Amyema benthamii | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Order: | Santalales |
Family: | Loranthaceae |
Genus: | Amyema |
Species: | A. benthamii |
Binomial name | |
Amyema benthamii | |
Collections data for A. benthamii from the Australasian Virtual Herbarium |
Amyema benthamii, commonly known as the twin-leaved mistletoe or Bentham's mistletoe, is a species of flowering plant, an epiphytic hemiparasitic plant of the family Loranthaceae native to Western Australia and the Northern Territory of Australia in semi-arid woodland. [2] This species is named in honour of the English botanist George Bentham who between 1863 and 1878 published Flora Australiensis , the first flora of Australia. [3]
This mistletoe has slender stems with opposite pairs of sessile (unstalked), semi-clasping, bluish-green leaves about 2 cm (0.8 in) long. The flowers, which have reddish-brown stalks, are borne in the axils of the leaves in dangling groups of three; the buds are reddish-purple with green bases and tips, and open to reveal pale green petals and a projecting boss of stamens. It has a sparse, open habit of growth. [3]
The species was first described in 1922 as Loranthus benthamii by William Blakely, [4] [5] but was reassigned to the genus, Amyema , by Benedictus Hubertus Danser in 1929. [1] [6]
A. benthamii has been recorded as growing on thirty-one different species of host plant from eighteen different plant families. The most frequently used host is the bottletree (Brachychiton spp.), but other common hosts include Owenia and Acacia . [3]
Amyema is a genus of semi-parasitic shrubs (mistletoes) which occur in Malesia and Australia.
Amyema miquelii, also known as box mistletoe, is a species of flowering plant, an epiphytic hemiparasitic plant of the family Loranthaceae, found attached to several species of Australian eucalypt and occasionally on some species of Acacia. It is the most widespread of the Australian Mistletoes, occurring mainly to the west of the Great Dividing Range. It has shiny leaves and red flowers arranged in groups of 3. It is distinguished from the similar Amyema pendula through the individual stalks of the flowers.
Amyema quandang is a species of hemi-parasitic shrub which is widespread throughout the mainland of Australia, especially arid inland regions, sometimes referred to as the grey mistletoe.
Amyema congener, commonly known as the variable mistletoe, is a species of flowering plant, an epiphytic hemiparasitic plant of the family Loranthaceae from eastern Australia. It is found on members of the genera Allocasuarina, Acacia and some exotic species.
Dendrophthoe glabrescens, commonly known as orange mistletoe, is a hemiparasitic plant of the mistletoe family Loranthaceae, found in eastern and northern Australia. It flowers from October to January. The flowers are tubular, with a green base, but where the tube splits open, it displays orange and bright red.
Amyema pendula, also known as drooping mistletoe or furry drooping mistletoe, is a species of flowering plant, an epiphytic hemiparasitic plant of the family Loranthaceae, found attached to several species of Australian eucalypt and occasionally on some species of Acacia. It is endemic to south-eastern Australia. It is the most common mistletoe in Victoria, especially on the coastal side of the Great Dividing Range. It has shiny leaves and red flowers arranged in groups of 3 or 4. It is distinguished from the similar Amyema miquelii through the lack of individual stalks on the flowers.
Lysiana exocarpi, commonly known as harlequin mistletoe, is a species of hemiparasitic shrub, endemic to Australia. It is in the Gondwanan family Loranthaceae and is probably the most derived genus of that family with 12 pairs of chromosomes. The Loranthaceae is the most diverse family in the mistletoe group with over 900 species worldwide and including the best known species in Australia. Mistletoes are notable for their relationships with other species. In an early reference to the group in Australia Allan Cunningham explorer and first Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney, wrote in 1817: "The Bastard Box is frequently much encumbered with the twining adhering Loranthus aurantiacus which 'Scorning the soil, aloft she springs, Shakes her red plumes and claps her golden wings'."
Amyema bifurcata is an epiphytic, flowering, hemiparasitic plant of the family Loranthaceae native to Australia and found in Western Australia, the Northern Territory, Queensland and New South Wales.
Amyema maidenii is a species of flowering plant within the genus Amyema, an epiphytic hemiparasitic plant of the family Loranthaceae native to Australia and found Australia-wide in the inland.
Amyema mackayensis, the mangrove mistletoe, is a species of flowering plant within the genus Amyema, an epiphytic hemiparasitic plant of the family Loranthaceae native to Australia, and found along its northern and eastern coasts in New South Wales, Queensland, the Northern Territory and Western Australia, and also in New Guinea.
Amyema fitzgeraldii, the pincushion mistletoe, is a species of flowering plant within the genus Amyema, an epiphytic hemiparasitic plant of the family Loranthaceae endemic to Australia, and found in the Northern Territory, South Australia and Western Australia.
Amyema biniflora, the twin-flower mistletoe, is a species of flowering plant within the genus Amyema, an epiphytic hemiparasitic plant of the family Loranthaceae endemic to Queensland, Australia.
Amyema sanguinea is an aerial hemiparasitic shrub within the genus Amyema, in the family Loranthaceae and native to Australia, where it is found in New South Wales, Queensland, the Northern Territory, South Australia and Western Australia.
Amyema gibberula is an aerial hemiparasitic plant of the family Loranthaceae native to Australia and found in Western Australia, the Northern Territory, and South Australia.
Amyema melaleucae, also known as the tea-tree mistletoe, is a species of flowering plant within the genus Amyema, an epiphytic hemiparasitic plant of the family Loranthaceae native to Australia and found in Western Australia and South Australia on the coast, from north of Perth almost to the Victorian border.
Decaisnina brittenii is a species of flowering plant, an epiphytic hemiparasitic plant of the family Loranthaceae native to the Northern Territory, Queensland and northern Western Australia.
Amyema cambagei, commonly known as sheoak mistletoe, is a species of flowering plant, an epiphytic hemiparasitic plant of the family Loranthaceae endemic to Australia, and found in New South Wales and Queensland in sclerophyll forest and woodland on several species of Casuarinaceae.
Amyema plicatula is a species of hemi-parasitic shrub found in the Bismarck Archipelago, New Guinea, New South Wales and Queensland.
Amyema nestor is a species of epiphytic hemiparasitic plant in the family Loranthaceae. It is native to Western Australia, and found growing only on acacias.
Amyema miraculosa, also known as the fleshy mistletoe and the round-leaf mistletoe, is an Australian native mistletoe found in all states except Tasmania. It is a woody, hemiparasitic plant, in the Loranthaceae family. Being hemiparasitic, it draws water and minerals from its host, however it photosynthesises to manufacture its own supply of carbohydrates.