''Prostanthera megacalyx'' is a species of flowering plant in the family

Lamiaceae The Lamiaceae ( ) or Labiatae are a family of flowering plants commonly known as the mint, deadnettle or sage family. Many of the plants are aromatic in all parts and include widely used culinary herbs like basil, mint, rosemary, sage, savo ...

and 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 Queensland. It is a small shrub with pale green leaves and mauve flowers.

Description

''Prostanthera megacalyx'' is a small, stiff, rounded shrub up to high with wavy, light green, ovate to nearly disc-shaped leaves. The branchlets and new growth covered with short, pale, stiff glandular hairs. The leaves densely dotted with glands, leathery, almost irregularly disc-shaped, long, wide and tapering to a long petiole. The large mauve to lavender coloured flowers have a prominent

calyx Calyx or calyce (plural "calyces"), from the Latin ''calix'' which itself comes from the Ancient Greek ''κάλυξ'' (''kálux'') meaning "husk" or "pod", may refer to: Biology * Calyx (anatomy), collective name for several cup-like structures ...

and borne singly in upper leaf axils on a

pedicel Pedicle or pedicel may refer to: Human anatomy *Pedicle of vertebral arch, the segment between the transverse process and the vertebral body, and is often used as a radiographic marker and entry point in vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty procedures ...

about long. The calyx dotted with small glands at irregular intervals. The

corolla Corolla may refer to: *Corolla (botany), the petals of a flower, considered as a unit *Toyota Corolla, an automobile model name * Corolla (headgear), an ancient headdress in the form of a circlet or crown * ''Corolla'' (gastropod), a genus of moll ...

violet to purple with soft, short somewhat scattered hairs, floral tube about long with short, purple streaks inside, upper petal broadly egg-shaped, long, wide, lower petal about half the size. The upper petal has two short lobes, lower lip deeply lobed and middle lobe rounded, long and wide.

Taxonomy and naming

''Prostanthera megacalyx'' was first formally described in 1926 by

Cyril Tenison White Cyril Tenison ("C.T.") White (17 August 1890 – 15 August 1950) was an Australian botanist. Early life White was born in Brisbane to Henry White, a trade broker, and Louisa ''nee'' Bailey. He attended school at South Brisbane State School, an ...

and William Douglas Francis and the description was published in ''

Proceedings of the Royal Society of Queensland ''Proceedings of The Royal Society of Queensland'' is a multidisciplinary scientific journal In academic publishing, a scientific journal is a periodical publication intended to further the progress of science, usually by reporting new re ...

''. The

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

(''megacalyx'') means "large calyx".

Distribution and habitat

This prostanthera grows in barren, dry, rocky sites at

Grey Range The Grey Range is a low-lying range of hills located in the Australian state of Queensland. The stretches from the west of Blackall of Central West Queensland in the north to Tibooburra in the far west of New South Wales. The range's highest po ...

, Ambethala Range,

Eulo Eulo is an outback town and locality in the Shire of Paroo, Queensland, Australia. In the , Eulo had a population of 95 people. It is known for its opal mining. Geography Eulo is west of Cunnamulla and west of Brisbane. The town is located ...

and

Yowah Yowah is an outback town and locality in the Shire of Paroo, Queensland, Australia. In the , Yowah had a population of 141 people. The town is known for its opal mining and numerous opal fields that lie around the town as well as the "Yowah Nut ...

in Queensland.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15355503 megacalyx Flora of Queensland Lamiales of Australia Plants described in 1926