Patersonia inaequalis explained

Patersonia inaequalis, commonly known as unequal bract patersonia, is a species of plant in the iris family Iridaceae and is endemic to a restricted part of the south-west of Western Australia. It is a tufted herb with linear, often twisted leaves and white tepals.

Description

Patersonia inaequalis is a tufted herb that with erect stems up to long. The leaves are linear, often twisted, long, wide, the leaf bases surrounding the stem. The flowering scape is long with the two sheaths enclosing the flowers of different lengths. The outer tepals are white, long and wide, and the hypanthium tube is long and glabrous. Flowering mainly occurs from August to October.[1]

Taxonomy and naming

Patersonia inaequalis was first described in 1873 by George Bentham in Flora Australiensis, from specimens collected by George Maxwell at Stokes Inlet.[2] [3] The specific epithet (inaequalis) means "unequal", referring to the bracts.[4]

Distribution and habitat

Unequal bract patersonia grows in heath and scrub on the coast of southern Western Australia between Stokes Inlet and Mondrain Island in the Recherche Archipelago.

Conservation status

Patersonia inaequalis is classified as "Priority Two" by the Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions, meaning that it is poorly known and from only one or a few locations.[5]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Patersonia inaequalis . Australian Biological Resources Study, Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment: Canberra . 22 November 2021.
  2. Web site: Patersonia inaequalis. APNI. 22 November 2020.
  3. Book: Bentham . George . von Mueller . Ferdinand . Flora Australiensis . 1873 . Lovell Reeve & Co. . London . 408 . 22 November 2021.
  4. Book: Sharr . Francis Aubi . George . Alex . Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings . 2019 . Four Gables Press . Kardinya, WA . 9780958034180 . 222 . 3rd.
  5. Web site: Conservation codes for Western Australian Flora and Fauna. Government of Western Australia Department of Parks and Wildlife. 22 November 2021.