Styphelia

Styphelia is a genus of shrubs in the family Ericaceae and is endemic to Australia. Most have minute or small leaves with a sharp tip, single, tube-shaped flowers arranged in leaf axils and with the ends of the petals rolled back with hairs in the inside of the tube.

Styphelia
Styphelia tubiflora
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Ericales
Family: Ericaceae
Subfamily: Styphelioideae
Tribe: Styphelieae
Genus: Styphelia
Sm.
Styphelia perileuca

Description

Plants in the genus Styphelia are usually erect or spreading shrubs that have egg-shaped, elliptical or oblong, more or less sessile leaves with many fine, almost parallel veins and a sharp point on the tip. The flowers are usually arranged singly in leaf axils with small bracts grading to larger bracteoles at the base and five, usually coloured sepals. The petals are fused to form a cylindrical tube with their tips rolled back. The inside of the petal tube is hairy and the five stamens and thread-like style extend beyond the end of the tube. The fruit is a drupe with a dry or slightly fleshy mesocarp and a hard endocarp.[1][2][3]

Taxonomy and naming

The genus Styphelia was first formally described in 1795 by James Edward Smith in his book A Specimen of the Botany of New Holland.[4][5] The name Styphelia is from an ancient Greek word meaning "tough" or "harsh", referring to the "stiff, prickly leaves and general habit" of the genus.[6]

Species list

The following is a list of species, subspecies and varieties accepted by the Australian Plant Census as at April 2020:[7]

However, in 2020 a phylogenetic study by Darren Crayn, Michael Hislop and Caroline Peunte-Lelievre[8] argued the need to sink Astroloma and Coelanthera into Styphelia. This was accepted by the Western Australian Herbarium, resulting in the inclusion of all Western Australian species of Austroloma in Styphelia giving the following additional species[9] (list not complete):

  • Styphelia coelophylla (DC.) Hislop, Crayn & Puente-Lel.
  • Styphelia pallida (R.Br.) Spreng.
  • Styphelia pendula (R.Br.) Spreng.
  • Styphelia pentapogona F.Muell.
  • Styphelia planifolia (Sond.) Sleumer
  • Styphelia pogonocalyx (Benth.) F.Muell.
  • Styphelia propinqua (R.Br.) Spreng.
  • Styphelia prostrata (R.Br.) F.Muell.
  • Styphelia psilopus (Stschegl.) Hislop, Crayn & Puente-Lel.
  • Styphelia pubescens (S.Moore) Hislop, Crayn & Puente-Lel.
  • Styphelia pulchella (Stschegl.) Druce
  • Styphelia quartzitica Hislop
  • Styphelia stomarrhena (Sond.) Sleumer
  • Styphelia subulata (F.Muell.) Hislop, Crayn & Puente-Lel.
  • Styphelia sulcata Hislop & Puente-Lel.
  • Styphelia tamminensis (E.Pritz.) Sleumer
  • Styphelia tecta (R.Br.) Spreng.
  • Styphelia tortifolia Hislop, Crayn & Puente-Lel.
  • Styphelia williamsiorum Hislop & Puente-Lel.

Distribution

Species of Styphelia occur in all Australian mainland states and the Australian Capital Territory.[7]

References
  1. "Genus Styphelia". Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
  2. "Styphelia". Royal Botanic Gardens, Victoria. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
  3. "Styphelia Sm". FloraBase. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
  4. "Styphelia Sm". APNI. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
  5. Smith, James Edward (1795). A Specimen of the Botany of New Holland. London: J. Sowerby. p. 45. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
  6. Francis Aubie Sharr (2019). Western Australian Plant Names and their Meanings. Kardinya, Western Australia: Four Gables Press. p. 116. ISBN 9780958034180.
  7. "Styphelia". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
  8. Crayn, D.M.; Hislop, M.D.; Puente-Lelièvre, C. (2020). "A phylogenetic recircumscription of Styphelia (Ericaceae, Epacridoideae, Styphelieae)". Australian Systematic Botany. 33 (2): 137–168. doi:10.1071/SB18050. ISSN 1030-1887. Wikidata Q102898970.
  9. "FloraBase search: Styphelia". FloraBase. Retrieved 27 December 2020.
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