Guichenotia anota explained

Guichenotia anota is a flowering plant in the family Malvaceae and is endemic to a restricted part of the southwest of Western Australia. It is a low, erect, compact shrub with hairy new growth, oblong to narrowly egg-shaped leaves, and pinkish-purple flowers.

Description

Guichenotia anota is an erect, compact shrub that typically grows to high and wide, its new growth densely covered with white, star-shaped hairs, the hairs sometimes with a dark centre. The leaves are oblong to narrowly egg-shaped, the narrower end towards the base, long and wide on a petiole long and lacking stipules. The lower surface of the leaves is densely covered with star-shaped hairs with a dark centre, giving it a scaly appearance. The flowers are borne singly or in groups of three or four, sometime more, on a peduncle long, each flower on a pedicel long, with one or two bracts long and four bracteoles long at the base. The flowers are pendent, about in diameter with pinkish purple, petal-like sepals long and joined for three-quarters of their length. There are no petals or staminodes and the stamens are dark red. Flowering occurs from September to April and the fruit is a capsule in diameter.[1] [2]

Taxonomy and naming

Guichenotia anota was first formally described in 2009 by Carolyn F. Wilkins and the description was published in the journal Nuytsia from specimens collected near Ravensthorpe in 2003.[3] The specific epithet (anota) means "without an ear", referring to the absence of lobes on the leaves.[4]

Distribution and habitat

This species of guichenotia grows as an undershrub in partly shaded positions, in a restricted area near Ravensthorpe in the Esperance Plains bioregion of south-western Western Australia.[1] [2]

Conservation status

Guichenotia anota is listed as "Priority One" by the Government of Western Australia Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions, meaning that it is known from only one or a few locations that are potentially at risk.[5]

Notes and References

  1. Book: Blake . Trevor L. . Lantern bushes of Australia ; Thomasias & allied genera : a field and horticultural guide . 2021 . Australian Plants Society, Keilor Plains Group . Victoria . 9780646839301 . 214–215.
  2. Wilkins . Carolyn F. . Guichenotia anota and Guichenotia apetala (Lasiopetaleae: Byttneriaceae or Malvaceae s.l.) a new and a revised species endemic to Ravensthorpe Range, south-west Western Australia. . Nuytsia . 2009 . 19 . 1 . 183–186 . 20 May 2023 . 20 May 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230520081658/https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/312364#page/189/mode/1up . live .
  3. Web site: Guichenotia anota. APNI. 20 May 2023. 28 April 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240428050511/https://biodiversity.org.au/nsl/services/rest/instance/apni/648683. live.
  4. Book: Sharr . Francis Aubi . George . Alex . Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings . 2019 . Four Gables Press . Kardinya, WA . 9780958034180 . 134 . 3rd.
  5. Web site: Conservation codes for Western Australian Flora and Fauna. Government of Western Australia Department of Parks and Wildlife. 19 May 2023. 7 March 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190307112704/https://www.dpaw.wa.gov.au/images/documents/plants-animals/threatened-species/Listings/Conservation%20code%20definitions.pdf. live.