Thomasia is a genus of thirty-one species of flowering plants in the family Malvaceae. Plants in this genus are small shrubs that are endemic to the south-west of Western Australia, apart from T. petalocalyx that is native to Victoria and South Australia. The leaves are simple with leaf-like stipules at the base of the petiole, the flowers bisexual with five papery, petal-like sepals, usually five petals and five stamens opposite the petals. The fruit is a capsule covered with star-like hairs.[1] [2]
The genus Thomasia was first formally described in 1821 by Jaques Étienne Gay in Mémoires du Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle.[3] [4] The name Thomasia honours Pierre Thomas, his son Abraham, and Abraham's sons Philippe, Louis and Emmanuel, a family of Swiss plant collectors.[5]
The following is a listed of Thomasia species recognised by the Australian Plant Census as at December 2020:[6]