''Phymatocarpus maxwellii'' is a plant in the myrtle

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Myrtaceae Myrtaceae (), the myrtle family, is a family of dicotyledonous plants placed within the order Myrtales. Myrtle, pōhutukawa, bay rum tree, clove, guava, acca (feijoa), allspice, and eucalyptus are some notable members of this group. All ...

and is

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 the

south-west The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A ''compass rose'' is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each ...

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

. It resembles many small species of Melaleuca, mainly differing in the way its

anther The stamen (: stamina or stamens) is a part consisting of the male reproductive organs of a flower. Collectively, the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filament ...

s are attached at the top of the stamens. In '' Phymatocarpus'' they are attached at their base and open at the other end through two slits. It is a shrub with many small heads of pink to purple flowers, often covering the plant for several weeks in October. Phymatocarpus maxwellii 01

Description

''Phymatocarpus maxwellii'' is an erect to spreading shrub which sometimes grows to a height and width of . The leaves are broad egg-shaped, long, often curved and stiff but not prickly. The flowers are pink to purple and are arranged in dense, roughly spherical heads about in diameter on the ends of branches which continue to grow after flowering. There are 5

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, 5

petal Petals are modified leaves that form an inner whorl surrounding the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often brightly coloured or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''corol ...

s and 5 bundles of stamens. It can be distinguished from the other two species of ''Phymatocarpus'' by it lack of a ring of stamens - both the others have the stamens joined in a ring at their bases. Flowering occurs from August to November and is followed by fruits which are woody capsules. The individual capsules are about in diameter and are arranged in clusters which are rough or lumpy on the outer surface.

Taxonomy and naming

''Phymatocarpus maxwellii'' was first formally described in 1875 by

Ferdinand von Mueller 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, Australia ...

Fragmenta Phytographiae Australiae ''Fragmenta phytographiae Australiae'' is a series of papers written by the Victorian Government botanist Ferdinand von Mueller in which he published many of his approximately 2000 descriptions of new taxa of Australian plants. Including the p ...

. The

specific epithet In Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin gramm ...

(''maxwellii'') honours the botanical collector

George Maxwell George Maxwell (1804–1880) was a professional collector of plants and insects in Southwest Australia. The botanical specimens he obtained were used to make formal descriptions of the region's plant species. Biography Maxwell was born in England ...

, the collector of 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. * ...

specimen.

Distribution and habitat

''Phymatocarpus maxwellii'' occurs in and between the Mount Barker East and the

Israelite Bay Israelite Bay is a bay and locality of the Shire of Esperance in the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia, located along the Southern Ocean. Except for a small strip in the north-west of the locality, Israelite Bay is completely take ...

districts in the Coolgardie,

Esperance Plains Esperance Plains, also known as Eyre Botanical District, is a biogeography, biogeographic region in southern Western Australia on the South_coast_of_Western_Australia , south coast between the Avon Wheatbelt and Hampton bioregions, and bordere ...

and Mallee biogeographic regions. It grows in a wide range of situations but mostly in sand on sandplains and depressions that are wet in winter.

Conservation

''Phymatocarpus maxwellii'' is classified as "not threatened" by the Western Australian government Department of Parks and Wildlife.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15378019 maxwellii Myrtales of Australia Plants described in 1860 Endemic flora of Western Australia Taxa named by Ferdinand von Mueller