Jump to content

Styphelia mitchellii

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Styphelia mitchellii
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Ericales
Family: Ericaceae
Genus: Styphelia
Species:
S. mitchellii
Binomial name
Styphelia mitchellii
Occurrence data from AVH
Synonyms[1]
  • Leucopogon mitchellii Benth.
  • Leucopogon cuspidatus Lindl.

Styphelia mitchellii is a species of flowering plant in the family Ericaceae family and is endemic to Queensland. It is a shrub with sharply-pointed, narrowly oblong leaves and white, tube-shaped flowers.

Description

[edit]

Styphelia mitchellii is a glabrous, often glaucous shrub that typically grows to a height of 60–90 cm (24–35 in). Its leaves are sessile, narrowly oblong, usually less than 12 mm (0.47 in) long, with a small, sharp point on the tip. The flowers are usually borne singly in leaf axils on a short peduncle, the flowers relatively large for the genus Leucopogon. There are minute bracts at the base of the flower and broad bracteoles less than half as long as the sepals. The sepals are almost 4.2 mm (0.17 in) long, and the petals are white, joined at the base to form a tube 6.3–7.4 mm (0.25–0.29 in) long with lobes almost 4.2 mm (0.17 in) long. The style protrudes beyond the petal tube.[2]

Taxonomy

[edit]

This species was first formally described in 1868 by George Bentham, who gave it the name Leucopogon mitchellii in Flora Australiensis from specimens collected, among others, by Thomas Mitchell near Lake Salvator Rosa.[2][3] In 1882, Ferdinand von Mueller transferred the species to Styphelia as S. mitchellii in his Systematic Census of Australian Plants.[1]

Distribution

[edit]

This species is endemic to Queensland.[1]

Conservation status

[edit]

Styphelia mitchellii is listed as of "least concern" by the Queensland Government Department of Environment and Science.[4]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d "Styphelia mitchellii". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 12 March 2024.
  2. ^ a b Bentham, George (1868). Flora Australiensis. Vol. 4. London: Lovell Reeve & Co. p. 220. Retrieved 26 January 2023.
  3. ^ "Leucopogon mitchellii". APNI. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
  4. ^ "Species profile - Styphelia mitchellii". Queensland Government Department of Environment and Science. Retrieved 12 March 2024.
[edit]