Protea pudens

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Protea pudens
Protea pudens 47517135.jpg
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Proteales
Family: Proteaceae
Genus: Protea
Species:
P. pudens
Binomial name
Protea pudens
Synonyms [3]

Protea pudens, also known as the bashful sugarbush, [3] [4] [5] is a low-growing, groundcover-like, flowering shrub in the genus Protea . [5] It is only found growing in the wild in a small area in the Western Cape province of South Africa.

Contents

In Afrikaans this species is known by the vernacular name of aardroos suikerbos.[ citation needed ]

Taxonomy

Protea pudens was first described as a new species by the South African botanist John Patrick Rourke in 1979, [2] who had collected it in the field from 1973. [6]

Description

The plant grows as a prostrate shrub flat along the ground, forming a mat up to 1 metre (3 ft 3 in) in diameter, [5] 30 centimetres (12 in) in height. It is sparsely branching; the stems are 1 centimetre (0.39 in) in diameter. It blooms with the inflorescences usually at ground level. [6] It blooms in the Winter, [4] from May to September, with the peak from July to August. The plant is monoecious with both sexes in each flower. [5] The flowers have no scent. The bracts subtending the inflorescence are deep pink in colour. [6]

Distribution

The plant is endemic to the southwestern Cape Region in South Africa, [3] [7] and occurs in a small area on flats near the village of Elim, and elsewhere on the Agulhas Plain, in the Western Cape province. [3] [4] [5] The extent of occurrence only consists of 67 km2, wherein it is only known to occur at four localities. [3]

Ecology

The plant grows in heavy, sandy clay, [3] [5] or shale-derived, gravelly soils, at altitudes of 23, [6] to 30–40 metres (100–130 ft). [3] [5] It grows in a specific type of ferricrete-soil, fynbos habitat. [3]

Pollination occurs through the action of birds. [3] [5]

Possible wildfires will destroy the mature plants, only the seeds will survive such an event. The seeds are stored in the many caps (fruits) in the dried, fire-resistant seed head, which is itself retained on the plant after senescence. The fruits are woody and persistent. The seeds are released from the caps after wildfires and dispersed by means of the wind. [3] [5]

Conservation

It is rare, [4] although when collected in 1973, [6] up to 1998, [5] it was locally common within the small area where it is known to occur. [5] [6] It is a cryptic plant and easily overlooked. [5]

It was first added to the Red data list of southern African plants as 'endangered' by the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) in 1996, and this was upheld in 2006 and 2009. According to the 2006 SANBI assessment the overall population is decreasing. Major threats to its survival were considered to be habitat loss due to expanding agriculture and invasive plants, as well as wild flower harvesting. Its total population is furthermore prone to fluctuations in abundance due to wildfires. [3]

Related Research Articles

<i>Protea neriifolia</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea neriifolia, also known as the narrow-leaf sugarbush, oleander-leaved sugarbush, blue sugarbush, or the oleanderleaf protea, is a flowering plant in the genus Protea, which is endemic to South Africa.

<i>Protea laurifolia</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea laurifolia, also known as the grey-leaf sugarbush, is a shrub from South Africa. It is native to the Cape Provinces of South Africa.

<i>Protea scolymocephala</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea scolymocephala, also known as the thistle protea or thistle sugarbush, is a flowering plant from the genus Protea native to South Africa.

<i>Protea acaulos</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea acaulos, also known as the common ground sugarbush, is a flowering plant found in the southwestern Cape Region, South Africa. It is also simply known as ground protea; in the Afrikaans language it is known as an aardroos.

<i>Protea effusa</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea effusa, sometimes known as the scarlet sugarbush, is a flowering plant which belongs to the genus Protea. The plant is endemic to the Western Cape province of South Africa. In the Afrikaans language the vernacular name blosrooisuikerbos has been recorded for this plant.

<i>Protea namaquana</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea namaquana, also known as the Kamiesberg sugarbush, is a flowering plant which belongs to the genus Protea. The plant is endemic to the southwestern Cape Region of South Africa, in particular the Kamiesberg mountains of Namaqualand in the Northern Cape province. The species has a worldwide distribution of only 18 km2. It is regarded as critically endangered. In the Afrikaans language it has the vernacular name is Kamiesbergsuikerbos.

<i>Protea pendula</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea pendula, also known as the nodding sugarbush or arid sugarbush, is a flowering plant of the genus Protea, in the family Proteaceae, which is only found growing in the wild in the Cape Region of South Africa. In the Afrikaans language it is known as knikkopsuikerbossie or ondersteboknopprotea.

