Eremophila pendulina

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Eremophila pendulina
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Scrophulariaceae
Genus: Eremophila
Species:
E. pendulina
Binomial name
Eremophila pendulina

Eremophila pendulina is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a tall, spindly, weeping shrub with narrow leaves and purple, mauve or white flowers in autumn and early spring.

Contents

Description

Eremophila pendulina is a sparse, wispy, open shrub which grows to a height of between 1.8 and 3 m (6 and 10 ft), usually consisting of a single, thin stem branching only near the top of the plant. The branches are thin, weak, flexible and drooping, dull reddish-brown in colour but sticky, shiny and often white due to the presence of dried resin. The leaves are mostly arranged alternately but clustered near the ends of the branches. They are linear in shape, 9–24 mm (0.4–0.9 in) long, about 1 mm (0.04 in) wide, have many small raised resin glands and are sticky and shiny. [2] [3]

The flowers are borne singly in leaf axils on a hairy stalk, 6–10 mm (0.2–0.4 in) long. There are 5 overlapping, green to purple, hairy sepals which are 6–9.5 mm (0.2–0.4 in) long and egg-shaped to lance-shaped. The petals are 18–28 mm (0.7–1 in) long and are joined at their lower end to form a tube. The petal tube is white to lilac-coloured, often darker on the top, and cream to yellow inside with purple to violet spots. The outer surface of the petal tube and lobes is hairy but the inner surface of the lobes is glabrous and the inside of the tube is filled with woolly hairs. The 4 stamens are fully enclosed in the petal tube. Flowering occurs from June to September and the fruits which follow are dry, oval-shaped, woody, hairy and 6–7 mm (0.24–0.28 in) long with a papery covering. [2] [3]

Taxonomy and naming

The species was first formally described by Robert Chinnock in 2007 and the description was published in Eremophila and Allied Genera: A Monograph of the Plant Family Myoporaceae. [4] The specific epithet (pendulina) is derived from the Latin word pendulus meaning "hanging", [5] referring to the rather pendulous leaves of this species. [2]

Distribution and habitat

Eremophila pendulina grows in loamy sand on rocky hills between Meekatharra and Cobra Station, west of Mount Augustus [3] in the Gascoyne and Murchison biogeographic regions. [6]

Conservation

This species is classified as "not threatened" by the Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife. [6]

Related Research Articles

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<i>Eremophila complanata</i> Species of flowering plant

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<i>Eremophila flabellata</i> Species of flowering plant

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<i>Eremophila glutinosa</i> Species of flowering plant

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Eremophila humilis is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a low, rounded shrub with club-shaped leaves and white bell-shaped flowers and which is only found in a restricted area near Meekatharra.

<i>Eremophila incisa</i> Species of flowering plant

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<i>Eremophila labrosa</i> Species of flowering plant

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<i>Eremophila lanceolata</i> Species of flowering plant

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Eremophila papillata is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is an erect, compact shrub with sticky, narrow leaves and mauve, blue or purple, rarely white flowers.

Eremophila petrophila is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a tall, erect, open shrub with rough branches, narrow, sticky leaves and pale lilac-coloured flowers.

<i>Eremophila platythamnos</i> Species of plant

Eremophila platythamnos, commonly known as desert foxglove, is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Australia. It is an erect shrub with short, broad leaves and purple, mauve, blue or pink flowers.

Eremophila praecox is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Australia. It is a small, broom-like shrub with small leaves and purple and white flowers.

Eremophila pungens is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Australia. It is an erect, sticky shrub with broad, serrated-edged leaves which end in a sharp spine and purple or violet flowers.

<i>Eremophila rugosa</i> Species of flowering plant

Eremophila rugosa is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is an erect shrub with sticky, shiny leaves and pink, purple or mauve flowers.

Eremophila shonae is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is an erect shrub or a low spreading shrub, depending on subspecies and has very sticky branches and leaves due to the presence of large amounts of resin. The leaves are narrow and the flowers are mauve to purple and white inside with purple spots.

Eremophila simulans is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is an erect shrub with broad, serrated leaves and violet to purple flowers.

<i>Eremophila spuria</i> Species of flowering plant

Eremophila spuria is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is an erect, open shrub with narrow leaves and blue, lilac, purple or white flowers and is a common and widespread species.

Eremophila succinea is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is an erect, broom-shaped shrub with sticky, narrow, hooked leaves, narrow, sticky sepals and hairy, pale purple or mauve petals.

<i>Eremophila veneta</i> Species of flowering plant

Eremophila veneta, commonly known as metallic-flowered eremophila is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a low, spreading, sticky shrub with dark green leaves and bluish-green petals.

Eremophila viscimarginata is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a small, erect, prickly shrub with hairy stems, small leaves, greenish-pink sepals and mauve petals.

References

  1. "Eremophila pendulina". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 6 September 2020.
  2. 1 2 3 Chinnock, R.J. (Bob) (2007). Eremophila and Allied Genera: A Monograph of the Plant Family Myoporaceae (1st ed.). Dural, NSW: Rosenberg. pp. 383–385. ISBN   9781877058165.
  3. 1 2 3 Brown, Andrew; Buirchell, Bevan (2011). A field guide to the eremophilas of Western Australia (1st ed.). Hamilton Hill, W.A.: Simon Nevill Publications. p. 205. ISBN   9780980348156.
  4. "Eremophila pendulina". APNI (Australian Plant Name Index). Retrieved 25 February 2016.
  5. Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press. p. 395.
  6. 1 2 "Eremophila pendulina". FloraBase . Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife.