Golden Bean / Thermopsis rhombifolia

A macro shot of an individual flower in a cluster of Golden Bean flowers, growing at Votier's Flats, Fish Creek Park. This is one of our earliest spring flowers and they are everywhere at the moment, splashing the landscape with vibrant colour.

"It is also called the Buffalo Bean. It was named the Buffalo Bean by Blackfoot because this flower bloomed as the buffalo moved to their summer grazing grounds." From the Cross Conservation Area.

"A member of the pea family, it grows in grassland, hillsides, and patchy woodland areas to a height of about 30 cm, and produces bright yellow golden flowers about a centimetre long. The flowers were commonly used by the natives as a source of yellow dye and were boiled in a tea as a cure for stomach ailments for people and horses. The plant has toxic properties if ingested; symptoms of poisoning include vomiting, dizziness, and abdominal pain." From Wikipedia.