<i>Protea sulphurea</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea sulphurea, also known as the sulphur sugarbush, is a flowering plant of the genus Protea in the family Proteaceae, which is only known to grow in the wild in the Western Cape province of South Africa. A vernacular name for the plant in the Afrikaans language is heuningkoeksuikerbos or Skaamblom.

<i>Protea intonsa</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea intonsa, also known as the tufted sugarbush, is a flowering plant of the genus Protea within the family Proteaceae, endemic to South Africa, where it is distributed from the eastern Swartberg and Kammanassie Mountains to the Baviaanskloof mountains. In Afrikaans it is known as klossie-suikerbos.

<i>Protea vogtsiae</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea vogtsiae, also known as the Kouga sugarbush, is a small flowering shrub of the genus Protea within the family Proteaceae, which is only found growing in the wild in the southern Cape Region of South Africa.

<i>Protea rubropilosa</i> Flowering tree

Protea rubropilosa, also known as the Transvaal sugarbush, escarpment sugarbush or Transvaal mountain sugarbush, is a flowering tree, that belongs to the genus Protea in the family Proteaceae. The plant only occurs in South Africa.

<i>Protea dracomontana</i> Species of flowering shrub

Protea dracomontana, the Nyanga protea or the Drakensberg sugarbush, is a flowering plant that belongs within the genus Protea. The plant is found in the Eastern Cape, Lesotho, KwaZulu-Natal and the escarpment of the Free State, as well as eastern Zimbabwe. In Zimbabwe this species is only known from a disjunct subpopulation confined to the summit of Mount Nyangani.

<i>Protea burchellii</i> Species of flowering plant

Protea burchellii, also known as Burchell's sugarbush, is a flowering shrub in the genus Protea, which is endemic to the southwestern Cape Region of South Africa.

<i>Protea susannae</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea susannae, also known as stink-leaf sugarbush, is a flower-bearing shrub of the genus Protea. The plant is endemic to the southwestern Cape Region of South Africa.

<i>Protea angustata</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea angustata, also known as the Kleinmond sugarbush, is a flowering shrub that belongs to the genus Protea. This plant is endemic to the south-west Cape Region of South Africa.

<i>Protea pityphylla</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae

Protea pityphylla, also known as Ceres sugarbush or mountain rose, is a flowering shrub of the genus Protea, in the family Proteaceae. The plant is endemic to the southwestern Cape Region of South Africa.

<i>Protea lorifolia</i> Species of shrub

Protea lorifolia, in English called the strap-leaved sugarbush, strap-leaved protea or strap-leaf sugarbush is a flowering shrub which belongs to the genus Protea.

<i>Protea caespitosa</i> Species of plant

Protea caespitosa, also known as hottentot bishop sugarbush or bishop sugarbush, is a flowering shrub belonging to the genus Protea which is only found growing in the wild in South Africa.

<i>Protea subulifolia</i> Species of flowering plant

Protea subulifolia, the awl-leaf sugarbush, is a flower-bearing shrub belonging to the Protea genus. The plant is native to the Western Cape and occurs from the Stettynskloof to Riviersonderendberge, Langeberg, Bot River to the Elim plain. The plant grows 50 cm in diameter and 70 cm tall and flowers from July to September.

<i>Protea decurrens</i> South African shrub

Protea decurrens, also known as linear-leaf sugarbush, is a shrub of the genus Protea, in the Proteaceae family, which is endemic to the southwestern Cape Region of South Africa. It is a small shrub with a thick underground rootstock, this structure throwing up numerous leafy branches, upon the base of which clusters of flower heads may appear close to the ground. It is pollinated by rodents and grows in low-altitude fynbos or renosterveld.

References

  1. ↑ Rebelo, A.G.; Raimondo, D.; von Staden, L. (2020). "Protea pudens". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2020: e.T113214172A185542858. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T113214172A185542858.en . Retrieved 18 November 2021.
  2. 1 2 "Protea pudens". International Plant Names Index . The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Harvard University Herbaria & Libraries and Australian National Botanic Gardens. Retrieved 26 July 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Rebelo, A.G.; Mtshali, H.; von Staden, L. (31 March 2006). "Groove-leaf Sugarbush". Red List of South African Plants. version 2020.1. South African National Biodiversity Institute . Retrieved 25 July 2020.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Protea pudens (Bashful sugarbush)". Biodiversity Explorer. Iziko - Museums of South Africa. Retrieved 26 July 2020.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 "Spoon-bract Sugarbushes - Proteas". Protea Atlas Project Website. 11 March 1998. Retrieved 26 July 2020.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Specimen: K000423674". Herbarium Catalogue, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 2020. Retrieved 26 July 2020.
  7. ↑ "Protea pudens Rourke", Plants of the World Online , Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, retrieved 26 July 2020


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