Eremophila eversa
| Eremophila eversa | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Lamiales |
| Family: | Scrophulariaceae |
| Genus: | Eremophila |
| Species: | E. eversa
|
| Binomial name | |
| Eremophila eversa | |
Eremophila eversa is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to a restricted area of Western Australia. It is known from only one plant, now thought to have died. It is a small shrub with small leaves and hairy purple to lilac-coloured flowers.
Description
[edit]Eremophila eversa is a shrub growing to a height of 0.5 m (2 ft) with rough branches covered with short milky-white hairs. The leaves are arranged alternately along the stem and are crowded so that they overlap slightly. The lower part of the leaf is pressed against the stem while the upper half is curved outwards. They are elliptic to lance-shaped, covered with hairs like those on the branches, thickened along the edges, 3–6 mm (0.1–0.2 in) long and 1–1.8 mm (0.04–0.07 in) wide.[2][3]
The flowers are borne singly in leaf axils on a straight, hairy stalk, usually 4.5–7 mm (0.2–0.3 in) long. There are 5 hairy, green to purple sepals which are mostly 4–5 mm (0.16–0.20 in) long. The petals are about 15 mm (0.6 in) long and joined at their lower end to form a tube. The petal tube is purple on the outside, lilac inside with dark purple spots. The outside of the tube and the petal lobes are hairy, the inside of the lobes glabrous and the inside of the tube is full of long, soft hairs. The 4 stamens are fully enclosed in the petal tube. Flowering occurs in September but the characteristics of the fruits are not known.[2][3]
Taxonomy and naming
[edit]The species was first formally described by Robert Chinnock in 2007 and the description was published in Eremophila and Allied Genera: A Monograph of the Plant Family Myoporaceae. The type specimen was collected by William Fletcher on Yerilla Station.[4][2][3] The specific epithet (evera) is a Latin word meaning "turned abruptly outwards", referring to the leaves which turn outwards.[2][3][5]
Distribution and habitat
[edit]Eremophila eversa is only known from the type specimen, collected at Yerilla Station in the Murchison biogeographic region.[2][6] That plant was fenced to protect it from grazing animals but appears to have died. Searches in 2004 failed to find any living examples of the species.[3]
Conservation status
[edit]Eremophila eversa is classified as "Priority One" by the Government of Western Australia Department of Parks and Wildlife,[6] meaning that it is known from only one or a few locations which are potentially at risk.[7]
References
[edit]- ^ "Eremophila eversa". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
- ^ a b c d e Chinnock, R.J. (Bob) (2007). Eremophila and allied genera : a monograph of the plant family Myoporaceae (1st ed.). Dural, NSW: Rosenberg. pp. 248–250. ISBN 9781877058165.
- ^ a b c d e Brown, Andrew; Buirchell, Bevan (2011). A field guide to the eremophilas of Western Australia (1st ed.). Hamilton Hill, W.A.: Simon Nevill Publications. p. 95. ISBN 9780980348156.
- ^ "Eremophila eversa". APNI. Retrieved 12 January 2016.
- ^ Francis Aubie Sharr (2019). Western Australian Plant Names and their Meanings. Kardinya, Western Australia: Four Gables Press. p. 194. ISBN 9780958034180.
- ^ a b "Eremophila eversa". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
- ^ "Conservation codes for Western Australian Flora and Fauna" (PDF). Government of Western Australia Department of Parks and Wildlife. Retrieved 8 December 2015.