Cuscuta australis, commonly known as Australian dodder, is a herb in the family Convolvulaceae.[1]

Australian dodder
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Solanales
Family: Convolvulaceae
Genus: Cuscuta
Species:
C. australis
Binomial name
Cuscuta australis
Occurrence data from GBIF[3]
Synonyms[4]

Cuscuta obtusiflora var. australis (R.Br.) Engelm.
Grammica australis (R.Br.) Hadac & Chrtek
Grammica scandens subsp. australis (R.Br.) Holub

The annual parasitic twining herb or climber that is associated with many hosts. It blooms between November and March producing 5-merous[5] white-cream-yellow flowers[1] in compact clusters on pedicels which are less than 2.5 millimetres (0.1 in) long.[5] The lobes are rounded-triangular and shorter than or equal in length to the corolla tube.[5] It parasitises both native and exotic plants.[5] To maximize its seed yield, it synchronizes its flowering to that of its host plant via detection of a signaling protein in the host.[6]

Distribution

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Australia

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In Western Australia, it is found in a small area in the Fitzgerald River National Park in the Great Southern and Goldfields-Esperance regions of Western Australia where it grows in sandy-clay soils.[1] It is also found in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland,[5] and New Guinea[7]

Elsewhere

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It is found widely throughout the world and considered native to Europe, tropical Asia, Africa, Australasia and temperate Asia.[4]

Taxonomy

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C. australis was first described by Robert Brown in 1810.[2][1] The type specimen, BM00016305,[8] was collected on 25 September 1802 at Broad Sound, Queensland, Australia by Robert Brown.

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e "Cuscuta australis". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
  2. ^ a b Brown, R. 1810. Prodromus florae Novae Hollandiae 491
  3. ^ GBIF.org (26 June 2018) GBIF Occurrence Download https://doi.org/10.15468/dl.gqc46w Cuscuta australis R.Br.
  4. ^ a b Govaerts, R.; et al. "Cuscuta australis". Plants of the world online. Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 26 June 2018.
  5. ^ a b c d e Johnson, R.W. (1992). "Cuscuta australis". Plant NET New South Wales Flora online. National Herbarium of NSW, Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney. Retrieved 26 June 2018.
  6. ^ Shen, G., Liu, N., Zhang, J., Xu, Y., Baldwin, I. T., Wu, J. (2020-08-31). "Cuscuta australis (dodder) parasite eavesdrops on the host plants' FT signals to flower". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 117 (37): 23125–23130. Bibcode:2020PNAS..11723125S. doi:10.1073/pnas.2009445117. PMC 7502711. PMID 32868415. S2CID 221404792.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  7. ^ AVH: Cuscuta australis occurrence data (Distribution map) Australasian Virtual Herbarium. Retrieved 26 June 2018
  8. ^ "Type of Cuscuta australis R.Br". Global Plants. Retrieved 26 June 2018.
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