Darwinia acerosa

Darwinia acerosa, commonly known as the fine-leaved darwinia, is a plant in the myrtle family Myrtaceae and is endemic to a small area in south-west of Western Australia. It is a densely branched, heath-like shrub with crowded, finely pointed leaves and drooping heads of forty to fifty yellowish-green flowers.

Darwinia acerosa
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Myrtales
Family: Myrtaceae
Genus: Darwinia
Species:
D. acerosa
Binomial name
Darwinia acerosa
Occurrence data from AVH

Description

Darwinia acerosa is a spreading, densely-branched, heath-like shrub with whitish branches which grows to a height of 30–50 centimetres (10–20 in). It has crowded, finely-pointed leaves which are about 1 centimetre (0.4 in) long, 1 millimetre (0.04 in) wide, triangular in cross-section and often have a hooked tip. The flowers are arranged in drooping, hemispherical heads of 40 to 50 greenish-yellow flowers. The heads are about 1.5 centimetres (0.6 in) in diameter and are surrounded by rows of green bracts which are longer than the flowers.[2][3]

Taxonomy

The first formal description of Darwinia acerosa was published by William Vincent Fitzgerald in 1904 in Journal of the West Australian Natural History Society.[1] The specific epithet (acerosa) is a Latin word meaning "full of chaff".[4]

Distribution and habitat

This darwinia is only known from three populations in the Mogumber area and four in the Perth area, totalling about five thousand plants. It grows in scrub and heath on and around granite outcrops.[3][5]

Conservation

Darwinia acerosa is classified as "Threatened Flora (Declared Rare Flora — Extant)" by the Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife[5] is also listed as "Endangered" (EN) under the Australian Government Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act). The main threats to its survival are dieback caused by Phytophthora cinnamomi, weed invasion, grazing and frequent fires.[3]

References
  1. "Darwinia acerosa". APNI. Retrieved 8 September 2016.
  2. Fitzgerald, William Vincent (1904). "Additions to the West Australian flora". Journal of the West Australian Natural History Society. 2 (1): 17. Retrieved 8 November 2016.
  3. "Approved Conservation Advice for Darwinia acerosa (Fine-leaved Darwinia)" (PDF). Government of Australia Department of the Environment. Retrieved 8 November 2016.
  4. Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press. p. 66.
  5. "Darwinia acerosa". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife.
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