''Phebalium clavatum'' is a species of shrub that is endemic to Western Australia and is more or less covered with silvery scales. It has warty branchlets, more or less circular leaves with a large spherical

gland In animals, a gland is a group of cells in an animal's body that synthesizes substances (such as hormones) for release into the bloodstream (endocrine gland) or into cavities inside the body or its outer surface (exocrine gland). Structure De ...

and white flowers arranged singly on the ends of branchlets.

Description

''Phebalium clavatum'' is a shrub that typically grows to a height of . Its branchlets are covered with pale red glands and silvery, scale-like hairs. The leaves are more or less circular, about in diameter on a cylindrical petiole long. The leaves and petiole are covered with silvery scales and the leaf has a large spherical gland. The flowers are white, sessile and borne on the ends of branchlets with two scaly bracteoles about long at the base. The five sepals are long, joined for half their length and covered with silvery scales. The

petal Petals are modified Leaf, leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often advertising coloration, brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''c ...

s are egg-shaped to elliptical, long and wide, covered with silvery scales on the back and the

stamen The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filame ...

s are slightly longer than the petals. Flowering occurs from August to September.

Taxonomy and naming

''Phebalium clavatum'' was first formally described in 1943 by Charles Gardner in the journal '' Journal of the Royal Society of Western Australia'' from specimens he collected near

Widgiemooltha Widgiemooltha is an abandoned town in Western Australia east of Perth between Kambalda and Norseman in the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia. It is found on the southern shoreline of Lake Lefroy. The location of the original t ...

Distribution and habitat

This phebalium grows on sandplains in the Coolgardie district of Western Australia.

Conservation status

This phebalium is classified as " Priority Two" by the Western Australian Government

Department of Parks and Wildlife The Department of Parks and Wildlife (DPaW) was the department of the Government of Western Australia responsible for managing lands described in the ''Conservation and Land Management Act 1984'' and implementing the state's conservation and en ...

, meaning that it is poorly known and from only one or a few locations.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q18076586 clavatum Flora of Western Australia Plants described in 1970 Taxa named by Charles Gardner