Thomasia rugosa
| Wrinkled leaf thomasia | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Malvales |
| Family: | Malvaceae |
| Genus: | Thomasia |
| Species: | T. rugosa
|
| Binomial name | |
| Thomasia rugosa | |
| Synonyms | |
|
Leucothamnus polyspermus Turcz. | |
Thomasia rugosa, commonly known as wrinkled leaf thomasia,[2] is a species of flowering plant in the family Malvaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It has wrinkled, lance-shaped to egg-shaped leaves with wavy edges, and pink to mauve flowers.
Description
[edit]Thomasia rugosa is a densely-branched shrub that typically grows to 0.6–1 m (2 ft 0 in – 3 ft 3 in) high and 1.5 m (4 ft 11 in) wide, its young branchlets densely covered with star-shaped hairs. The leaves are wrinkled, lance-shaped to egg-shaped base, 25–75 mm (0.98–2.95 in) long and 30–35 mm (1.2–1.4 in) wide, on a petiole up to 20 mm (0.79 in) long with hairy, wing-like stipules 8–10 mm (0.31–0.39 in) long at the base. The edges of the leaves are wavy, the lower surface densely woolly-hairy. The flowers are pink to mauve, about 12 mm (0.47 in) wide, and arranged in racemes on a hairy peduncle, with hairy bracteoles at the base of the sepals. The sepals are 6–8 mm (0.24–0.31 in) long but there are no petals. Flowering occurs from August to December.[2][3]
Taxonomy and naming
[edit]Thomasia rugosa was first formally described in 1846 by Nikolai Turczaninow in the Bulletin de la Société Impériale des Naturalistes de Moscou, from specimens collected by James Drummond.[4][5] The specific epithet (rugosa) means "wrinkled", referring to the leaves.[3]
Distribution and habitat
[edit]Wrinkled leaf thomasia grows in heath and mallee shrubland between Lake Grace, Pithara and Donnybrook in the Avon Wheatbelt, Esperance Plains, Jarrah Forest and Mallee bioregions of south-western Western Australia.[2][3]
Conservation status
[edit]Thomasia quercifolia is listed as "not threatened" by the Government of Western Australia Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.[2]
References
[edit]- ^ "Thomasia rugosa". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
- ^ a b c d "Thomasia rugosa". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
- ^ a b c Blake, Trevor L. (2021). Lantern bushes of Australia; Thomasias & allied genera : a field and horticultural guide. Victoria: Australian Plants Society, Keilor Plains Group. pp. 58–59. ISBN 9780646839301.
- ^ Turczaninow, Nicolai Stepanovitch (1846). "Thomasia brachystachys". Bulletin de la Société Impériale des Naturalistes de Moscou. 19 (2): 501. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
- ^ "Thomasia rugosa". Australian Plant Name Index. Retrieved 22 February 2023.