Calothamnus validus

Calothamnus validus, commonly known as Barrens clawflower, is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is an upright or rounded shrub with stiff, cylindrical but not sharply pointed leaves and red, 4-part flowers. The common name derives from the location, West Mount Barren, where it was found by Spencer Moore, the author of its formal description. It is commonly cultivated and has sometimes escaped from gardens in Western Australia.

Barrens clawflower
Calothamnus validus growing near East Mount Barren
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Myrtales
Family: Myrtaceae
Genus: Calothamnus
Species:
C. validus
Binomial name
Calothamnus validus
Synonyms

Melaleuca valida (S.Moore) Craven & R.D.Edwards

Description

Calothamnus validus grows to about 3 metres (9.8 ft) tall and has leaves that are about 20–40 millimetres (0.8–2 in) long. The leaves are circular in cross section and taper to a point but are not prickly.[1][2][3]

The flowers are red and arranged in small clusters about 50 millimetres (2 in) long, containing usually 2 to 4 flowers. They have 4 petals and 4 claw-like bundles of stamens, all narrow and about the same length. Unlike some others in the genus, the flowers and fruit are never buried in corky bark. Flowering occurs from July to November and is followed by fruits which are woody capsules. The fruiting capsules have two prominently thickened, curved lobes.[1][3][4]

Calothamnus validus growth habit
Calothamnus validus fruits

Taxonomy and naming

Calothamnus validus was first formally described by Spencer Moore in 1920 in Journal of the Linnean Society, Botany from a specimen collected " in a rocky creek near West Mt. Barren".[5] The specific epithet validus is a Latin word meaning "strong", "sound" or "powerful".[6]

Distribution and habitat

Calothamnus validus occurs in the Barren Mountains in the Fitzgerald River National Park[1] in the Esperance Plains biogeographic regions.[4] It grows in rocky quartzite in kwongan.[1][7]

Ecology

This species, Calothamnus quadrifidus and others have been used in revegetation projects and in roadside plantings and both have escaped from cultivation.[8]

Conservation

Calothamnus validus is classified as "not threatened" by the Western Australian government department of parks and wildlife.[4]

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References
  1. Corrick, Margaret G.; Fuhrer, Bruce A. (2009). Wildflowers of southern Western Australia (3rd ed.). [Kenthurst, N.S.W.]: Rosenberg Publishing. p. 116. ISBN 9781877058844. Retrieved 5 August 2015.
  2. Moore, Spencer (1920). "A contribution to the Flora of Australia". Journal of the Linnean Society, Botany. 45: 205–206. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
  3. Hawkeswood, Trevor J. (1984). "Nine new species of Calothamnus Labill. (Myrtaceae: Leptospermoideae) from Western Australia" (PDF). Nuytsia. 5 (1): 124–125. Retrieved 5 August 2015.
  4. "Calothamnus validus". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife.
  5. "Calothamnus validus". APNI. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
  6. Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press. p. 830.
  7. Paczkowska, Grazyna; Chapman, Alex R. (2000). The Western Australian flora : a descriptive catalogue. Perth: Wildflower Society of Western Australia. p. 352. ISBN 0646402439.
  8. Keighery, Greg. "The enemy within: native environmental weeds of Western Australia" (PDF). Council of Australasian Weed Societies. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
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