Kingdom Plantae Family Scrophulariaceae Rank Species | Order Lamiales Genus Eremophila | |
Similar Eremophila flaccida, Eremophila platycalyx, Eremophila forrestii, Eremophila mackinlayi, Eremophila fraseri | ||
Eremophila cuneata is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to the Shark Bay area of Western Australia. It is a rarely-seen, small shrub with wedge-shaped leaves and white to cream-coloured flowers.
Contents
Description
Eremophila cuneata is a low shrub with many tangled, lumpy branches with sticky tips, growing to a height of about 1 m (3 ft). The leaves are arranged alternately along the stems and are 9.5–23 mm (0.4–0.9 in) long, about 5–10 mm (0.2–0.4 in) wide, thick, fleshy and wedge-shaped.
The flowers are only known from one immature flower on the type specimen. Flowers are apparently borne singly in leaf axils on a stalk 2.5–5.5 mm (0.1–0.2 in) long. There are 5 narrow triangular sepals which are 1.5–2 mm (0.06–0.08 in) long. The petals are 2–3 mm (0.08–0.1 in) long and joined at their lower end to form a short tube so that the flowers resemble those in the genus Myoporum. The petal tube is white or cream-coloured and glabrous. The 4 stamens are fully enclosed within the tube. Flowering occurs from November to December and is followed by fruits which are fleshy, oval-shaped to almost spherical and 6–7 millimetres (0.2–0.3 in) long.
Taxonomy and naming
The species was first formally described by Robert Chinnock in 2007 and the description was published in Eremophila and Allied Genera: A Monograph of the Plant Family Myoporaceae. The type specimen was collected by Malcolm Trudgen near Steep Point. The specific epithet (cuneata) is a Latin word meaning "wedge-shaped".
Distribution and habitat
Eremophila cuneata is known from only three plants seen by Malcolm Trudgen in the Steep Point area growing below limestone outcrops in calcareous sand in the Yalgoo biogeographic region.
Conservation
Eremophila cuneata is classified as "Priority One" by the Government of Western Australia Department of Parks and Wildlife, meaning that it is known from only one or a few locations which are potentially at risk.