Verticordia galeata
Encyclopedia
Verticordia galeata is a woody shrub found in Western Australia
. The flowers appear between October and November, are honey scented and bright yellow, and possess an inflated appendage, a hood, that nearly covers the tip of the stamens. The staminode is pointed and triangular. The sepals are deeply and finely divided, and around 5 millimetres long. These are held erect, on long and slender peduncles up to 20 mm long, by the irregular or corymbosely arranged upper branches. Verticordia galeata may have a single basal stem, or several, to a height and width of around one metre. The floral leaves are similar to those on the stem, needle-like and between 10 to 30 mm in length; these long leaves distinguish the species from other verticordia
.
The known populations, of which there are few, are found on red sand, amid sandstone gorges, in the open scrublands of its small range around the lower Murchison River
, located in the northern section of the Geraldton Sandplains
region.
It does not possess a lignotuber
, so is susceptible to altered fire regimes; the distribution range is within the Kalbarri National Park
, a protected area that has become vulnerable to high intensity fires.
It was first described by Alex George
in 1991, based on a type collection made by Bob Wemm and George in 1984. The conservation status of the species is listed as poorly known taxa (P2) on the Declared Rare and Priority Flora List.
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...
. The flowers appear between October and November, are honey scented and bright yellow, and possess an inflated appendage, a hood, that nearly covers the tip of the stamens. The staminode is pointed and triangular. The sepals are deeply and finely divided, and around 5 millimetres long. These are held erect, on long and slender peduncles up to 20 mm long, by the irregular or corymbosely arranged upper branches. Verticordia galeata may have a single basal stem, or several, to a height and width of around one metre. The floral leaves are similar to those on the stem, needle-like and between 10 to 30 mm in length; these long leaves distinguish the species from other verticordia
Verticordia
Verticordia, a genus of the Myrtaceae family, are woody shrubs with small and exquisite flowers. They are mostly found in Southwest Australia, with several outlier species in northern regions. A revision of the genus in 1991 produced a classification within Verticordia of 3 subgenera, 24 sections,...
.
The known populations, of which there are few, are found on red sand, amid sandstone gorges, in the open scrublands of its small range around the lower Murchison River
Murchison River (Western Australia)
The Murchison River is the second longest river in Western Australia. It flows for about from the southern edge of the Robinson Ranges to the Indian Ocean at Kalbarri. It has a mean annual flow of about 200 million cubic metres.-Course:...
, located in the northern section of the Geraldton Sandplains
Geraldton Sandplains
Geraldton Sandplains is an Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia region in Western Australia and part of the larger Southwest Australia savanna ecoregion.It has two sub regions: -* Geraldton Hills sub region* Lesuer sub region...
region.
It does not possess a lignotuber
Lignotuber
A lignotuber is a starchy swelling of the root crown possessed by some plants as a protection against destruction of the plant stem by fire. The crown contains buds from which new stems may sprout, and a sufficient store of nutrients to support a period of growth in the absence of...
, so is susceptible to altered fire regimes; the distribution range is within the Kalbarri National Park
Kalbarri National Park
Kalbarri National Park is located north of Perth. The major geographical features of the park include the Murchison River gorge which runs for nearly 80 kilometres on the lower reaches of the Murchison River...
, a protected area that has become vulnerable to high intensity fires.
It was first described by Alex George
Alex George
Alexander Segger George is a Western Australian botanist. He is the authority on the plant genera Banksia and Dryandra...
in 1991, based on a type collection made by Bob Wemm and George in 1984. The conservation status of the species is listed as poorly known taxa (P2) on the Declared Rare and Priority Flora List.