Wilkiea cordata is a species of flowering plant in the family Monimiaceae, and is endemic to north-east Queensland. It is a shrub or small tree with oblong leaves, male and female flowers on separate plants, male flowers with stamens in 2 pairs, female flowers with about 25 carpels, and the fruit is an oval drupe with a yellow receptacle with an orange tinge.
| Wilkiea cordata | |
|---|---|
| |
| In Babinda Boulders Scenic Reserve | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Magnoliids |
| Order: | Laurales |
| Family: | Monimiaceae |
| Genus: | Wilkiea |
| Species: | W. cordata
|
| Binomial name | |
| Wilkiea cordata | |
Description
editWilkiea cordata is a shrub or small tree that typically grows to a height of 1–4 m (3 ft 3 in – 13 ft 1 in). Its leaves are oblong, 110–260 mm (4.3–10.2 in) long and 30–90 mm (1.2–3.5 in) wide on a petiole 2–5 mm (0.079–0.197 in) long. The base of the leaves is heart-shaped to almost stem-clasping, the edges sometimes serrated and the midrib is prominent on both surfaces. Male and female flowers are borne on separate plants. Male flowers are borne in leaf axils sometimes in clusters of up to 3, 10–15 mm (0.39–0.59 in) long, with 6 tepals, the individual flowers on a pedicel 4–8 mm (0.16–0.31 in) long, with stamens in 2 pairs. Female flowers are usually borne singly in leaf axils, or on the ends of branchlets, the flowers more or less spherical, 3–4 mm (0.12–0.16 in) long and 4–5 mm (0.16–0.20 in) in diameter, on a pedicel 5–15 mm (0.20–0.59 in) long, with about 25 carpels. Flowering occurs from January to March and the fruit is a purplish-black or black drupe, 12–15 mm (0.47–0.59 in) long and 10–12 mm (0.39–0.47 in) wide, with a yellow fruiting receptacle tinged with orange.[2]
Taxonomy
editWilkiea cordata was first formally described in 2007 by Trevor Paul Whiffin in Flora of Australia, from specimens collected on Mount Haig.[2][3]
Distribution and habitat
editThis species of Wilkiea grows in the understorey of rainforest at altitudes from 100 to 1,250 m (330 to 4,100 ft) from the ranges near the Atherton Tableland.[2]
References
edit- ^ "Wilkiea cordata". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 9 May 2024.
- ^ a b c Whiffin, Trevor P.; Foreman, Don B. "Wilkiea cordata". Flora of Australia. Australian Biological Resources Study, Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water: Canberra. Retrieved 9 May 2024.
- ^ "Wilkiea cordata". Australian Plant Name Index (APNI). Centre for Plant Biodiversity Research, Australian Government. Retrieved 9 May 2024.