Oreocallis
Encyclopedia
Oreocallis is a genus in the family Proteaceae
. There is only one species, O. grandiflora. This plant is native to mountainous regions in Peru and Ecuador in South America.
The genus' name is derived from the Ancient Greek
words or(e)os "mountain", and kalli- "beauty". Previously, the genus was considered to have several species on both sides of the Pacific Ocean, however the four Australasian species were reclassified in the genus Alloxylon
.
The genus was originally defined by Robert Brown
in 1810 to contain the Australian species now classified elsewhere, while the two recognised South American species were placed in Embothrium at the time. A reclassification by Dutch botanist Hermann Otto Sleumer
in 1954 saw these species transferred into Oreocallis. A second species O. mucronata, has been reclassified as conspecific with O. grandiflora. Some recent sources recognize both species.
). The inflorescences, which are usually 7 centimetre long ;but occasionally as much as 38 cm (15 in), bear flowers that can be white, pink, yellow or red in colour. The tepal
s (petals and sepal
s) are mostly fused
along their length, with only the tips of the tepals unfused. The pollen grains have three pores, a condition that is thought to be primitive in the Proteaceae.
, Alloxylon and Embothrium
, Oreocallis makes up a small group of terminal often red-flowering showy plants scattered around the southern edges of the Pacific Rim
. Known as the Embothriinae, this is an ancient group with roots in the mid Cretaceous
, when Australia
, Antarctica and South America
were linked by land. Almost all these species have red terminal flowers, and hence the subtribe's origin and floral appearance must predate the splitting of Gondwana
into Australia, Antarctica, and South America over 60 million years ago. The prominent position and striking colour of many species within the subtribe both in Australia and South America strongly suggest they are adapted to pollination by birds, and have been for over 60 million years.
The type species
, Oreocallis grandiflora, is a plant with terminal showy red, pink yellow or whitish inflorescences found in mountainous areas in Peru and southern Ecuador. It was originally described by French naturalist Jean-Baptiste Lamarck
in 1786 as Embothrium grandiflora. Robert Brown used it as the type species for the genus Oreocallis when he circumscribed the genus is 1810. As envisioned by Brown, the genus included both South American and Australian species, but in 1991 Peter Weston and Michael Crisp split the Australian species out of Oreocallis and placed them in a new genus, Alloxylon.
In 1954, the Dutch botanist Hermann Sleumer split O. grandiflora into two species, placing individuals with smooth leaves and twigs and pale, white or pink flowers into a new species, O. mucronata, while leaving those with hairy leaves and twigs and darker red flowers in O. grandiflora. Pennington (2007) rejected Sleumer's split, arguing that the hairiness of the leaves and twigs often varied within individuals, and did not vary consistently with flower colour. Weston and Crisp also suggested that differences in flower colour and the angle at which the mature flowers are held may justify this split. While Pennington acknowledged that differences in these characters exist, he argued that the variation was continuous and not the sort of binary variation that would justify a split into two species. He did acknowledge, however, that this difference may be more apparent in live plants and suggested that further study is needed.
forests of southern Ecuador and evergreen sclerophyllous forests in northern Peru. It grows at elevations between 1200 metre above sea level. It tolerates habitat disturbance, and may be expanding its range in response to increased human activity.
The species flowers throughout the year. The flowers are visited by several hummingbird
species including Metallura tyrianthina, Aglaeactis cupripennis and Coeligena iris.
Proteaceae
Proteaceae is a family of flowering plants distributed in the Southern Hemisphere. The family comprises about 80 genera with about 1600 species. Together with the Platanaceae and Nelumbonaceae they make up the order Proteales. Well known genera include Protea, Banksia, Embothrium, Grevillea,...
. There is only one species, O. grandiflora. This plant is native to mountainous regions in Peru and Ecuador in South America.
The genus' name is derived from the Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek is the stage of the Greek language in the periods spanning the times c. 9th–6th centuries BC, , c. 5th–4th centuries BC , and the c. 3rd century BC – 6th century AD of ancient Greece and the ancient world; being predated in the 2nd millennium BC by Mycenaean Greek...
words or(e)os "mountain", and kalli- "beauty". Previously, the genus was considered to have several species on both sides of the Pacific Ocean, however the four Australasian species were reclassified in the genus Alloxylon
Alloxylon
Alloxylon is a genus of five species in the Proteaceae family of mainly small to medium-sized trees. They are native to the eastern coast of Australia, with one species, A. brachycarpum found in New Guinea and the Aru Islands. The genus is a relatively new creation, being split off from Oreocallis...
.
The genus was originally defined by Robert Brown
Robert Brown (botanist)
Robert Brown was a Scottish botanist and palaeobotanist who made important contributions to botany largely through his pioneering use of the microscope...
in 1810 to contain the Australian species now classified elsewhere, while the two recognised South American species were placed in Embothrium at the time. A reclassification by Dutch botanist Hermann Otto Sleumer
Hermann Otto Sleumer
Hermann Otto Sleumer was a Dutch botanist of German birth. The plant genera Sleumerodendron Virot and Sleumeria Utteridge, Nagam. & Teo , are named for him....
in 1954 saw these species transferred into Oreocallis. A second species O. mucronata, has been reclassified as conspecific with O. grandiflora. Some recent sources recognize both species.
