Daviesia microcarpa
Daviesia microcarpa, commonly known as Norseman pea,[2] is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to two small areas of inland Western Australia. It is a sprawling shrub with tangled stems and crowded, needle-shaped, sharply-pointed phyllodes, and orange and pinkish-red flowers.
| Norseman pea | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Fabales |
| Family: | Fabaceae |
| Subfamily: | Faboideae |
| Genus: | Daviesia |
| Species: | D. microcarpa |
| Binomial name | |
| Daviesia microcarpa | |
Description edit
Daviesia microcarpa is a sprawling shrub, typically up to 0.4 m (1 ft 4 in) high and 1 m (3 ft 3 in) wide with many weak, tangled stems. Its phyllodes are crowded, needle-shaped and sharply pointed, 8–20 mm (0.31–0.79 in) long and 0.5–0.75 mm (0.020–0.030 in) wide. The flowers are arranged singly or in pairs in leaf axils on a peduncle 0.5–1.5 mm (0.020–0.059 in) long, each flower on a pedicel about 1 mm (0.039 in) long with oblong bracts 0.75–1 mm (0.030–0.039 in) long at the base. The sepals are about 3 mm (0.12 in) long and joined at the base, the lobes more or less similar, triangular and about 0.5 mm (0.020 in) long. The standard petal is egg-shaped, about 4–5 mm (0.16–0.20 in) long and orange with pinkish red markings, the wings 4.0–4.5 mm (0.16–0.18 in) long and pinkish red, and the keel about 3.5–4.0 mm (0.14–0.16 in) long and pale orange-pink. Flowering occurs in August and September and the fruit is a triangular pod 4.0–4.5 mm (0.16–0.18 in) long.[3][4]
Taxonomy and naming edit
Daviesia microcarpa was first formally described in 1995 by Michael Crisp in Australian Systematic Botany from specimens collected near Norseman in 1979.[5] The specific epithet (microcarpa) means "small-fruited", referring to the phyllodes.[6]
Distribution and habitat edit
This daviesia grows in sandy soil in woodland and is known from two disjunct populations, near Norseman where 13 plants were recorded in March 2010, and Southern Cross where there were 39 plants, in the Coolgardie biogeographic region of inland Western Australia.[3][4]
Conservation status edit
Daviesia microcarpa is listed as "endangered" under the Australian Government Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 and as "Threatened Flora (Declared Rare Flora — Extant)" by the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions and a recovery plan has been prepared. The main threats to the species include its short life span and limited numbers of young plants, change in hydrology as a result of road works, and inappropriate fire regimes. Translocations have been conducted near Norseman with some plants setting seed, but in 2008 all the translocated plants were destroyed by vandals.[2][4][7]
References edit
- ^ "Daviesia microcarpa". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
- ^ a b "Norseman pea (Daviesia microcarpa) - recovery plan" (PDF). Australian Government Department of Environment and Conservation. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
- ^ a b Crisp, Michael D.; Cayzer, Lindy; Chandler, Gregory T.; Cook, Lyn G. (2017). "A monograph of Daviesia (Mirbelieae, Faboideae, Fabaceae)". Phytotaxa. 300 (1): 23–25. doi:10.11646/phytotaxa.300.1.1.
- ^ a b c "Daviesia microcarpa". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
- ^ "Daviesia microcarpa". APNI. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
- ^ Sharr, Francis Aubi; George, Alex (2019). Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings (3rd ed.). Kardinya, WA: Four Gables Press. p. 252. ISBN 9780958034180.
- ^ "Conservation Advice for Daviesia microcarpa (Norseman Pea)" (PDF). Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment. Retrieved 14 February 2022.