''Cassinia rugata'', commonly known as wrinkled dollybush, or wrinkled cassinia, is a species of flowering plant in the family

Asteraceae Asteraceae () is a large family (biology), family of flowering plants that consists of over 32,000 known species in over 1,900 genera within the Order (biology), order Asterales. The number of species in Asteraceae is rivaled only by the Orchi ...

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 south-eastern Australia. It is a spreading to erect shrub with hairy, slightly sticky branchlets, oblong to narrow elliptic leaves and

corymb Corymb is a botanical term for an inflorescence with the flowers growing in such a fashion that the outermost are borne on longer pedicels than the inner, bringing all flowers up to a common level. A corymb has a flattish top with a superficial re ...

s of up to three hundred flower heads.

Description

''Cassinia rugata'' is a spreading to erect shrub that typically grows to a height of up to with its branchlets densely covered with cottony white hairs. The leaves are oblong to narrow elliptic, long and about wide on a petiole about long. The upper surface of the leaves is scaly or pimply, the edges rolled under and the lower surface densely covered with cottony hairs. The flower heads are white, long and wide, each with four to seven florets surrounded by sixteen to eighteen overlapping

involucral bracts 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 look ...

. Between 20 and 300 heads are arranged in corymbs in diameter. Flowering occurs from February to April and the achenes are about long with a pappus of 24 to 28 bristles long.

Taxonomy and naming

''Cassinia rugata'' was first formally described in 1990 by Neville Grant Walsh in the journal '' Muelleria'' from specimens collected near Heathmere in 1988. 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 ...

(''rugata'') means "folded or wrinkled", referring to the inner involucral bracts.

Distribution

''Cassinia rugata'' grows in swamps and on the edge of rivers in south-eastern South Australia, south-western Victoria and northern Tasmania. The species was only recognised as occurring in Tasmania in 2010, and is only reliably known from two private properties in that state.

Conservation status

This cassinia is listed as "vulnerable" under the Australian Government ''

Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 The ''Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999'' (Cth) is an Act of the Parliament of Australia that provides a framework for protection of the Australian environment, including its biodiversity and its natural and cult ...

'' and the Victorian Government '' Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988'' and as "endangered" under the Tasmanian Government '' Threatened Species Protection Act 1995''.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15561143 rugata Asterales of Australia Flora of Victoria (state) Flora of South Australia Flora of Tasmania Plants described in 1990 Taxa named by Neville Grant Walsh