First records of Sophora tomentosa (Fabaceae) seeds recorded as beach drift in Northwest Europe

Five seeds of Sophora tomentosa L. were found as drift on Irish and British Atlantic exposed shores during 1987 to 2010. This species is unknown in the wild in northwest Europe as its native range is within sub-tropical to tropical environments. In the Americas it extends southwards from southern Florida. These seeds were most probably carried with oceanic and wind currents across the Atlantic Ocean. Parent plants are evergreen shrubs that have a maritime distribution. In this account the seeds were compared with material collected from Florida and those previously lodged in the seed collection of DBN.