''Ozothamnus lycopodioides'', commonly known as clubmoss everlastingbush, is a plant species

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 ...

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

. The specific epithet "lycopodioides" refers to the resemblance of the foliage to that of plants (clubmosses) in the

Lycopodium ''Lycopodium'' (from Ancient Greek ''lykos'', wolf and ''podion'', diminutive of ''pous'', foot) is a genus of clubmosses, also known as ground pines or creeping cedars, in the family Lycopodiaceae. Two very different circumscriptions of the gen ...

genus (-oides is a Greek suffix meaning 'resembling').

Taxonomy

Originally described by

Joseph Dalton Hooker Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker (30 June 1817 – 10 December 1911) was a British botanist and explorer in the 19th century. He was a founder of geographical botany and Charles Darwin's closest friend. For 20 years he served as director of the Ro ...

in 1847 as ''

Helichrysum The genus ''Helichrysum'' consists of an estimated 600 species of flowering plants in the sunflower family (Asteraceae). The type species is '' Helichrysum orientale''. They often go by the names everlasting, immortelle, and strawflower. The na ...

lycopodioides'', it was later reclassified as ''

Ozothamnus ''Ozothamnus'' is a genus of plants found in Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia. The following is a list of species' names accepted by the Australian Plant Census as at January 2020: *''Ozothamnus adnatus'' - winged everlasting *''Ozotha ...

lycopodioides''. The species belongs to the

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 ...

family, specifically the tribe

Gnaphalieae The Gnaphalieae, commonly known as paper daisies, are a tribe of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae. It is most closely related to the tribes Anthemideae, Astereae, and Calenduleae. Characteristics This group is most diverse in South Ame ...

Description

''O. lycopodioides'' is a slender, much-branched, spreading shrub typically reaching heights of 50-100 cm. The leaves are leathery, stalkless, and overlapping, with a narrow, rounded shape and a blunt tip. They are often sticky with oily hairs. Flowering occurs in spring, with rounded terminal clusters of compact, white daisies about 0.5 cm across. Thin, dry, sticky, brown bracts surround the flowers. The fruit is small and dry, with leathery walls and wind-dispersed seeds.

Habitat & distribution

Ozothamnus lycopodioides distribution map

''Ozothamnus lycopodioides'' is found in dry

sclerophyll Sclerophyll is a type of vegetation that is adapted to long periods of dryness and heat. The plants feature hard leaves, short Internode (botany), internodes (the distance between leaves along the stem) and leaf orientation which is parallel or ...

forest near the east coast of

, typically growing on rocky slopes along rivers. Key sites where populations of the species can be found include Paradise Gorge along the Tasman Highway, the Sugarloaf, Prosser River, Lake Leake Road, Kelvedon, Swansea, Swanston Road, north of

Buckland Military Training Area The Buckland Military Training Area (BMTA) is a small arms and manoeuvre range, located from Hobart, Tasmania. The training area is the largest and most used training area in Tasmania. The range covers 23,428 hectares and has a 400-man camp and R ...

Little Swanport Little Swanport is a rural locality and an estuary in the local government area of Glamorgan–Spring Bay in the South-east region of Tasmania. It is especially significant for the Little Swanport language. The locality is about south of the ...

, Griffiths Rivulet and near the Thumbs picnic area. It is reserved in the Apslawn Forest Reserve, Cygnet River Forest Reserve, Dry Creek East Nature Reserve, Eastern Tiers Forest Reserve, Lost Falls Forest Reserve, Swan River Forest Reserve, Three Thumbs State Reserve and Wye River State Reserve.

Distinguishing traits

Aside from its location, Ozothamnus lycopodioides can be distinguished by its slender, much-branched form and distinctive foliage. The tips of its inner bracts are cupped and dark brown/purple.

Conservation/threats

''Ozothamnus lycopodioides'' is considered rare, and is not listed under Commonwealth status. It faces threats from habitat degradation and alteration, particularly from fires. Ziegler (2003) recommended that shrubby sites where ''O. lycopodioides'' grows should not be burnt at intervals of fewer than 30 years, due to slow regeneration times of the flora. The largest seedlings at the Thumbs lookout reached a height of only 20 cm and began flowering 11 years after a 1994 fire. This species is unpalatable to livestock.

Cultivation/uses

This dwarf evergreen shrub with spreading branches is suitable for native gardens, thriving in most soils with good drainage and tolerating full sun to part shade. It responds well to pruning for shape and is attractive to butterflies.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15579649 ycopodioides Flora of Tasmania