''Spatalla'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

containing 20

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

s, commonly known as "spoons", in the

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 ...

Proteaceae The Proteaceae form a family (biology), family of flowering plants predominantly distributed in the Southern Hemisphere. The family comprises 83 genus, genera with about 1,660 known species. Australia and South Africa have the greatest concentr ...

. The genus 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

Cape Floristic Region The Cape Floral Region is a floristic region located near the southern tip of South Africa. It is the only floristic region of the Cape Floristic Kingdom, and includes only one floristic province, known as the Cape Floristic Province. The Cap ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

where it is associated with

fynbos Fynbos (; , ) is a small belt of natural shrubland or heathland vegetation located in the Western Cape and Eastern Cape provinces of South Africa. The area is predominantly coastal and mountainous, with a Mediterranean climate. The fynbos ...

habitats. The species are all small

shrub A shrub or bush is a small to medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple ...

s. The name is derived from the

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

, meaning “wantonness”, alluding to the plants’ unusually large

pollen-presenter A pollen-presenter is an area on the tip of the style in flowers of plants of the family Proteaceae on which the anthers release their pollen prior to anthesis. To ensure pollination, the style grows during anthesis, sticking out the pollen-presen ...

s. Most species are

threatened A threatened species is any species (including animals, plants and fungi) which is vulnerable to extinction in the near future. Species that are threatened are sometimes characterised by the population dynamics measure of ''critical depensatio ...

Species

Described species are listed below, with their conservation status: * '' Spatalla argentea'' Rourke – Silver-leaf spoon – EN * '' Spatalla barbigera'' Salisb. ex Knight – Fine-leaf spoon – NT * '' Spatalla caudata'' (Thunb.) R.Br. – Woolly-hair spoon – EN * '' Spatalla colorata'' Meisn. – Shiny spoon – EN * '' Spatalla confusa'' (E.Phillips) Rourke – Long-tube spoon – LC * '' Spatalla curvifolia'' Salisb. ex Knight – White-stalked spoon – NT * '' Spatalla ericoides'' E.Phillips – Erica-leaf spoon – EN * '' Spatalla incurva'' (Thunb.) R.Br. – Swan-head spoon – LC * '' Spatalla longifolia'' Salisb. ex Knight – Pink-stalked spoon – NT * '' Spatalla mollis'' R.Br. – Woolly spoon – Rare * '' Spatalla nubicola'' Rourke – Medusa spoon – NT * ''

Spatalla parilis ''Spatalla parilis'', the spike spoon, is a flowering shrub belonging to the genus ''Spatalla''. It forms part of the fynbos. The plant is native to the Western Cape of South Africa. Description The shrub grows upright and grows tall and flower ...

'' Salisb. ex Knight – Spike spoon – LC * ''

Spatalla prolifera ''Spatalla prolifera'', the palmiet spoon, is a flower-bearing shrub that belongs to the genus ''Spatalla'' and forms part of the fynbos. The plant is native to the Western Cape of South Africa. Description The shrub grows upright and grows to ...

'' (Thunb.) Salisb. ex Knight – Palmiet spoon – EN * '' Spatalla propinqua'' R.Br. – Lax spoon – EN * '' Spatalla racemosa'' (L.) Druce – Lax-stalked spoon – NT * '' Spatalla salsoloides'' (R.Br.) Rourke – Kink-style spoon – CR * '' Spatalla setacea'' (R.Br.) Rourke – Needle-leaf spoon – LC * '' Spatalla squamata'' Meisn. – Silky spoon – NT * '' Spatalla thyrsiflora'' Salisb. ex Knight – Swan-neck spoon – VU * '' Spatalla tulbaghensis'' (E.Phillips) Rourke – Shaggy-hair spoon – EN

Gallery

Spatalla confusa vBerkel2.jpg, Spatalla propinqua 1DS-II 3-8370.jpg, Spatalla longifolia Rebelo 2.jpg, Spatalla curvifolia 1DS-II 1-C4337.jpg, Spatalla parilis Rebelo 1.jpg, Spatalla racemosa 1DS-II 1-9440.jpg,

References

Proteaceae genera Endemic flora of the Cape Provinces {{Proteaceae-stub