Embothrium

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Embothrium
Embothrium in flower.jpg
Embothirum bush in flower, at Cerro Castillo National Park, Chile.
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Proteales
Family: Proteaceae
Subfamily: Grevilleoideae
Tribe: Embothrieae
Subtribe: Embothriinae
Genus: Embothrium
J.R.Forst. & G.Forst.
Species

See text

Embothrium is a genus of two to eight species (depending on taxonomic interpretation) in the plant family Proteaceae, native to southern South America, in Chile and adjacent western Argentina; the genus occurs as far south as Tierra del Fuego. Common names include Chilean firebush in English, notro in Argentina, ciruelillo, fosforito or notro chileno in Chilean Spanish.

Contents

They are large shrubs or trees growing to 10–20 m tall with a trunk up to 70 cm diameter. E. coccineum and perhaps others, is also highly prone to suckering and unmanaged plants often form dense groves of many suckering shoots. The leaves are evergreen, occasionally deciduous in cold areas, 5–12 cm long and 2–4 cm broad. The flowers are produced in dense bunches, brilliant red (rarely white or yellow), tubular, 2.5-4.5 cm long, split into four lobes near the apex which reflex to expose the stamens and style.

Systematics

One or possibly two extant species are recognised. Two further species, ?E. precoccineum and ?E. pregrandiflorum, have been described from the Ventana Formation (Middle Eocene) from Patagonia, although their placement in Embothrium is uncertain as they are insufficiently known. [1]

Species

Classification

Together with Telopea , Oreocallis and Alloxylon , Embothrium makes up a small group of terminal often red-flowering showy plants scattered around the southern edges of the Pacific Rim. Known as the Embothriinae, this is an ancient group with roots in the mid Cretaceous, when Australia, Antarctica and South America were linked by land. [2] [3] Almost all these species have red terminal flowers, and hence the subtribe's origin and floral appearance must predate the splitting of Gondwana into Australia, Antarctica, and South America over 60 million years ago.

Pollinators

The prominent position and striking colour of many species within the subtribe both in Australia and South America strongly suggest they are adapted to pollination by birds, and have been for over 60 million years. [4] In Argentine Patagonia, E. coccineum is pollinated by hummingbirds (green-backed firecrown) and insects (tangle-veined flies and sweat bees). [5]

Cultivation and uses

Embothrium coccineum is grown as an ornamental plant for its vivid red flowers. It is only successful in oceanic climates, which away from its native area includes western Europe (mainly the British Isles and the Faroe Islands), the coast of the Pacific Northwest of North America, and New Zealand, and Mediterranean climates.

Related Research Articles

<i>Iochroma</i> Genus of shrubs

Iochroma is a genus of about 34 species of shrubs and small trees belonging to the nightshade family Solanaceae. Species are native from Mexico to south Brazil. They are found in the forests of Mexico and South America. Their hummingbird-pollinated flowers are tubular or trumpet-shaped, and may be blue, purple, red, yellow, or white, becoming pulpy berries. The cupular (cup-shaped) calyx is inflated in some species. The leaves are alternate, simple, and entire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Waratah</span> Genus of plants in the family Proteaceae from southeastern Australia

The waratah (Telopea) is an Australian-endemic genus of five species of large shrubs or small trees, native to the southeastern parts of Australia. The best-known species in this genus is Telopea speciosissima, which has bright red flowers and is the New South Wales (NSW) state emblem. The waratah is a member of the family Proteaceae, flowering plants distributed in the Southern Hemisphere. The key diagnostic feature of Proteaceae is the inflorescence, which is often very large, brightly coloured and showy, consisting of many small flowers densely packed into a compact head or spike. Species of waratah boast such inflorescences ranging from 6–15 cm in diameter with a basal ring of coloured bracts. The leaves are spirally arranged, 10–20 cm long and 2–3 cm broad with entire or serrated margins. The name waratah comes from the Eora Aboriginal people, the pre-European inhabitants of the Sydney area.

<i>Telopea speciosissima</i> Shrub of the family Proteaceae endemic to New South Wales

Telopea speciosissima, commonly known as the New South Wales waratah or simply waratah, is a large shrub in the plant family Proteaceae. It is endemic to New South Wales in Australia. No subspecies are recognised; the closely related Telopea aspera was classified as a separate species in 1995. T. speciosissima is a shrub to 3 or 4 m high and 2 m (6.6 ft) wide, with dark green leaves. Its several stems arise from a pronounced woody base known as a lignotuber. The species is well renowned for its striking large red springtime inflorescences (flowerheads), each including hundreds of individual flowers. These are visited by the eastern pygmy possum , birds such as honeyeaters (Meliphagidae), and various insects.

