Conospermum teretifolium explained

Conospermum teretifolium, commonly known as the spider smokebush, is a species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae and is endemic to the south of Western Australia. It is an erect shrub with leaves that are circular in cross section, panicles of creamy white, tube-shaped flowers and the fruit is a hairy nut.

Description

Conspermum teretifolium is an erect shrub that typically grows to a height of . Its leaves are circular in cross-section and pointed on the end, long and wide with scattered hairs. The flowers are arranged in panicles with many branches in the upper leaves, with egg-shaped bracteoles long, wide and hairy. The flowers are creamy white, forming a tube long, with lobes long and wide. Flowering occurs from October to January and in March, and the fruit is a nut long and wide with cream-coloured to velvety rust-coloured hairs.[1]

Taxonomy

Conospermum teretifolium was first formally described in 1810 by Robert Brown in the Transactions of the Linnean Society of London.[2] [3] The specific epithet (teretifolium) means 'terete-leaved'.[4]

Distribution and habitat

Spider smokebush grows along the south coast between Albany and the east of Esperance in the Esperance Plains, Jarrah Forest, Mallee, Swan Coastal Plain and Warren bioregions of south-western Western Australia.

Conservation status

Conospermum spectabile is listed as "not threatened" by the Government of Western Australia Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Bennett . Eleanor M. . Conospermum teretifolium . Flora of Australia. Australian Biological Resources Study, Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water: Canberra . 7 November 2024.
  2. Web site: Conospermum teretifolium . Australian Plant Name Index . 7 November 2024.
  3. Brown . Robert . On the Proteaceae of Jussieu. . Transactions of the Linnean Society of London . 1810 . 10 . 1 . 155 . 7 November 2024.
  4. Book: Sharr . Francis Aubi . George . Alex . Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings . 2019 . Four Gables Press . Kardinya, WA . 9780958034180 . 322 . 3rd.