''Stylobasium spathulatum'' ("pebble bush") is a

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), ...

xerophytic A xerophyte () is a species of plant that has adaptations to survive in an environment with little liquid water. Examples of xerophytes include cactus, cacti, pineapple and some gymnosperm plants. The morphology (biology), morphology and physiology ...

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 ...

in the family

Surianaceae The Surianaceae are a family of plants in the order Fabales with five genera and eight known species. It has an unusual distribution: the genus '' Recchia'' is native to Mexico, and the sole member of '' Suriana'', '' S. maritima'', is a c ...

. It was first described in 1819 by

René Louiche Desfontaines René Louiche Desfontaines (14 February 1750 – 16 November 1833) was a French botanist. Desfontaines was born near Tremblay, Ille-et-Vilaine, Tremblay in Brittany. He attended the Collège de Rennes and in 1773 went to Paris to study medici ...

Desfontaines, R.L. (1819), Memoires du Museum d'Histoire Naturelle 5: 37, t. 2 and is endemic to the

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (abbreviated as NT; known formally as the Northern Territory of Australia and informally as the Territory) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian internal territory in the central and central-northern regi ...

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

, and

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 ...

. The specific epithet, ''spathulatum'', is a Latin adjective (''spathulatus'',''-a'',''-um'') meaning "spoon-shaped" and refers to the shape of the leaves. The

Walmajarri The Walmadjari (Walmajarri) people, also known as Tjiwaling and Wanaseka, are an Aboriginal Australian people of the Kimberley region of Western Australia. Name The two names reflect different Walmadjari preferences. Their western bands accept ...

people call this bush ''Kuparta''.

Gallery

'Stylobasium spathulatum habit.jpg Stylobasium spathulatum plant.jpg Stylobasium spathulatum foliage.jpg Stylobasium spathulatum fruit.jpg

References

External links

''Stylobasium apathulatum'' occurrence data
from

Australasian Virtual Herbarium The ''Australasian Virtual Herbarium'' (AVH) is an online resource that allows access to plant specimen data held by various Australian and New Zealand herbaria. It is part of the Atlas of Living Australia (ALA), and was formed by the amalgama ...

* Flora of Australia Surianaceae Flora of the Northern Territory Flora of Queensland Flora of Western Australia Plants described in 1819 Taxa named by René Louiche Desfontaines {{Australia-rosid-stub