''Westringia'' 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 ...

of Australian shrubs. As with other members of the

mint family 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, sav ...

their upper petal (or lip) is divided into two lobes. There are four

stamens 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 filamen ...

- the upper two are fertile while the lower two are reduced to

staminode In botany, a staminode is an often rudimentary, sterile or abortive stamen, which means that it does not produce pollen.Jackson, Benjamin, Daydon; ''A Glossary of Botanic Terms with their Derivation and Accent''; Published by Gerald Duckworth & Co ...

s. The leaves are in whorls of 3 or 4.Guerin, G.R. (2009). A revision of ''Westringia'' section ''Cephalowestringia'' (Lamiaceae: Westringieae). Australian Systematic Botany 22: 121-136.

Distribution

''Westringia'' has been found in the wild in all 6 states of

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, as well as on

Norfolk Island Norfolk Island ( , ; ) is an States and territories of Australia, external territory of Australia located in the Pacific Ocean between New Zealand and New Caledonia, directly east of Australia's Evans Head, New South Wales, Evans Head and a ...

, but not in 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 ...

Species list

The following is a list of the species of ''Westringia'' described and recognised by

Plants of the World Online Plants of the World Online (POWO) is an online taxonomic database published by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. History Following the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew launched Plants of the World Online i ...

Kew Gardens Kew Gardens is a botanical garden, botanic garden in southwest London that houses the "largest and most diverse botany, botanical and mycology, mycological collections in the world". Founded in 1759, from the exotic garden at Kew Park, its li ...

and the

Australian Plant Census The Australian Plant Census (APC) provides an online interface to currently accepted, published, scientific names of the vascular flora of Australia, as one of the output interfaces of the national government Integrated Biodiversity Information Sys ...

: *'' Westringia acifolia'' G.R.Guerin (W.A.) *'' Westringia amabilis'' B.Boivin (N.S.W., Qld.) *'' Westringia angustifolia'' R.Br. - scabrous westringia (Tas.) *'' Westringia blakeana'' B.Boivin - Blake's mint-bush *'' Westringia brevifolia''

Benth. George Bentham (22 September 1800 – 10 September 1884) was an English botanist, described by the weed botanist Duane Isely as "the premier systematic botanist of the nineteenth century". Born into a distinguished family, he initially studie ...

- greater shortleaf westringia *'' Westringia capitonia'' G.R.Guerin *'' Westringia cephalantha'' F.Muell. *'' Westringia cheelii''

Maiden Virginity is a social construct that denotes the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. As it is not an objective term with an operational definition, social definitions of what constitutes virginity, or the lack thereof ...

& Betche *'' Westringia crassifolia'' N.A.Wakef. - whipstick westringia (Vic.) *'' Westringia cremnophila'' N.A.Wakef. - Snowy River westringia (Vic.) *'' Westringia dampieri'' R.Br. - shore westringia (W.A.) *'' Westringia davidii'' B.J.Conn - David's westringia *'' Westringia discipulorum'' S.Moore - white button bush *'' Westringia eremicola''

A.Cunn. Allan Cunningham (13 July 1791 – 27 June 1839) was an English botanist and explorer, primarily known for his expeditions into uncolonised areas of eastern Australia to collect plants and report on the suitability of the land for grazing ...

- slender westringia *'' Westringia fitzgeraldensis'' R.W.Davis & Jobson *''

Westringia fruticosa ''Westringia fruticosa'', the coastal rosemary or coastal westringia, is a shrub that grows near the coast in eastern Australia. Description The flowers are white, hairy and have the upper petal divided into two lobes. They also have orange-to-p ...

'' (

Willd. Carl Ludwig Willdenow (22 August 1765 – 10 July 1812) was a German botanist, pharmacist, and plant taxonomist. He is considered one of the founders of phytogeography, the study of the geographic distribution of plants. Willdenow was also ...

) Druce - coastal rosemary *'' Westringia glabra'' R.Br. - violet westringia *'' Westringia grandifolia'' Benth. *'' Westringia kydrensis'' B.J.Conn - Kydra westringia *'' Westringia longifolia'' R.Br. - long-leaved westringia *'' Westringia lucida'' B.Boivin - shining westringia *'' Westringia lurida'' Gand. *'' Westringia ophioglossa'' R.W.Davis & Jobson *'' Westringia parvifolia'' C.T.White & W.D.Francis *'' Westringia rigida'' R.Br. - stiff westringia *'' Westringia rubiifolia'' R.Br. - sticky westringia *''

Westringia rupicola ''Westringia rupicola'' is a species of plant in the mint family that is endemic to Australia. Description The species grows as a shrub with pendulous stems 30–50 cm in length. The oval to linear leaves are 2–4.5 mm long and 0.5 ...

'' S.T.Blake *'' Westringia saxatilis'' B.J.Conn *'' Westringia senifolia'' F.Muell. - alpine westringia *'' Westringia sericea'' B.Boivin - silky rosemary; native rosemary *'' Westringia tenuicaulis'' C.T.White & W.D.Francis - tufted westringia *'' Westringia viminalis'' B.J.Conn & Tozer - Lord Howe westringia

References

External links

NSW Flora Online - Westringia
{{Taxonbar, from=Q3307765 Endemic flora of Australia Lamiaceae genera Taxa named by James Edward Smith