Trochetiopsis ebenus | |
---|---|
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Rosids |
Order: | Malvales |
Family: | Malvaceae |
Genus: | Trochetiopsis |
Species: | T. ebenus |
Binomial name | |
Trochetiopsis ebenus | |
Trochetiopsis ebenus, the dwarf ebony or Saint Helena ebony, is a species of flowering plant that is endemic to the island of Saint Helena in the southern Atlantic Ocean. It is not related to the ebony of commerce ( Diospyros spp.), but is instead a member of the mallow family, Malvaceae. Saint Helena ebony is now critically endangered in the wild, being reduced to two wild individuals on a cliff, but old roots are sometimes found washed out of eroding slopes (relicts of its former abundance). These are collected on the island a used for inlay work, an important craft on Saint Helena. A related species, Trochetiopsis melanoxylon is now completely extinct.
It can be propagated from cuttings and many island gardens now boast a fine ebony bush. It is related to the Saint Helena redwood ( Trochetiopsis erythroxylon ) and a hybrid between them (Trochetiopsis × benjamini) is also now often planted. Trochetiopsis ebenus has staminodes that are dark maroon or "black".
The Ebenaceae are a family of flowering plants belonging to order Ericales. The family includes ebony and persimmon among about 768 species of trees and shrubs. It is distributed across the tropical and warmer temperate regions of the world. It is most diverse in the rainforests of Malesia, India, tropical Africa and tropical America.
The Saint Helena scrub and woodlands ecoregion covers the volcanic island of Saint Helena in the South Atlantic Ocean. The island's remote location gave rise to many endemic species. First discovered and settled in the 1500s, the island has been degraded by human activities. Most of its native habitat has been destroyed, and many of its unique plants and animals are extinct or endangered.
Ebony is a dense black hardwood.
Lambertia is a genus of flowering plants, belonging to the family Proteaceae. It is endemic to Australia. The genus was named in 1798 by Sir James Edward Smith in honour of English botanist Aylmer Bourke Lambert.
The St. George Village Botanical Garden is a botanical garden with arboretum located at 127 Estate St. George, Frederiksted, Saint Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. It is open daily except Christmas; an admission fee is charged.
The Saint Helena olive was a plant from the monotypic genus of flowering plants Nesiota within the family Rhamnaceae.
Acalypha rubrinervis is an extinct plant in the spurge family (Euphorbiaceae), from the island of Saint Helena in the South Atlantic Ocean. It was called string tree on account of the thin pendulous inflorescences which resembled red strings. Disturbance following human settlement on the island destroyed its habitat and it was last seen in the 19th century. It is thus one of a number of island plants to have been driven to extinction by human activity.
The flora of Saint Helena, an isolated island in the South Atlantic Ocean, is exceptional in its high level of endemism and the severe threats facing the survival of the flora. In phytogeography, it is in the phytochorion St. Helena and Ascension Region of the African Subkingdom, in the Paleotropical Kingdom.
Dicksonia arborescens, the Saint Helena tree fern, is a characteristic plant of the "tree fern thicket" vegetation of the highest parts of the central ridge of the island of Saint Helena. It is the type species of the genus Dicksonia.
Trochetiopsis erythroxylon, the Saint Helena redwood, is a species of plant, now extinct in the wild. It was formerly abundant enough in the upland parts of the island of Saint Helena for early settlers in the 17th century to use the timber to make their homes. It now exists in cultivation, although cultivated stock is weak. This species has pendant flowers, petals that turn pink with age, and white staminodes.
Trochetiopsis melanoxylon, the dwarf ebony or St Helena ebony, of the island of Saint Helena is related to Trochetiopsis ebenus but is now extinct. It differed from T. ebenus by having much smaller flowers, sepals hairless on their interior surfaces and leaves densely hairy on both surfaces.
The flowering plant genus Trochetiopsis consists of two extant and one extinct species endemic to the island of Saint Helena. They were formerly placed in the family Sterculiaceae, but this is included in the expanded Malvaceae in the APG and most subsequent systematics.
Heliotropium pannifolium, the Saint Helena heliotrope, is now extinct but was formerly a hairy-leaved small shrub up to 1 m in height. it was only seen once, by the explorer W. Burchell in Broad Gut, Saint Helena and has never been seen again. Human impact on the island of Saint Helena was severe and the Saint Helena heliotrope is one of several extinct plants from that island.
Commidendrum robustum, the Saint Helena gumwood, is a species of tree endemic to Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha. Though it is now comparatively rare, it was once one of the most abundant trees of mid-elevations of the island of Saint Helena in the South Atlantic Ocean. A small tree to 7–8 m, it was cut extensively for fuel in the early years of settlement of the island by the English East India Company. It has given its name to certain placenames on the island such as "Gumwoods". It is one of several species in the endemic genus Commidendrum.
Mellissia was formerly a monotypic genus in the family Solanaceae with the single species, Mellissia begoniifolia, , endemic to the island of Saint Helena. It was named by Joseph Dalton Hooker in honour of John Charles Melliss, a 19th-century engineer and amateur naturalist who worked on Saint Helena. The plant is now known correctly as Withania begoniifolia (Roxb.) Hunz. & Barboza, the genus Mellissia having been subsumed in the genus Withania.
Nesohedyotis is a genus of flowering plants endemic to the island of Saint Helena in the South Atlantic Ocean. It in the family Rubiaceae.
Saint Helena, Ascension Island and Tristan da Cunha, as well the other uninhabited islands nearby, are a haven for wildlife in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. The islands are or were home to much endemic flora and fauna, especially invertebrates, and many endemic fish species found in the reef ecosystems off the islands. The islands have been identified by BirdLife International as Important Bird Areas for both their endemic landbirds and breeding seabirds.
Diana's Peak is the highest point, at 818 metres (2,684 ft), on the island of Saint Helena, a British overseas territory in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is of volcanic origin. The mountain and its surroundings with a total area of 81 ha were proclaimed a national park in March 1996, the first on the island. It is a preserve of several endangered endemic species, including tree fern, he cabbage and black cabbage trees, and whitewood. The park contains walking paths connecting the peaks - Mt. Actaeon (814m), Diana's Peak and Cuckold's Point (815m). The two shorter peaks are topped by large Norfolk pines. On the northern slopes there is a nursery for endemic species.
St Helena ebony is a common name for two closely related plants endemic to St Helena. It is inconsistently applied, and either of the following species may be referred to as St Helena ebony, with dwarf ebony used to refer to the other:
Dwarf ebony is a common name for two closely related plants endemic to St Helena. It is inconsistently applied, and either of the following species may be referred to as dwarf ebony, with St Helena ebony used to refer to the other: