''Cryptandra wilsonii'' is a flowering plant in the family
Rhamnaceae
The Rhamnaceae are a large family of flowering plants, mostly trees, shrubs, and some vines, commonly called the buckthorn family. Rhamnaceae is included in the order Rosales.
The family contains about 55 genera and 950 species. The Rhamnaceae ...
and is endemic to the
south-west
The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions— north, east, south, and west—eac ...
of Western Australia. It is a shrub with hairy young stems, oblong to narrowly oblong leaves and clusters of white, tube-shaped flowers arranged in small clusters.
Description
''Cryptandra wilsonii'' is a shrub that typically grows to a height of , its young stems covered with both star-shaped and straight hairs, the branchlets sometimes spiny. The leaves are oblong to narrowly oblong, long and wide, on a
petiole long with
stipule
In botany, a stipule is an outgrowth typically borne on both sides (sometimes on just one side) of the base of a leafstalk (the petiole). Stipules are considered part of the anatomy of the leaf of a typical flowering plant, although in many speci ...
s long at the base. The upper surface of the leaves is
glabrous
Glabrousness (from the Latin '' glaber'' meaning "bald", "hairless", "shaved", "smooth") is the technical term for a lack of hair, down, setae, trichomes or other such covering. A glabrous surface may be a natural characteristic of all or part o ...
, the lower surface is usually concealed and the tip of the leaf curves downwards. The flowers are white and arranged in spike-like or head-like clusters of 2 to 6, with about 6 or 7 broadly egg-shaped floral
bracts long at the base. The
floral tube is long joined at the base for about . The
sepal
A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined ...
s are long, the
style
Style is a manner of doing or presenting things and may refer to:
* Architectural style, the features that make a building or structure historically identifiable
* Design, the process of creating something
* Fashion, a prevailing mode of clothing ...
long. Flowering occurs from May to August, and the fruit is a
schizocarp
A schizocarp is a dry fruit that, when mature, splits up into mericarps.
There are different definitions:
* Any dry fruit composed of multiple carpels that separate.
: Under this definition the mericarps can contain one or more seeds (the m ...
about long and densely covered with star-shaped hairs.
Taxonomy and naming
''Cryptandra wilsonii'' was first formally described in 1995 by
Barbara Lynette Rye
Barbara Lynette Rye is an Australian botanist born in 1952.
Barbara Rye has been associated with the Western Australian Herbarium, where her work as a taxonomist has been the source of many new descriptions of plants. The number of taxa record ...
in the journal ''
Nuytsia
''Nuytsia floribunda'' is a hemiparasitic tree found in Western Australia. The species is known locally as moodjar and, more recently, the Christmas tree or Western Australian Christmas tree. The display of intensely bright flowers during the ...
'' from specimens collected near
Cape Riche Beach in 1974.
The
specific epithet
In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...
(''wilsonii '') honours the Australian botanist,
Paul G. Wilson
Paul Graham Wilson (born 1928) is an Australian botanist. He has been a most prolific contributor to the journal ''Nuytsia'', contributing to the first issue in 1970 and to the 12th volume in 1998, which was dedicated to him for his contribution ...
.
Distribution and habitat
This cryptandra usually grows in sandy soil, sometimes in
mallee scrub
Mallee Woodlands and Shrublands is one of 32 Major Vegetation Groups defined by the Australian Government Department of the Environment and Energy.
Description
" Mallee" refers to the growth habit of a group of (mainly) eucalypt species that g ...
, and occurs from north-east of
Wialki to Cape Riche and near
Gibson
Gibson may refer to:
People
* Gibson (surname)
Businesses
* Gibson Brands, Inc., an American manufacturer of guitars, other musical instruments, and audio equipment
* Gibson Technology, and English automotive and motorsport company based
* Gibso ...
in the
Avon Wheatbelt
The Avon Wheatbelt is a bioregion in Western Australia. It has an area of . It is considered part of the larger Southwest Australia savanna ecoregion.
Geography
The Avon Wheatbelt bioregion is mostly a gently undulating landscape with low reli ...
,
Coolgardie,
Esperance Plains
Esperance Plains, also known as Eyre Botanical District, is a biogeographic region in southern Western Australia on the south coast between the Avon Wheatbelt and Hampton bioregions, and bordered to the north by the Mallee region. It is ...
,
Jarrah Forest
Jarrah forest is tall open forest in which the dominant overstory tree is '' Eucalyptus marginata'' (jarrah). The ecosystem occurs only in the Southwest Botanical Province of Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is ...
and
Mallee bioregions of Western Australia.
Conservation status
''Cryptandra wilsonii'' is listed as "not threatened" by the Government of Western Australia
Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions
The Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA) is the Western Australian government department responsible for managing lands and waters described in the ''Conservation and Land Management Act 1984'', the ''Rottnest Island ...
.
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q15537891
wilsonii
Rosales of Australia
Flora of Western Australia
Plants described in 1995
Taxa named by Barbara Lynette Rye