<i>Lomatia</i> Genus of flowering plants

Lomatia is a genus of 12 species of evergreen flowering plants in the protea family Proteaceae. Within the family, they have been placed, alone, in their own subtribe, Lomatiinae according to Johnson & Briggs 1975 classification of the family and subsequently in Flora of Australia (1995).

<i>Alloxylon</i> Genus of tree in the family Proteaceae

Alloxylon is a genus of four species in the family Proteaceae of mainly small to medium-sized trees. They are native to the eastern coast of Australia, with one species, A. brachycarpum found in New Guinea and the Aru Islands. The genus is a relatively new creation, being split off from Oreocallis in 1991. The name is derived from Ancient Greek allo- "other" or "strange" and xylon or "wood" due to their unusual cell architecture compared with the related genera Telopea and Oreocallis. In Australia, they are known as tree waratahs due to similarities in the inflorescences between them and the closely related Telopea.

<i>Embothrium coccineum</i> Species of tree in the family Proteaceae from Chile and Argentina

Embothrium coccineum, Chilean firetree or Chilean firebush, commonly known in Chile and Argentina as notro, ciruelillo and fósforo is a small evergreen tree in the flowering plant family Proteaceae. It grows in the temperate forests of Chile and Argentina.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Proteaceae</span> Family of flowering plants

The Proteaceae form a family of flowering plants predominantly distributed in the Southern Hemisphere. The family comprises 83 genera with about 1,660 known species. Australia and South Africa have the greatest concentrations of diversity. Together with the Platanaceae, Nelumbonaceae and in the recent APG IV system the Sabiaceae, they make up the order Proteales. Well-known Proteaceae genera include Protea, Banksia, Embothrium, Grevillea, Hakea, and Macadamia. Species such as the New South Wales waratah, king protea, and various species of Banksia, Grevillea, and Leucadendron are popular cut flowers. The nuts of Macadamia integrifolia are widely grown commercially and consumed, as are those of Gevuina avellana on a smaller scale.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grevilleoideae</span> Subfamily of plants in the family Proteaceae, mainly from the Southern Hemisphere

The Grevilleoideae are a subfamily of the plant family Proteaceae. Mainly restricted to the Southern Hemisphere, it contains around 46 genera and about 950 species. Genera include Banksia, Grevillea, and Macadamia.

<i>Alloxylon flammeum</i> Species of tree in the family Proteaceae

Alloxylon flammeum, commonly known as the Queensland tree waratah or red silky oak, is a medium-sized tree of the family Proteaceae found in the Queensland tropical rain forests of northeastern Australia. It has shiny green elliptical leaves up to 18 cm (7.1 in) long, and prominent orange-red inflorescences that appear from August to October, followed by rectangular woody seed pods that ripen in February and March. Juvenile plants have large deeply lobed pinnate leaves. Previously known as Oreocallis wickhamii, the initial specimen turned out to be a different species to the one cultivated and hence a new scientific name was required. Described formally by Peter Weston and Mike Crisp in 1991, A. flammeum was designated the type species of the genus Alloxylon. This genus contains the four species previously classified in Oreocallis that are found in Australasia.

Alloxylon brachycarpum is a species of plant in the family Proteaceae. It is found in Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. It is threatened by habitat loss.

<i>Telopea mongaensis</i> Species of plant in the family Proteaceae endemic to south eastern New South Wales, Australia

Telopea mongaensis, commonly known as the Monga waratah or Braidwood waratah, is a shrub or small tree in the family Proteaceae. Endemic to Australia, it grows at high altitude in south eastern New South Wales, where it is often seen in moist areas at the edge of rainforest or by streams in eucalyptus forests. Growing to 6 m (20 ft) high, it has narrow green leaves 4–18 cm (1.6–7.1 in) in length, and 0.5–2 cm (0.20–0.79 in) wide. In spring bears many red flowerheads, each made up of 28 to 65 individual flowers.

<i>Telopea oreades</i> Large shrub or small tree in the family Proteaceae native to southeastern Australia

Telopea oreades, commonly known as the Gippsland-, mountain- or Victorian waratah, is a large shrub or small tree in the family Proteaceae. Native to southeastern Australia, it is found in wet sclerophyll forest and rainforest on rich acidic soils high in organic matter. No subspecies are recognised, though a northern isolated population hybridises extensively with the Braidwood waratah (T. mongaensis). Reaching a height of up to 19 metres, T. oreades grows with a single trunk and erect habit. It has dark green leaves with prominent veins that are 11–28 centimetres (4.3–11 in) long and 1.5–6 cm (0.6–2.4 in) wide. The red flower heads, known as inflorescences, appear in late spring. Each is composed of up to 60 individual flowers.

