Styphelia tecta explained

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

Styphelia tecta is a shrub that typically grows up to high and has a thick, woody trunk has many thick stems. The leaves are egg-shaped to broadly lance-shaped, almost overlapping, long with a short, sharply-pointed tip. The flowers are scarcely longer than the leaves, with bracteoles nearly long at the base. The sepals are long, and the petals are white, long and joined at the base forming a tube with bearded lobes.[1]

Taxonomy

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.[2] [3] In 1824, Kurt Polycarp Joachim Sprengel transferred the species to Styphelia as S. tecta.[4] The specific epithet (tecta) means "hidden" or "concealed", referring to the inconspicuous flowers.[5]

Distribution

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

Conservation status

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

Notes and References

  1. Book: Bentham . George . Flora Australiensis . 4 . 1868 . Lovell Reeve & Co. . London . 154 . 20 April 2024.
  2. Web site: Astroloma tectum. APNI. 20 April 2024.
  3. Book: Brown . Robert . Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen . 1810 . London . 538 . 20 April 2024.
  4. Web site: Styphelia tecta. APNI. 20 April 2024.
  5. Book: Sharr . Francis Aubi . George . Alex . Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings . 2019 . Four Gables Press . Kardinya, WA . 9780958034180 . 320 . 3rd.