Colubrina pedunculata
Colubrina pedunculata is a shrub in the family Rhamnaceae. It is endemic to Christmas Island, an Australian territory in the north-eastern Indian Ocean. Its specific epithet comes from the Latin pedunculatus, referring to the long and conspicuous peduncle of the inflorescence.[2]
| Colubrina pedunculata | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Rosales |
| Family: | Rhamnaceae |
| Genus: | Colubrina |
| Species: | C. pedunculata |
| Binomial name | |
| Colubrina pedunculata | |
Description
Colubrina pedunculata is a thorny, sometimes straggling, shrub or small tree. Its thorns are 5–20 mm long. Its leaves are alternate, narrowly elliptic, and deciduous after fruiting. It bears many yellow-green flowers, 5–6 mm across and clustered. The fruit is about 7 mm long.[2]
Distribution and habitat
Found only on Christmas Island, the plant is common on the northern and north-eastern terraces, in areas of poor, dry soil, among limestone pinnacles and scree, and in cliff edge thickets.[2]
Relationships
Since it is closely related to the widespread C. asiatica (L.) Brongn., the fruit of which is used as a fish toxin, and the leaves of which are used medicinally to treat skin diseases, similar chemical or pharmacological properties may be expected in C. pedunculata.[2]
References
Notes
- pp.175 in: Andrews et al. (1900).
- Flora of Australia Online.
Sources
- Andrews, Charles W.; et al. (1900). Monograph of Christmas Island. London: British Museum (Natural History).
- "Colubrina pedunculata Baker f." Flora of Australia Online. Australian Biological Resources Study. 1993. Retrieved 2010-11-25.