''Cistus heterophyllus'' is a

shrub A shrub or bush is a small to medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple ...

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

in the family

Cistaceae The Cistaceae are a small family of plants (rock-rose or rock rose family) known for their beautiful shrubs, which are profusely covered by flowers at the time of blossom. This family consists of about 170(-200) species in eight genera that are ...

Description

''Cistus heterophyllus'' grows up to tall, forming an erect, much-branched

. Its leaves are elliptical to lanceolate in shape, usually long, the upper surfaces being dark green with stellate and simple hairs, and the lower surfaces whitish with a coating of short hairs. The leaf margins are slightly turned under (revolute) and the veins are much more obvious on the underside. The leaves are of two kinds: the upper are without stalks ( petioles), the lower have short stalks. The flowers are arranged in

cymes In botany, an inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a plant's stem that is composed of a main branch or a system of branches. An inflorescence is categorized on the basis of the arrangement of flowers on a main axis ( ped ...

of one to five individual flowers, each with five purplish-pink petals, usually with a yellow spot at the base. Like the leaves, the five

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 have stellate hairs, plus some longer simple hairs. The fruit capsule is about high containing angular brownish seeds. The two described subspecies differ in the distribution of hairs. In ''C. h.'' subsp. ''heterophyllus'', the young stems have both many stellate hairs and many longer simple hairs, and the leaves have scattered long simple hairs. In ''C. h.'' subsp. ''carthaginensis'', the young stems and leaves have fewer simple hairs. The outer two sepals of ''C. h.'' subsp. ''heterophyllus'' average about long by wide, whereas those of ''C. h.'' subsp. ''carthaginensis'' are smaller, averaging about long by wide. The petals of ''C. h.'' subsp. ''heterophyllus'' are about long by wide, making the flower diameter typically . Although there is considerable variation and the size ranges overlap, the petals of ''C. h.'' subsp. ''carthaginensis'' may be as small as long and wide, making the flower diameter typically .

Taxonomy and phylogeny

''Cistus heterophyllus'' was first described by

René Louiche Desfontaines René Louiche Desfontaines (14 February 1750 – 16 November 1833) was a French botanist. Desfontaines was born near Tremblay, Ille-et-Vilaine, Tremblay in Brittany. He attended the Collège de Rennes and in 1773 went to Paris to study medici ...

in 1798. The specific epithet ''heterophyllus'' means "with leaves of different shapes", the upper being unstalked, the lower shortly stalked. Two subspecies are accepted: * ''Cistus heterophyllus'' subsp. ''carthaginensis'' (Pau) M.B.Crespo & Mateo – mainland

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

* ''Cistus heterophyllus'' subsp. ''heterophyllus'' – north Africa The two subspecies have been artificially crossed forming a hybrid subspecies called ''C. h.'' nothosubsp. ''marzoi''. A 2011 molecular phylogenetic study placed ''C. heterophyllus'' in the purple and pink flowered clade (PPC) of ''Cistus'' species, in a subclade with '' C. albidus'' and '' C. creticus''.

Distribution

''Cistus heterophyllus'' has a disjoint distribution. ''C. h.'' subsp. ''heterophyllus'' is native to western North Africa, along the coastal Mediterranean region from the Spanish island of

Peñón de Alhucemas The Alhucemas Islands (, ) are a group of three islands off the coast of Al Hoceima in the Alboran Sea. The islands are part of Spain's Plazas de soberanía and is under Spanish administration, however they are also claimed by Morocco as ...

and Targuist in

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

Algiers Algiers is the capital city of Algeria as well as the capital of the Algiers Province; it extends over many Communes of Algeria, communes without having its own separate governing body. With 2,988,145 residents in 2008Census 14 April 2008: Offi ...

. ''C. h.'' subsp. ''carthaginensis'' is found only in two locations in mainland Spain: near La Pobla de Vallbona in

Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...

and in the Calblanque Regional Park in

Murcia Murcia ( , , ) is a city in south-eastern Spain, the Capital (political), capital and most populous city of the autonomous community of the Region of Murcia, and the Ranked lists of Spanish municipalities#By population, seventh largest city i ...

Conservation

''Cistus heterophyllus'' subsp. ''carthaginensis'' is listed as

critically endangered An IUCN Red List critically endangered (CR or sometimes CE) species is one that has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild. As of December 2023, of t ...

(CR) in the

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is an inventory of the global conservation status and extinction risk of biological ...

. Fewer than 30 individuals were known in 2011 (only one at the Valencian site) and some appear to be hybrids with ''

Cistus albidus ''Cistus albidus'', the grey-leaved cistus, is a shrubby species of flowering plant in the family Cistaceae, with pink to purple flowers, native to south-western Europe and western north Africa. Description ''Cistus albidus'' grows up to tall. ...

''. The subspecies is threatened by fires and human disturbance. Seeds have been stored in seedbanks, and attempts are being made to increase plants in cultivation, both from seed and in vitro.

References

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q8346474 heterophyllus