''Leptosema anomalum'' is a species of flowering plant in the family

Fabaceae Fabaceae () or Leguminosae,International Code of Nomen ...

and is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to northern Australia. It is a shrub or subshrub with a broom-like stems with many branches, leaves reduced to narrowly egg-shaped scales, pale greenish flowers, and beaked, oval pods.

Description

''Leptosema anomalum'' is a shrub or subshrub with broom-like stems with many branches up to high, the branches and branchlets angular and ribbed, wide. Most of the leaves are reduced to reddish, narrowly egg-shaped scales, long. The flowers are crowded near the base of the stems, with pink, egg-shaped

bract In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis or cone scale. Bracts are usually different from foliage leaves in size, color, shape or texture. They also lo ...

s long. The flowers are pale greenish, each flower on a

pedicel Pedicle or pedicel may refer to: Human anatomy *Pedicle of vertebral arch, the segment between the transverse process and the vertebral body, and is often used as a radiographic marker and entry point in vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty procedures ...

up to long. The petals are shorter than 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 Etymology The term ''sepalum'' ...

s, the

standard Standard may refer to: Symbols * Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs * Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification Norms, conventions or requirements * Standard (metrology), an object ...

petal shorter than the

wings A wing is a type of fin that produces both lift and drag while moving through air. Wings are defined by two shape characteristics, an airfoil section and a planform. Wing efficiency is expressed as lift-to-drag ratio, which compares the bene ...

and

keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element of a watercraft, important for stability. On some sailboats, it may have a fluid dynamics, hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose as well. The keel laying, laying of the keel is often ...

, the standard long and broad, the wings narrowly egg-shaped, long and the keel elliptic, long. The

ovary The ovary () is a gonad in the female reproductive system that produces ova; when released, an ovum travels through the fallopian tube/ oviduct into the uterus. There is an ovary on the left and the right side of the body. The ovaries are end ...

is more or less

sessile Sessility, or sessile, may refer to: * Sessility (motility), organisms which are not able to move about * Sessility (botany), flowers or leaves that grow directly from the stem or peduncle of a plant * Sessility (medicine), tumors and polyps that ...

, covered with silky hairs and sometimes has only two

ovule In seed plants, the ovule is the structure that gives rise to and contains the female reproductive cells. It consists of three parts: the ''integument'', forming its outer layer, the ''nucellus'' (or remnant of the sporangium, megasporangium), ...

s. Flowering occurs from May to November, and the pods are oval, long and long, including the beak long.

Taxonomy

This species was first formally described in 1913 by

Alfred James Ewart Alfred James Ewart, FRS (12 February 1872 – 12 September 1937) was an English-Australian botanist. Early life and education Ewart was born in Toxteth Park, Liverpool, England, second son of Edmund Brown Ewart, B.A. and his wife, Marth ...

and Alexander Morrison who gave it the name ''Jacksonia anomala'' in the ''

Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria The Royal Society of Victoria (RSV) is the oldest scientific society in Victoria, Australia. Foundation In 1854 two organisations formed with similar aims and membership, these being the Victorian Institute for the Advancement of Science (found ...

'' from specimens collected by Gerald Freer Hill in 1911. In 1980,

Michael Crisp Michael Douglas Crisp (born 1950) is an emeritus professor in the Research School of Biology at the Australian National University located in Canberra. In 1976, he gained a PhD from the University of Adelaide, studying long-term vegetation chan ...

transferred the species to ''Leptosema'' as ''L. anomalum'' in the ''

Journal of the Adelaide Botanic Gardens The Adelaide Botanic Garden is a public garden at the north-east corner of the Adelaide city centre, in the Adelaide Park Lands. It encompasses a fenced garden on North Terrace (between Lot Fourteen, the site of the old Royal Adelaide Hospita ...

'', noting that sometimes the number of ovules varies from two, and the flowers of several species of ''Leptosema'' have similar sized flowers to ''L. anomalum''. The

specific epithet In Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin gramm ...

(''anomalum'') means 'anomalous' or 'abnormal', because it was considered unusual in ''Jacksonia'', in which it was first placed.

Distribution and habitat

This species of ''Leptosema'' grows in deep red sand on sandplains, at the bases of sand dunes and in watercourses in the

Dampierland Dampierland is an interim Australian bioregion in Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territo ...

Great Sandy Desert The Great Sandy Desert is an interim Australian bioregion,IBRA Version 6.1
data

Pilbara The Pilbara () is a large, dry, sparsely populated regions of Western Australia, region in the north of Western Australia. It is known for its Indigenous Australians, Aboriginal people; wealth disparity; its ancient landscapes; the prevailing r ...

and Tanami bioregions of northern

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

and the Dampierland,

Davenport Murchison Ranges Davenport Murchison Ranges is an interim Australian bioregion located in the Northern Territory The Northern Territory (abbreviated as NT; known formally as the Northern Territory of Australia and informally as the Territory) is an state ...

, Mitchell Grass Downs bioregion,

Ord Victoria Plain The Ord Victoria Plain, an interim Australian bioregion, is located in the Northern Territory and Western Australia, comprising .

, Pilbara,

Sturt Plateau The Sturt Plateau, an interim Australian bioregion, is located in the Northern Territory,I ...

and Tanami bioregions of the

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (abbreviated as NT; known formally as the Northern Territory of Australia and informally as the Territory) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian internal territory in the central and central-northern regi ...

Conservation status

''Leptosema anomalum'' 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 Government of Western Australia, Western Australian government department responsible for managing lands and waters described in the ''Conservation and Land Management A ...

, and as of "least concern" under the Northern Territory ''

Territory Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, belonging or connected to a particular country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually a geographic area which has not been granted the powers of self-government, ...

''.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15528484 Fabales of Australia Flora of Western Australia Flora of the Northern Territory anomalum Plants described in 1913 Taxa named by Alfred James Ewart