Description
The species is a tree or shrub which reaches heights of about 6 metres (19.7 ft). The leaves, which are arranged in a spiral pattern along the twigs, have a simple, entire blade. As is the case with many species in the Proteaceae, the leaves are highly variable. The shape of the leaves varies from narrow and elongate (lanceolate, or lance shaped) to broad and ellipse-shaped, or anything in between. The base of the leaf can be narrow or broad, and the leaf tip can be pointed or rounded. They usually range from 4.8 to 12.7 cm (1.9 to 5 ) in length, occasionally reaching lengths of 21.5 cm (8.5 in), and are 1.6 centimetre wide. Young leaves are often covered with dense, reddish hairs while older leaves tend to have smooth surfaces with hairs concentrated along the main veins on the lower surface of the leaf. Plants have a terminal or lateral conflorescence (a type of inflorescenceInflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
). The inflorescences, which are usually 7 centimetre long ;but occasionally as much as 38 cm (15 in), bear flowers that can be white, pink, yellow or red in colour. The tepal
Tepal
Tepals are elements of the perianth, or outer part of a flower, which include the petals or sepals. The term tepal is more often applied specifically when all segments of the perianth are of similar shape and color, or undifferentiated, which is called perigone...
s (petals and sepal
Sepal
A sepal is a part of the flower of angiosperms . Collectively the sepals form the calyx, which is the outermost whorl of parts that form a flower. Usually green, sepals have the typical function of protecting the petals when the flower is in bud...
s) are mostly fused
Connation
Connation in plants is the developmental fusion of organs of the same type, for example, petals to one another to form a tubular corolla. This is in contrast to adnation, the fusion of dissimilar organs.-Terms for connation of flower parts:...
along their length, with only the tips of the tepals unfused. The pollen grains have three pores, a condition that is thought to be primitive in the Proteaceae.
Classification
Together with TelopeaWaratah
Waratah is a genus of five species of large shrubs or small trees in the Proteaceae, native to the southeastern parts of Australia...
, Alloxylon and Embothrium
Embothrium
Embothrium is a genus of two to eight species in the plant family Proteaceae, native to southern South America, in Chile and adjacent western Argentina and southern Peru; the genus occurs as far south as Tierra del Fuego...
, Oreocallis makes up a small group of terminal often red-flowering showy plants scattered around the southern edges of the Pacific Rim
Pacific Rim
The Pacific Rim refers to places around the edge of the Pacific Ocean. The term "Pacific Basin" includes the Pacific Rim and islands in the Pacific Ocean...
. Known as the Embothriinae, this is an ancient group with roots in the mid Cretaceous
Cretaceous
The Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
, when Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, Antarctica and South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
were linked by land. Almost all these species have red terminal flowers, and hence the subtribe's origin and floral appearance must predate the splitting of Gondwana
Gondwana
In paleogeography, Gondwana , originally Gondwanaland, was the southernmost of two supercontinents that later became parts of the Pangaea supercontinent. It existed from approximately 510 to 180 million years ago . Gondwana is believed to have sutured between ca. 570 and 510 Mya,...
into Australia, Antarctica, and South America over 60 million years ago. The prominent position and striking colour of many species within the subtribe both in Australia and South America strongly suggest they are adapted to pollination by birds, and have been for over 60 million years.
The type species
Type species
In biological nomenclature, a type species is both a concept and a practical system which is used in the classification and nomenclature of animals and plants. The value of a "type species" lies in the fact that it makes clear what is meant by a particular genus name. A type species is the species...
, Oreocallis grandiflora, is a plant with terminal showy red, pink yellow or whitish inflorescences found in mountainous areas in Peru and southern Ecuador. It was originally described by French naturalist Jean-Baptiste Lamarck
Jean-Baptiste Lamarck
Jean-Baptiste Pierre Antoine de Monet, Chevalier de la Marck , often known simply as Lamarck, was a French naturalist...
in 1786 as Embothrium grandiflora. Robert Brown used it as the type species for the genus Oreocallis when he circumscribed the genus is 1810. As envisioned by Brown, the genus included both South American and Australian species, but in 1991 Peter Weston and Michael Crisp split the Australian species out of Oreocallis and placed them in a new genus, Alloxylon.
In 1954, the Dutch botanist Hermann Sleumer split O. grandiflora into two species, placing individuals with smooth leaves and twigs and pale, white or pink flowers into a new species, O. mucronata, while leaving those with hairy leaves and twigs and darker red flowers in O. grandiflora. Pennington (2007) rejected Sleumer's split, arguing that the hairiness of the leaves and twigs often varied within individuals, and did not vary consistently with flower colour. Weston and Crisp also suggested that differences in flower colour and the angle at which the mature flowers are held may justify this split. While Pennington acknowledged that differences in these characters exist, he argued that the variation was continuous and not the sort of binary variation that would justify a split into two species. He did acknowledge, however, that this difference may be more apparent in live plants and suggested that further study is needed.
Habitat and ecology
Oreocallis grandiflora is a characteristic species in certain semi-deciduous forests in valleys and evergreen upper montane forest in the AndeanAndes
The Andes is the world's longest continental mountain range. It is a continual range of highlands along the western coast of South America. This range is about long, about to wide , and of an average height of about .Along its length, the Andes is split into several ranges, which are separated...
forests of southern Ecuador and evergreen sclerophyllous forests in northern Peru. It grows at elevations between 1200 metre above sea level. It tolerates habitat disturbance, and may be expanding its range in response to increased human activity.
The species flowers throughout the year. The flowers are visited by several hummingbird
Hummingbird
Hummingbirds are birds that comprise the family Trochilidae. They are among the smallest of birds, most species measuring in the 7.5–13 cm range. Indeed, the smallest extant bird species is a hummingbird, the 5-cm Bee Hummingbird. They can hover in mid-air by rapidly flapping their wings...
species including Metallura tyrianthina, Aglaeactis cupripennis and Coeligena iris.