Medicago polymorpha Linnaeus, Species Plantarum 2: 779, 1200. 1753.

"Habitat [p. 1200:] Europa australi." RCN: 5720.

Lectotype (Heyn in Bull. Res. Council Israel, Sect. D, Bot. 7: 163. 1959): Herb. Clifford: 378, Medicago 11 δ (BM-000646786) .

Current name: Medicago polymorpha L. ( Fabaceae: Faboideae).

Note: Shinners (in Rhodora 58: 5-7. 1956) provided an extensive discussion, concluding "[the name] is here typified by the element later named var. nigra ", but he cited no specimen or illustration to serve as the type. Heyn (1959) subsequently designated Clifford material as the type. However, Greuter (in Boissiera 13: 80. 1967) argued that an implicit typification by Krocker in 1790 meant that the name must be regarded as a nomen ambiguum. Lambinon (in Taxon 30: 363. 1981) subsequently proposed the rejection of the name but this was not approved by the Committee for Spermatophyta (in Taxon 35: 560. 1986).