Stylidium repens
Encyclopedia
Stylidium repens is a dicotyledon
ous plant
that belongs to the genus
Stylidium (family Stylidiaceae
). S. repens is endemic
to Australia
and is found primarily in southwest Western Australia
. This species is a creeping or scrambling triggerplant, which can spread over large areas as a tangled mat of stems and aerial root
s. The older stems are grey whereas younger stems appear red and have terminal rosettes
of small leaves, five mm to one cm in length. When the rains come, new roots and a one to three flowers emerge from the terminal rosettes. This is the only species of triggerplant known to regularly flower twice a year—in autumn and late spring. Pollination, which is typically very specialized in this genus, is achieved with a variety of insects in this species.
S. repens is primarily found in jarrah and wandoo
forests, in sand, and in scrubby heath
. It is widely distributed from north of Geraldton
to east of Esperance
, south to the coast and inland to Dangin
.
Stylidium repens var.
diplectroglossum (Erickson & Willis) was believed to be a distinct variety of this species, noted for its narrower leaves and free calyx
lobes. This variety has since been renamed S. diplectroglossum, reflecting its status as a distinct species. In her 1958 book, Triggerplants, Rica Erickson suggested that due to the morphological similarities, what was known as S. radicans (Sond.
) is really a synonym
for S. repens. Allen Lowrie
and his research team confirmed the earlier suspicion in their taxonomic revision of the creeping triggerplants.
Dicotyledon
The dicotyledons, also known as dicots, are a group of flowering plants whose seed typically has two embryonic leaves or cotyledons. There are around 199,350 species within this group...
ous plant
Plant
Plants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. Precise definitions of the kingdom vary, but as the term is used here, plants include familiar organisms such as trees, flowers, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The group is also called green plants or...
that belongs to the genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Stylidium (family Stylidiaceae
Stylidiaceae
The family Stylidiaceae is a taxon of dicotyledonous flowering plants. It consists of five genera with over 240 species, most of which are endemic to Australia and New Zealand. Members of Stylidiaceae are typically grass-like herbs or small shrubs and can be perennials or annuals...
). S. repens is endemic
Endemic (ecology)
Endemism is the ecological state of being unique to a defined geographic location, such as an island, nation or other defined zone, or habitat type; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsewhere. For example, all species of lemur are endemic to the...
to 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...
and is found primarily in southwest Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
. This species is a creeping or scrambling triggerplant, which can spread over large areas as a tangled mat of stems and aerial root
Aerial root
Aerial roots are roots above the ground. They are almost always adventitious. They are found in diverse plant species, including epiphytes such as orchids, tropical coastal swamp trees such as mangroves, the resourceful banyan trees, the warm-temperate rainforest rātā and pōhutukawa Aerial roots...
s. The older stems are grey whereas younger stems appear red and have terminal rosettes
Rosette (botany)
In botany, a rosette is a circular arrangement of leaves, with all the leaves at a single height.Though rosettes usually sit near the soil, their structure is an example of a modified stem.-Function:...
of small leaves, five mm to one cm in length. When the rains come, new roots and a one to three flowers emerge from the terminal rosettes. This is the only species of triggerplant known to regularly flower twice a year—in autumn and late spring. Pollination, which is typically very specialized in this genus, is achieved with a variety of insects in this species.
S. repens is primarily found in jarrah and wandoo
Eucalyptus accedens
Powder-barked Wandoo is a eucalypt native to Western Australia. Mature trees are around 15–25 m high with branches high up the trunk....
forests, in sand, and in scrubby heath
Heath (habitat)
A heath or heathland is a dwarf-shrub habitat found on mainly low quality acidic soils, characterised by open, low growing woody vegetation, often dominated by plants of the Ericaceae. There are some clear differences between heath and moorland...
. It is widely distributed from north of Geraldton
Geraldton, Western Australia
Geraldton is a city and port in Western Australia located north of Perth in the Mid West region. Geraldton has an estimated population at June 2010 of 36,958...
to east of Esperance
Esperance, Western Australia
Esperance is a large town in the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia, located on the Southern Ocean coastline approximately east-southeast of the state capital, Perth. The shire of Esperance is home to 9,536 people as of the 2006 census, its major industries are tourism, agriculture,...
, south to the coast and inland to Dangin
Dangin, Western Australia
Dangin is a small town in the wheatbelt region of Western Australia. It is located about 7 kilometres south-west of Quairading, in the Shire of Quairading...
.
Stylidium repens var.
Variety (biology)
In botanical nomenclature, variety is a taxonomic rank below that of species: as such, it gets a three-part infraspecific name....
diplectroglossum (Erickson & Willis) was believed to be a distinct variety of this species, noted for its narrower leaves and free calyx
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...
lobes. This variety has since been renamed S. diplectroglossum, reflecting its status as a distinct species. In her 1958 book, Triggerplants, Rica Erickson suggested that due to the morphological similarities, what was known as S. radicans (Sond.
Otto Wilhelm Sonder
Otto Wilhelm Sonder was a German botanist and pharmacist who was a native of Holstein. From 1841 to 1878 he was the proprietor of a pharmacy in Hamburg. In 1846 he received an honorary doctorate from the University of Königsberg.He was the author, with William Henry Harvey , of the Flora Capensis...
) is really a synonym
Synonym (taxonomy)
In scientific nomenclature, a synonym is a scientific name that is or was used for a taxon of organisms that also goes by a different scientific name. For example, Linnaeus was the first to give a scientific name to the Norway spruce, which he called Pinus abies...
for S. repens. Allen Lowrie
Allen Lowrie
Allen Lowrie is a West Australian botanist. He is living in Duncraig, a Perth suburb, is married and has two daughters.Lowrie, originally a businessman and inventor, got in contact with the carnivorous flora of western Australia in the late sixties and worked on it as an amateur...
and his research team confirmed the earlier suspicion in their taxonomic revision of the creeping triggerplants.