Maireana eriantha

Last updated

Maireana eriantha
Maireana eriantha.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Amaranthaceae
Genus: Maireana
Species:
M. eriantha
Binomial name
Maireana eriantha
Synonyms [1]
  • Kochia concava Ising
  • Kochia erianthaF.Muell.
  • Kochia villosa var. eriantha(F.Muell.) C.Moore
Habit near Lake Dutton Maireana eriantha habit.jpg
Habit near Lake Dutton

Maireana eriantha, commonly known as woolly bluebush, [2] is a species of flowering plant in the family Amaranthaceae and is endemic to Australia. It is a mainly a dioecious shrub with hairy branches, fleshy, very narrowly oblong leaves, flowers arranged singly or in pairs, and a silky-woolly fruiting perianth with a thin-walled tube with leathery wings.

Contents

Description

Maireana eriantha is an erect, dioecious shrub that grows to a height of up to 50 cm (20 in), its branches covered with woolly hairs. Its leaves are fleshy, very narrowly oblong, three-sided in cross-section, 10–30 mm (0.39–1.18 in) long, 1.5–3 mm (0.059–0.118 in) wide and densely covered with silky hairs. The flowers are arranged singly or in pairs in leaf axils. The fruiting perianth is silky-woolly, forming a soft ball about 10 mm (0.39 in) in diameter, the tube broadly top-shaped to cup-shaped, about 3 mm (0.12 in) high, with leathery wings divided into 5 lobes. [2] [3] [4] [5]

Taxonomy

This species was first described in 1859 by Ferdinand von Mueller who gave it the name Kochia eriantha in the Votes and Proceedings of the Legislative Assembly of the Victorian Government. [6] In 1975, Paul G. Wilson transferred the species to Maireana as M. eriantha in the journal Nuytsia . [3] [7] The specific epithet (eriantha) means 'wool-flowered'. [8]

Distribution and habitat

Woolly bluebush mainly grows on rocky hills and plains and is common north of Port Augusta in South Australia [2] [5] and in adjacent areas of Queensland, the Northern Territory [9] and New South Wales. [4]

Conservation status

Maireana eriantha is listed as "near threatened" under the Northern Territory Government Territory Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act [9] but as of "least concern" under the Queensland Government Nature Conservation Act 1992 . [10]

References

  1. 1 2 "Maireana eriantha". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 26 June 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 Wilson, Paul G. "Maireana eriantha". Flora of Australia. Australian Biological Resources Study, Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water: Canberra. Retrieved 26 June 2025.
  3. 1 2 Wilson, Paul G. (1975). "A Taxonomic Revision of the genus Maireana (Chenopodiaceae)". Nuytsia. 2 (1): 19–20. Retrieved 26 June 2025.
  4. 1 2 Jacobs, Surrey W.L. "Maireana eriantha". Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney. Retrieved 26 June 2025.
  5. 1 2 "Maireana eriantha". Seeds of South Australia. Retrieved 26 June 2025.
  6. ↑ "Kochia eriantha". Australian Plant Name Index. Retrieved 26 June 2025.
  7. ↑ "Maireana eriantha". Australian Plant Name Index. Retrieved 26 June 2025.
  8. ↑ George, Alex; Sharr, Francis (2021). Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings (3rd ed.). Kardinya, WA: Four Gables Press. p. 193. ISBN   9780958034180.
  9. 1 2 "Maireana eriantha". Northern Territory Government. Retrieved 26 June 2025.
  10. ↑ "Taxon - Maireana eriantha". Queensland Government WildNet. Retrieved 26 June 2025.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.