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Styphelia tecta

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Styphelia tecta
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Ericales
Family: Ericaceae
Genus: Styphelia
Species:
S. tecta
Binomial name
Styphelia tecta
Synonyms[1]
  • Astroloma tectum R.Br.
  • Astroloma latifolium Sond.
  • Styphelia platyphylla F.Muell.

Styphelia tecta is a species of flowering plant in the heath family Ericaceae and is endemic to the south of Western Australia. It is a shrub with egg-shaped to broadly lance-shaped leaves and white, tube-shaped flowers with bearded lobes.

Description

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Styphelia tecta is a shrub that typically grows up to 30 cm (12 in) high and has a thick, woody trunk has many thick stems. The leaves are egg-shaped to broadly lance-shaped, almost overlapping, 13–19 mm (0.51–0.75 in) long with a short, sharply-pointed tip. The flowers are scarcely longer than the leaves, with bracteoles nearly 4 mm (0.16 in) long at the base. The sepals are 8.5–11 mm (0.33–0.43 in) long, and the petals are white, 13–15 mm (0.51–0.59 in) long and joined at the base forming a tube with bearded lobes.[2]

Taxonomy

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This species was first formally described in 1810 by Robert Brown who gave it the name Astroloma tectum in his Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen.[3][4] In 1824, Kurt Polycarp Joachim Sprengel transferred the species to Styphelia as S. tecta.[5] The specific epithet (tecta) means "hidden" or "concealed", referring to the inconspicuous flowers.[6]

Distribution

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This species grows in the Esperance Plains, Jarrah Forest and Mallee bioregions of southern Western Australia.[7]

Conservation status

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Styphelia striata is listed as "not threatened" by the Government of Western Australia Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.[7]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Styphelia tecta". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 20 April 2024.
  2. ^ Bentham, George (1868). Flora Australiensis. Vol. 4. London: Lovell Reeve & Co. p. 154. Retrieved 20 April 2024.
  3. ^ "Astroloma tectum". APNI. Retrieved 20 April 2024.
  4. ^ Brown, Robert (1810). Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen. London. p. 538. Retrieved 20 April 2024.
  5. ^ "Styphelia tecta". APNI. Retrieved 20 April 2024.
  6. ^ Sharr, Francis Aubi; George, Alex (2019). Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings (3rd ed.). Kardinya, WA: Four Gables Press. p. 320. ISBN 9780958034180.
  7. ^ a b "Styphelia tecta". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.