Xeronema callistemon
Encyclopedia
Xeronema callistemon is a species of flowering plant
endemic to the Poor Knights Islands
and Taranga Island in the north of New Zealand
. It was discovered in 1924 and has a common name Poor Knights Lily. The plant is listed as vulnerable in the 1997 IUCN Red List of Plants, but as of October 2010 is not listed in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
.
– a bread-based dish popular at the time of their discovery by Europeans.
s of Xeronema callistemon start growing vertically. They then turn sideways, showing red flowers tipped with orange pollen
and resemble a giant bottlebrush or toothbrush. The individual flower tepal
s are 10–15 mm long, and the length of the brush is usually between 18 and 25 cm (7–15 in) and can reach 45 cm (18 in). The plant itself is about 1 m (3 ft) tall and 1–4 m (3–12 ft) wide.
sea cliffs and rocky outcrops and sometimes in forest. It requires much water and is pollinated by birds and butterflies. If its pollen falls on a nearby tree, such as Metrosideros excelsa, then it may grow as an epiphyte
on it. The species has no obvious natural enemies and is listed as vulnerable because it grows naturally only on two islands. These islands are protected by the New Zealand Government as nature reserves and have a limited access. However, the plant is becoming popular for cultivation in private gardens. A related species, Xeronema moorei, is found on the islands of New Caledonia
, 1500 km to the northwest.
Flowering plant
The flowering plants , also known as Angiospermae or Magnoliophyta, are the most diverse group of land plants. Angiosperms are seed-producing plants like the gymnosperms and can be distinguished from the gymnosperms by a series of synapomorphies...
endemic to the Poor Knights Islands
Poor Knights Islands
The Poor Knights Islands are a group of islands off the east coast of the Northland Region of the North Island of New Zealand. They are located to the northeast of Whangarei, and lie offshore half way between Bream Head and Cape Brett. Uninhabited since the 1820s, they are a nature reserve and...
and Taranga Island in the north of New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. It was discovered in 1924 and has a common name Poor Knights Lily. The plant is listed as vulnerable in the 1997 IUCN Red List of Plants, but as of October 2010 is not listed in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
IUCN Red List
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species , founded in 1963, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biological species. The International Union for Conservation of Nature is the world's main authority on the conservation status of species...
.
Etymology
The common name of the plant originates from the Poor Knights Islands on which it was discovered. The islands, in turn, were so named because of their similarity in shape to the Poor Knights PuddingFrench toast
French toast or Eggy Bread, is a food made with bread and eggs. It is a Christmas time dessert in Portugal and Brazil.Where French toast is served as a sweet dish, milk, sugar, or cinnamon are also commonly added before frying, and it may be then topped with sugar, butter, fruit, syrup, or other...
– a bread-based dish popular at the time of their discovery by Europeans.
Structure
The green stalkStalk
Stalk may refer to:* Plant stem, one of two main structural axes of a vascular plant* Leaf stalk, also known as Petiole* Flower stalk, also known as Peduncle* Stalking, an act of intrusive behavior or unwanted attention towards a person...
s of Xeronema callistemon start growing vertically. They then turn sideways, showing red flowers tipped with orange pollen
Pollen
Pollen is a fine to coarse powder containing the microgametophytes of seed plants, which produce the male gametes . Pollen grains have a hard coat that protects the sperm cells during the process of their movement from the stamens to the pistil of flowering plants or from the male cone to the...
and resemble a giant bottlebrush or toothbrush. The individual flower 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 are 10–15 mm long, and the length of the brush is usually between 18 and 25 cm (7–15 in) and can reach 45 cm (18 in). The plant itself is about 1 m (3 ft) tall and 1–4 m (3–12 ft) wide.
Habitat
Xeronema callistemon usually grows on rhyoliteRhyolite
This page is about a volcanic rock. For the ghost town see Rhyolite, Nevada, and for the satellite system, see Rhyolite/Aquacade.Rhyolite is an igneous, volcanic rock, of felsic composition . It may have any texture from glassy to aphanitic to porphyritic...
sea cliffs and rocky outcrops and sometimes in forest. It requires much water and is pollinated by birds and butterflies. If its pollen falls on a nearby tree, such as Metrosideros excelsa, then it may grow as an epiphyte
Epiphyte
An epiphyte is a plant that grows upon another plant non-parasitically or sometimes upon some other object , derives its moisture and nutrients from the air and rain and sometimes from debris accumulating around it, and is found in the temperate zone and in the...
on it. The species has no obvious natural enemies and is listed as vulnerable because it grows naturally only on two islands. These islands are protected by the New Zealand Government as nature reserves and have a limited access. However, the plant is becoming popular for cultivation in private gardens. A related species, Xeronema moorei, is found on the islands of New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
, 1500 km to the northwest.