''Hemiandra linearis'', commonly known as speckled snakebush,
is a species of prostrate to ascending shrub that is
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found 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 found els ...
to the south-west of Western Australia.
Description
''Hemiandra linearis'' is a prostrate to ascending shrub that typically grows to a height of up to . It has leaves long and wide arranged in opposite pairs. The are four
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 The term ''sepalum'' was coined ...
s joined at the base with lobes long. The petals are long and white, cream-coloured, purple, lilac or violet with dots or stripes near the base. Flowering occurs from October to November or December.
Taxonomy
''Hemiandra linearis'' was formally described in 1837 by
George Bentham
George Bentham (22 September 1800 – 10 September 1884) was an English botanist, described by the weed botanist Duane Isely as "the premier systematic botanist of the nineteenth century". Born into a distinguished family, he initially studi ...
in
Stephan Endlicher
Stephan Ladislaus Endlicher also known as Endlicher István László (24 June 1804, Bratislava (Pozsony) – 28 March 1849, Vienna) was an Austrian botanist, numismatist and Sinologist. He was a director of the Botanical Garden of Vienna.
...
's ''
'' from material collected near the
Swan River by
Charles von Hügel
Charles von Hügel (born Carl Alexander Anselm Baron von Hügel; 25 April 1795 – 2 June 1870), sometimes spelt in English Huegel, was an Austrian nobleman, army officer, diplomat, botanist, and explorer, now primarily remembered for his tr ...
.
Distribution and habitat
This hemiandra grows in sand in the
Avon Wheatbelt
The Avon Wheatbelt is a bioregion in Western Australia. It has an area of . It is considered part of the larger Southwest Australia savanna ecoregion.
Geography
The Avon Wheatbelt bioregion is mostly a gently undulating landscape with low reli ...
,
Geraldton Sandplains
Geraldton ( Wajarri: ''Jambinu'', Wilunyu: ''Jambinbirri'') is a coastal city in the Mid West region of the Australian state of Western Australia, north of the state capital, Perth.
At June 2018, Geraldton had an urban population of 37,648. ...
,
Jarrah Forest
Jarrah forest is tall open forest in which the dominant overstory tree is '' Eucalyptus marginata'' (jarrah). The ecosystem occurs only in the Southwest Botanical Province of Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is ...
and
Swan Coastal Plain
The Swan Coastal Plain in Western Australia is the geographic feature which contains the Swan River as it travels west to the Indian Ocean. The coastal plain continues well beyond the boundaries of the Swan River and its tributaries, as a geo ...
biogeographic regions
A biogeographic realm or ecozone is the broadest biogeographic division of Earth's land surface, based on distributional patterns of terrestrial organisms. They are subdivided into bioregions, which are further subdivided into ecoregions.
De ...
in the south-west of Western Australia.
Conservation status
This species is classified as "not threatened" by the
Department of Environment and Conservation (Western Australia)
The Department of Environment and Conservation (DEC) was a department of the Government of Western Australia that was responsible for implementing the state's conservation and environment legislation and regulations. It was formed on 1 July 2006 ...
.
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q51050059
Eudicots of Western Australia
Lamiaceae
Lamiales of Australia
Plants described in 1837
Taxa named by George Bentham