| Wenlock gardenia | |
|---|---|
| |
| In Collins Ave, Cairns, Queensland | |
| Conservation status | |
| Least Concern (NCA) | |
 Least Concern (IUCN 3.1) | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Gentianales |
| Family: | Rubiaceae |
| Genus: | Larsenaikia |
| Species: | L. ochreata |
| Binomial name | |
| Larsenaikia ochreata (F.Muell.) Tirveng. | |
| Synonyms | |
|
Homotypic
Heterotypic
| |
Larsenaikia ochreata, commonly known as Wenlock gardenia, scented Gardenia bush or wild Gardenia, is a plant in the coffee family Rubiaceae endemic to Queensland, Australia.
Description
Larsenaikia ochreata is a tree growing to about 15 (or occasionally 20) m tall. Stipules are up to 12 mm long, initially fused into a tube that encloses the leaf bud—they then split along one side as the bud grows. Leaves are variable in size and shape, but are mostly broadly elliptic and 8–25 cm long by 4–10 cm wide. They are usually arranged in whorls of three on the twigs but may be in opposite pairs, and they have 8–12 lateral veins—which are quite prominent—on either side of the midrib.
The inflorescences are terminal and consist of either single flowers, or cymes with 2–4 flowers. They are fragrant and are carried on pedicels up to 12 mm long. The green calyx tube is 5–8 mm long with narrow linear lobes up to 12 mm long. The white corolla tube may be 55 mm long and 3–5 mm diameter, with 5 or 6 lobes (petals) measuring up to 40 mm long and 13 mm wide. The flowers turn yellow as they age.
The fruit is a drupe, yellow/green when mature, ovoid to ellipsoid in shape, and up to 50 mm long by 35 mm wide. They are finely hairy on the outside, with the remains of the calyx lobes persisting at the apex. The rind is about 5 mm thick, within which is a cream-coloured placental mass containing numerous seeds about 3–6 mm long.
Taxonomy
This species was first described as Gardenia ochreata in 1858 by the botanist Ferdinand von Mueller, based on material collected from the Burdekin River. In 1989 the Australian botanist Christopher Francis Puttock transferred it to the genus Kailarsenia, however shortly thereafter the Sri Lankan botanist and Rubiaceae specialist erected a new genus, Larsenaikia, to accommodate this plant.
Two other botanists also described specimens of this plant, giving them names that are now recognised as synonyms of this taxon, i.e. G. macgillivraei (George Bentham, 1867) and G. kershawii (Frederick Manson Bailey, 1914).
Etymology
The genus name Larsenaikia is an anagram of Kailarsenia, which in turn was created by Tirvengadum to honour the Danish botanist Kai Larsen. The species epithet ochreata is derived from the Latin ocrea, (sheath), referring to the stipules that fully enclose the leaf buds.
Distribution and habitat
Larsenaikia ochreata is widespread in eastern Queensland, and has been observed from the tip of Cape York Peninsula southwards to Central Queensland. It grows in open forest and drier rainforest types such as monsoon forest and vine thickets, at altitudes from sea level to about 400 m.
Conservation
This species is listed as least concern under the Queensland Government's Nature Conservation Act, and also by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
Gallery
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Foliage
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Underside of leaf
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Leaves in whorls of three
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Flower buds
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Flower
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Flower, ageing to yellow
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Fruit
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Dissected fruit
References
- ^ "Species profile—Larsenaikia ochreata". Queensland Department of Environment and Science. Queensland Government. 2024. Retrieved 10 June 2024.
- ^ IUCN SSC Global Tree Specialist Group & Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI). (2021). "Larsenaikia ochreata". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2021: e.T192210713A192229820. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-1.RLTS.T192210713A192229820.en. Retrieved 10 June 2024.
- "Larsenaikia ochreata". Australian Plant Name Index (APNI). Centre for Australian National Biodiversity Research, Australian Government. Retrieved 10 June 2024.
- ^ "Larsenaikia ochreata (F.Muell.) Tirveng". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 2024. Retrieved 10 June 2024.
- ^ F.A.Zich; B.P.M.Hyland; T.Whiffen; R.A.Kerrigan (2020). "Larsenaikia ochreata". Australian Tropical Rainforest Plants Edition 8 (RFK8). Centre for Australian National Biodiversity Research (CANBR), Australian Government. Retrieved 10 June 2024.
- ^ Puttock (1989). "Kailarsenia Tirvengadum emend. Puttock (Rubiaceae: Gardenieae) in Australia". Austrobaileya. 3 (1): 51–62. doi:10.5962/p.365972. JSTOR 41738736.
- ^ Tirvengadum, D. D. (1993). "Larsenaikia, a new genus of the Rubiaceae from Australia". Nordic Journal of Botany. 13 (2): 175–184. doi:10.1111/j.1756-1051.1993.tb00034.x.
- ^ Cooper, Wendy; Cooper, William T. (June 2004). Fruits of the Australian Tropical Rainforest. Clifton Hill, Victoria, Australia: Nokomis Editions. p. 444. ISBN 978-0-9581742-1-3.
- Mueller, Ferdinand von (1858). Fragmenta phytographiæ Australiæ (in Latin). Vol. 1. Melbourne: Joannis Ferres. p. 55. Retrieved 11 June 2024.
- ^ "Search: species: Larsenaikia ochreata | Occurrence records". Australasian Virtual Herbarium. Australian Government. Retrieved 11 June 2024.
External links
- View a map of herbarium collections of this species at the Australasian Virtual Herbarium
- View observations of this species on iNaturalist
- View images of this species on Flickriver.com
| Taxon identifiers | |
|---|---|
| Larsenaikia ochreata |
|
| Gardenia ochreata | |