''Coopernookia'' is a plant genus of six species of small

perennial In horticulture, the term perennial ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the year") is used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. It has thus been defined as a plant that lives more than 2 years. The term is also ...

shrubs that are all

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 Australia. They have hairy, often sticky leaves, and flowers with

bilateral symmetry Symmetry in biology refers to the symmetry observed in organisms, including plants, animals, fungi, and bacteria. External symmetry can be easily seen by just looking at an organism. For example, the face of a human being has a plane of symme ...

Description

Plants in the genus ''Coopernookia'' are small shrubs covered with star-like, often

glandular A gland is a cell or an organ in an animal's body that produces and secretes different substances that the organism needs, either into the bloodstream or into a body cavity or outer surface. A gland may also function to remove unwanted substance ...

hairs that are often sticky. The leaves are

sessile Sessility, or sessile, may refer to: * Sessility (motility), organisms which are not able to move about * Sessility (botany), flowers or leaves that grow directly from the stem or peduncle of a plant * Sessility (medicine), tumors and polyps that ...

or almost so, sometimes have toothed edges and sometimes have their edges curled under. The flowers are arranged on the ends of branches, surrounded by leaves. The flowers are zygomorphic, meaning that they have bilateral symmetry. Each flower has 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 and a white, mauve or pinkish corolla. The lobes of the corolla are unequal in size and broadly winged. The stamens are free from each other and the ovary is inferior.

Taxonomy

The genus ''Coopernookia'' was first formally described in 1968 by Roger Carolin in ''

Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales The Linnean Society of New South Wales promotes ''the Cultivation and Study of the Science of Natural History in all its Branches'' and was founded in Sydney, New South Wales (Australia) in 1874 and incorporated in 1884. History The Society succ ...

''. The first species added to the new genus was ''

Coopernookia barbata ''Coopernookia'' is a plant genus of six species of small Perennial plant, perennial shrubs that are all Endemism, endemic to Australia. They have hairy, often sticky leaves, and flowers with Floral_symmetry#Zygomorphic, bilateral symmetry. Desc ...

'', previously known as ''Goodenia barbata'' R.Br., and it is therefore the

type Type may refer to: Science and technology Computing * Typing, producing text via a keyboard, typewriter, etc. * Data type, collection of values used for computations. * File type * TYPE (DOS command), a command to display contents of a file. * ...

species. Carolin considered ''Coopernookia'' to be intermediate between '' Scaevola'' and ''

Goodenia ''Goodenia'' is a genus of about two hundred species of flowering plants in the family Goodeniaceae. Plants in this genus are herbs or shrubs, mostly endemic to Australia. The leaves are variably-shaped, the flowers arranged in small groups, with ...

''. The name ''Coopernookia'' refers to the Coopernook State Forest, where one of the species, '' C. chisholmii'' is common.

Species

Six species are accepted by the

Australian Plant Census The Australian Plant Census (APC) provides an online interface to currently accepted, published, scientific names of the vascular flora of Australia, as one of the output interfaces of the national government Integrated Biodiversity Information Sys ...

* ''

'' ( R.Br.) Carolin – N.S.W., Vic., Tas.(presumed extinct in Tasmania) * ''

Coopernookia chisholmii ''Coopernookia'' is a plant genus of six species of small Perennial plant, perennial shrubs that are all Endemism, endemic to Australia. They have hairy, often sticky leaves, and flowers with Floral_symmetry#Zygomorphic, bilateral symmetry. Desc ...

'' ( Blakely) Carolin – N.S.W. * ''

Coopernookia georgei ''Coopernookia'' is a plant genus of six species of small Perennial plant, perennial shrubs that are all Endemism, endemic to Australia. They have hairy, often sticky leaves, and flowers with Floral_symmetry#Zygomorphic, bilateral symmetry. Desc ...

'' Carolin – W.A. * ''

Coopernookia polygalacea ''Coopernookia'' is a plant genus of six species of small Perennial plant, perennial shrubs that are all Endemism, endemic to Australia. They have hairy, often sticky leaves, and flowers with Floral_symmetry#Zygomorphic, bilateral symmetry. Desc ...

'' (

de Vriese De Vriese is a Flemish surname. It is one of several Belgian equivalents of the much more numerous Dutch family name De Vries. Notable people with this family name include: * Bertha De Vriese (1877–1958), Belgian physician * Emmerik De Vriese ( ...

) Carolin – W.A. * ''

Coopernookia scabridiuscula ''Coopernookia'' is a plant genus of six species of small perennial shrubs that are all endemic to Australia. They have hairy, often sticky leaves, and flowers with bilateral symmetry. Description Plants in the genus ''Coopernookia'' are small s ...

'' Carolin – Qld. * ''

Coopernookia strophiolata ''Coopernookia strophiolata'' is a shrub in the Goodeniaceae family, endemic to Australia and found in both Western Australia and South Australia. Description ''Coopernookia strophiolata'' is a sticky, spreading (sometimes straggly) shrub gro ...

'' (

F.Muell. Baron Sir Ferdinand Jacob Heinrich von Mueller, (; 30 June 1825 – 10 October 1896) was a German-Australian physician, geographer, and most notably, a botanist. He was appointed government botanist for the then colony of Victoria (state), Vic ...

) Carolin – W.A., S.A.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q5167935 Goodeniaceae Asterales genera Flora of Australia