''Acrodon parvifolius'', the Botriver tiptoothfig, is a species of

mesemb The Aizoaceae, or fig-marigold family, is a large family of dicotyledonous flowering plants containing 135 genera and about 1800 species. They are commonly known as ice plants or carpet weeds. They are often called vygies in South Africa and N ...

from South Africa. This species, which grows close to the ground, can best be recognised by its small, thin leaves and its flowers, which form a dome in the middle.

Description

This succulent has long, trailing branches that form dense mats on the ground.e-Flora of South Africa. v1.36. 2022. South African National Biodiversity Institute. http://ipt.sanbi.org.za/iptsanbi/resource?r=flora_descriptions&v=1.36 It has a tap root and only rarely has adventitious roots. The woody grey internodes are circular and have a length of . The triangular leaves are a yellowish green or a darker green in colour, becoming a lighter yellowish green at the base. The tips may be purple. They are up to long and are thin ( wide and thick). This species has the fewest teeth in its genus, with leaves fruqently having smooth margins and only a single tooth on the keel. The keel may, however, have up to four flexible, broad-based teeth. Flowers are present in August and September. Single flowers with a diameter if about are borne on the ends of branches and are embraced vythe bracte the sroound their stems. They are white or pink in colour and have a purple line and purple margins. There are many purple filamentous staminodes that form a dome in the center of each flower. They turn upwards towards their tips, which curl with age. The bases have white papillae that interweave to form a white, felt-like layer. Pink stamens are borne on rich pink filaments in the center of the flower. Solitary fruits are borne on the ends of short, stiff stems. These capsules are about long and wide. The valve rims (less than a third of the height of the locule) are some of the lowest in the genus. The closing bodies are broader than those in other species in this genus and do not spilt with pressure. The seeds are arranged in rows and are about long and wide.

Distribution and habitat

This species is endemic to the

Western Cape The Western Cape is a province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , and the third most populous, with an estimated 7 million inhabitants in 2020 ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...

. It gorws on clay soils around Hermarnus, particularly around riverbeds, and is also known from the edges of roads and shale remenents around Calendon and Botrivier. It grows near the sea in winter rainfall areas. It has an area of occuerence of less than .

Etymology

The species name (''parvifolius'') refers to the small leaves of the plants.

Conservation

With only six small and highly fragmented subpopulations remaining, the

South African National Biodiversity Institute The South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) is an organisation established in 2004 in terms of the National Environmental Management: Biodiversity Act, No 10 of 2004, under the South African Department of Environmental Affairs ...

has classified ''Acrodon parvifolius'' as endangered. Much of its habitat has already been transformed as a consequence of urban development, farming, alien species and, road construction and maintenance. These threats continue to grow and the species habitat continues to decline.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15565168 Flora of South Africa Plants described in 1958 parvifolius