Native to Central and South America thrives in tropical and subtropical regions. This herbaceous perennial is a trailing or climbing legume that plays a role in agriculture, primarily as a forage crop and a green manure. The plant has small, pinkish-purple flowers and valued for its nitrogen-fixing capabilities, improving soil fertility and reducing the need for synthetic fertilizers. It’s used extensively in intercropping systems and as a companion plant in tropical agriculture, particularly with grasses, as it provides high-protein forage for livestock. In addition to its agricultural benefits, this species exhibits a sticky seed dispersal mechanism, often attaching to animals and spreading across fields, which has occasionally led to its classification as invasive outside its native range, particularly in parts of Africa and Southeast Asia. Photographed in the western Andes of Colombia.