''Sphaerolobium benetectum'' is a species of flowering plant in the family
and is
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found 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 found elsew ...
to the south-west of Western Australia. It is tuft-forming sub-shrub with erect stems, linear to lance-shaped leaves, and yellow-orange and pink to red flowers.
Description
''Sphaerolobium benetectum'' is a tuft-forming sub-shrub that typically grows to high and wide and has slender, erect stems. Its leaves are linear to lance-shaped, long and wide but that fall off before flowering. The flowers are arranged in pairs along of the leafless stems with ten to one hundred flowers, 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
...
long. 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 b ...
s are long, fused for half their length to form a top-shaped base, the upper two lobes fused for most of their length and the lower three long. The
standard petal is egg-shaped, long, wide, orange-yellow and red. The
wings are long and pinkish-red, the
keel
The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element on a vessel. On some sailboats, it may have a hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose, as well. As the laying down of the keel is the initial step in the construction of a ship, in Br ...
long and yellow and red. Flowering occurs in October and November and the fruit is more or less flattened round
pod
Pod or POD may refer to:
Biology
* Pod (fruit), a type of fruit of a flowering plant
* Husk or pod of a legume
* Pod of whales or other marine mammals
* "-pod", a suffix meaning "foot" used in taxonomy
Electronics and computing
* Proper ort ...
about long.
Taxonomy and naming
''Sphaerolobium benetectum'' was first formally described in 2001 by
Ryonen Butcher 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
Collie in 1999.
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 ...
(''benetectum'') means "well hidden" referring to the difficulty of detecting the species.
Distribution and habitat
This species grows in winter-wet areas near swamps and in low shrubland in three
disjunct areas, near Collie, near
Augusta and near
Mount Lindesay.
Conservation status
''Sphaerolobium benetectum'' is listed as "
Priority Two" by the Western Australian Government
Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions
The Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA) is the Western Australian government
The Government of Western Australia, formally referred to as His Majesty's Government of Western Australia, is the Australian state de ...
,
meaning that it is poorly known and from only one or a few locations.
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q51045684
benetectum
Eudicots of Western Australia
Plants described in 2001