Amyema miquelii
Encyclopedia
Amyema miquelli is a species of flowering plant, an epiphytic hemiparasitic plant
of the family Loranthaceae
, found attached to several species of Australian eucalypt
. The seeds are dispersed by various birds, particularly by the mistletoebird
(Dicaeum hirundinaceum) that eat the fruit and then either wipes the sticky remains from the beak or when defecating has to wipe it from its feathers onto, most often, a twig due to the extremely sticky nature of the seed.
The seed immediately begins to germinate and soon penetrates the vascular system of the tree and creates a physiological connection with the Xylem
of the new host. From that point, the seedling begins to obtain water and mineral nutrients from the host.
Parasitic plant
A parasitic plant is one that derives some or all of its sustenance from another plant. About 4,100 species in approximately 19 families of flowering plants are known. Parasitic plants have a modified root, the haustorium, that penetrates the host plant and connects to the xylem, phloem, or...
of the family Loranthaceae
Loranthaceae
Loranthaceae is a family of flowering plants, which has been universally recognized by taxonomists. It consists of about 75 genera and 1,000 species of woody plants, many of them hemi-parasites, all of them except three having the mistletoe habit...
, found attached to several species of Australian eucalypt
Eucalypt
Eucalypts are woody plants belonging to three closely related genera:Eucalyptus, Corymbia and Angophora.In 1995 new evidence, largely genetic, indicated that some prominent Eucalyptus species were actually more closely related to Angophora than to the other eucalypts; they were split off into the...
. The seeds are dispersed by various birds, particularly by the mistletoebird
Mistletoebird
The Mistletoebird is a species of flowerpecker native to most of Australia , and also to the eastern Maluku Islands of Indonesia in the Arafura Sea between Australia and New Guinea. They also must live where there are trees and shrubs, so that they can build their nests...
(Dicaeum hirundinaceum) that eat the fruit and then either wipes the sticky remains from the beak or when defecating has to wipe it from its feathers onto, most often, a twig due to the extremely sticky nature of the seed.
The seed immediately begins to germinate and soon penetrates the vascular system of the tree and creates a physiological connection with the Xylem
Xylem
Xylem is one of the two types of transport tissue in vascular plants. . The word xylem is derived from the Classical Greek word ξυλον , meaning "wood"; the best-known xylem tissue is wood, though it is found throughout the plant...
of the new host. From that point, the seedling begins to obtain water and mineral nutrients from the host.