-1834) who was a naval surgeon who went to Buenos Aires in 1820 and collected plants in Chile and Argentina, returning to Scotland in 1829 |
Caesalpinia gilliesii description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.
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