''Styphelia tubiflora'', commonly known as red five-corners, is a species of flowering plant in the heath

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Ericaceae The Ericaceae () are a Family (biology), family of flowering plants, commonly known as the heath or heather family, found most commonly in acidic and infertile growing conditions. The family is large, with about 4,250 known species spread acros ...

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 eastern New South Wales. It is an erect to spreading shrub with oblong to egg-shaped leaves with the narrower end towards the base, and usually red, tube-shaped flowers.

Description

''Styphelia tubiflora'' is an erect to spreading shrub that typically grows to a height of and has branchlets with soft hairs. Its leaves are oblong or egg-shaped with the narrower end towards the base, long and long on a

petiole Petiole may refer to: *Petiole (botany), the stalk of a leaf, attaching the blade to the stem *Petiole (insect anatomy) In entomology, petiole is the technical term for the narrow waist of some hymenopteran insects, especially ants, bees, and ...

long. The tip of the leaf narrows and the upper surface is often rough to the touch. The flowers are arranged singly in leaf axils and are nearly sessile or on a very short peduncle, usually red, sometimes cream-coloured or pale yellowish-green. There are bracteoles long at the base of the flowers and 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 are long. The petals are joined at the base, forming a tube long with narrow lobes long. Flowering occurs from April to August, and the fruit is a dry, rounded capsule about long with a tiny "skirt" around one end.

Taxonomy

''Styphelia tubiflora'' was first formally described in 1795 by James Edward Smith in his ''

A Specimen of the Botany of New Holland ''A Specimen of the Botany of New Holland'', also known by its standard abbreviation ''Spec. Bot. New Holland'', was the first published book on the flora of Australia. Written by James Edward Smith and illustrated by James Sowerby, it was publ ...

'' from specimens collected by John White. 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 ...

(''tubiflora'') means "tubular-flowered". Smith described the plant as having "transcendent elegance", and noted its resemblance to "the favourite ''Erica tubiflora''" (now known as ''Erica curviflora'' var. ''curviflora'').

Distribution and habitat

Red five-corners grows on ridges and hillsides in woodland, forest and heath and is widespread between

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

, the Blue Mountains and

Jervis Bay Jervis Bay () is a oceanic bay and village in the Jervis Bay Territory and on the South Coast (New South Wales), South Coast of New South Wales, Australia. A area of land around the southern headland of the bay, known as the Jervis Bay Terri ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q7629760 tubiflora Flora of New South Wales Taxa named by James Edward Smith Plants described in 1795