<i>Telopea truncata</i> Shrub in the family Proteaceae endemic to Tasmania

Telopea truncata, commonly known as the Tasmanian waratah, is a plant in the family Proteaceae. It is endemic to Tasmania where it is found on moist acidic soils at altitudes of 600 to 1200 m (2000–4000 ft). Telopea truncata is a component of alpine eucalypt forest, rainforest and scrub communities. It grows as a multistemmed shrub to a height of 3 metres (10 ft), or occasionally as a small tree to 10 m (35 ft) high, with red flower heads, known as inflorescences, appearing over the Tasmanian summer and bearing 10 to 35 individual flowers. Yellow-flowered forms are occasionally seen, but do not form a population distinct from the rest of the species.

<i>Telopea aspera</i> Species of plant in the family Proteaceae from New South Wales in Australia

Telopea aspera, commonly known as Gibraltar Range waratah, is a plant in the family Proteaceae. It grows as a woody shrub to 3 metres (10 ft) high with leathery rough leaves and bright red flower heads known as inflorescences—each composed of hundreds of individual flowers. It is endemic to the New England region in New South Wales in Australia. It was formally described as a species by botanists Peter Weston and Mike Crisp in 1995, separated from its close relative Telopea speciosissima by its rough foliage and preference for dryer habitat. Unlike its better known relative, Telopea aspera has rarely been cultivated.

<i>Alloxylon pinnatum</i> Tree of the family Proteaceae found in south-east Queensland and northern New South Wales

Alloxylon pinnatum, known as Dorrigo waratah, is a tree of the family Proteaceae found in warm-temperate rainforest of south-east Queensland and northern New South Wales in eastern Australia. It has shiny green leaves that are either pinnate (lobed) and up to 30 cm (12 in) long, or lanceolate (spear-shaped) and up to 15 cm (5.9 in) long. The prominent pinkish-red flower heads, known as inflorescences, appear in spring and summer; these are made up of 50 to 140 individual flowers arranged in corymb or raceme. These are followed by rectangular woody seed pods, which bear two rows of winged seeds.

<i>Lomatia ferruginea</i> Species of tree in the family Proteaceae native to southern Argentina and Chile

Lomatia ferruginea, commonly known as fuinque, is a small evergreen tree in the family Proteaceae.

<i>Oreocallis</i> Monotypic genus of plants in the family Proteaceae from Peru and Ecuador

Oreocallis is a South American plant genus in the family Proteaceae. There is only one species, Oreocallis grandiflora, which is native to mountainous regions in Peru and Ecuador.

<i>Bombus dahlbomii</i> Species of bee

Bombus dahlbomii, also known as the moscardón, is a species of bumblebee endemic to southern South American temperate forests. B. dahlbomii is one of the largest bee species in the world, with matured queens growing up to 40 mm (1.6 in) long. Because of its size and furry appearance, the species has been described as "flying mice" colloquially, and "a monstrous fluffy ginger beast" by British ecologist David Goulson.

<i>Opisthiolepis</i> Genus of plants

Opisthiolepis is a monotypic genus of trees in the macadamia family Proteaceae. The sole species is Opisthiolepis heterophylla, commonly known as blush silky oak, pink silky oak, brown silky oak or drunk rabbit. It was first described in 1952 and is endemic to a small part of northeastern Queensland, Australia.

Agathis zamunerae is an extinct species of tree in the genus Agathis from the Early and Middle Eocene rainforest paleofloras of the Ligorio Márquez and Ventana Formations, Patagonia, Argentina. The genus existed roughly from 52.2 to 47.75 million years ego.

References

  1. Gonzalez, Cynthia C.; Gandolfo Maria Alejandra; Zamaloa, Maria C.; Cúneo, Nestor R.; Wilf, Peter; Johnson, Kirk (2007). "Revision of the Proteaceae Macrofossil Record from Patagonia, Argentina" (PDF). The Botanical Review. 73 (3): 235–66. doi:10.1663/0006-8101(2007)73[235:rotpmr]2.0.co;2.
  2. Johnson, Lawrie. A. S.; Briggs, Barbara G. (1975). "On the Proteaceae: the evolution and classification of a southern family". Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society. 70 (2): 83–182. doi:10.1111/j.1095-8339.1975.tb01644.x.
  3. Weston, Peter H.; Barker, Nigel P. (2006). "A new suprageneric classification of the Proteaceae, with an annotated checklist of genera". Telopea. 11 (3): 314–44. doi: 10.7751/telopea20065733 .
  4. Nixon, Paul (1997) [1989]. The Waratah (2nd ed.). East Roseville, NSW: Kangaroo Press. p. 19. ISBN   978-0-86417-878-7.
  5. Devoto, M., N. H. Montaldo & D. Medan, 2006. Mixed hummingbird: Long-proboscid-fly pollination in ‘ornithophilous’ Embothrium coccineum (Proteaceae) along a rainfall gradient in Patagonia, Argentina. Austral Ecology, 31: 512–519