Eremophila ramiflora is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a shrub with sticky branches, broad, sticky leaves and deep red flowers which appear in successive flowerings.
| Eremophila ramiflora | |
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| Eremophila ramiflora leaves and flowers | |
Scientific classification 
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| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Lamiales |
| Family: | Scrophulariaceae |
| Genus: | Eremophila |
| Species: | E. ramiflora
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| Binomial name | |
| Eremophila ramiflora | |
Description
editEremophila ramiflora is an erect or spreading shrub which grows to a height of 1 to 3 m (3 to 10 ft). Its branches are thick, (up to 12 mm (0.5 in) in diameter,) hard, brittle, mostly leafless except at the ends, have persistent raised leaf bases and are thickly covered with resin. The leaves are arranged alternately and clustered at the ends of the branches, lance-shaped, often folded into a U-shape, wavy, mostly 45–70 mm (2–3 in) long and 18–26 mm (0.7–1 in) wide. The edges of the leaves are densely hairy with the hairs embedded with resin so that the leaves have a false margin.[2][3]
The flowers are borne in groups of up to 3 in leaf axils on straight or S-shaped stalks, usually 10–22 mm (0.4–0.9 in) long. Usually the flowers open in succession with the last flower opening in a later season, often on older, leafless woody parts. There are 5 overlapping, greenish to deep red, hairy sepals which differ in size and shape from each other. The shape ranges from oblong to egg-shaped or spoon-shaped and the sepal length from 8 to 13 mm (0.3 to 0.5 in), enlarging after flowering to 12 to 20 mm (0.5 to 0.8 in). The petals are 25–30 mm (0.98–1.2 in) long and are joined at their lower end to form a tube. The petal tube is red to bronze-coloured and greenish-yellow towards the base. The tube is faintly spotted on the outside and prominently spotted on the petal lobes. Both surface of the petal tube and lobes are covered with glandular hairs, more densely on the outside and inside the tube. The 4 stamens extend beyond the end of the petal tube. Flowering occurs from June to November and is followed by the fruits which are oval-shaped to cone-shaped with a pointed end, 8 to 10 mm (0.3 to 0.4 in) with a pale brown, papery covering.[2][3]
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Taxonomy and naming
editThis species was first formally described by Bernard Dell in 1975 and the description was published in Journal of the Royal Society of Western Australia.[4][5] The specific epithet (ramiflora) is derived from the Latin word ramus meaning "branch"[6]: 162 and flos meaning "flower"[6]: 338 referring to the later flowers which often appear on the leafless part of the branches.[2]
Distribution and habitat
editEremophila ramiflora grows in stony red clay and occurs between Leonora, Wiluna and Carnegie[3] in the Gascoyne, Gibson Desert and Murchison biogeographic regions.[7][8]
Conservation
editEremophila ramiflora is classified as "not threatened" by the Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife.[7]
References
edit- ^ "Eremophila ramiflora". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 5 September 2020.
- ^ a b c Chinnock, R.J. (Bob) (2007). Eremophila and allied genera : a monograph of the plant family Myoporaceae (1st ed.). Dural, NSW: Rosenberg. pp. 631–633. ISBN 9781877058165.
- ^ a b c Brown, Andrew; Buirchell, Bevan (2011). A field guide to the eremophilas of Western Australia (1st ed.). Hamilton Hill, W.A.: Simon Nevill Publications. p. 235. ISBN 9780980348156.
- ^ "Eremophila ramiflora". APNI. Retrieved 4 March 2016.
- ^ Dell, Bernard (1975). "Eremophila ramiflora (Myoporaceae), a new species from Western Australia" (PDF). Journal of the Royal Society of Western Australia. 58 (3): 93–95. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
- ^ a b Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press.
- ^ a b "Eremophila ramiflora". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
- ^ Paczkowska, Grazyna; Chapman, Alex R. (2000). The Western Australian flora : a descriptive catalogue. Perth: Wildflower Society of Western Australia. p. 341. ISBN 0646402439.