Amyema ''Amyema'' is a genus of semi- parasitic shrubs (mistletoes) which occur in Malesia and Australia. Etymology ''Amyema'' derives from the Greek: ''a'' (negative), and ''myeo'' (I initiate), referring to the genus being previously unrecognised. D ...

cambagei'', commonly known as sheoak mistletoe, is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

, an

epiphytic An epiphyte is an organism that grows on the surface of a plant and derives its moisture and nutrients from the air, rain, water (in marine environments) or from debris accumulating around it. The plants on which epiphytes grow are called phoroph ...

hemiparasitic plant of the family

Loranthaceae Loranthaceae, commonly known as the showy mistletoes, is a family of flowering plants. It consists of about 75 genera and 1,000 species of woody plants, many of them hemiparasites. The three terrestrial species are ''Nuytsia floribunda'' (the W ...

endemic to Australia, and found in New South Wales and Queensland in sclerophyll forest and woodland on several species of Casuarinaceae.

Description

This mistletoe is spreading to pendulous plant with grey hairy stems. Leaves are

terete Terete is a term in botany used to describe a cross section that is circular, or like a distorted circle, with a single surface wrapping around it.Lichen Vocabulary, Lichens of North America Information, Sylvia and Stephen Sharnoff/ref> This is us ...

, usually 6–15 cm long and 1–1.5 mm. The flowers are 15-21mm long and are pink with white hairs. Flowers appear in winter to early summer (June to December). Fruits are globular, pink to red, 5–6 mm diam.

Ecology

''A. cambagei'' is found on ''Casuarina'' & ''Allocasuarina'' spp., mimicking the leaves of the host.

Taxonomy

''A. cambagei'' was first described by Blakely in 1922 as ''Loranthus cambagei'', but in 1929 was placed in the genus ''

'' by

Danser Benedictus Hubertus Danser (May 24, 1891, Schiedam – October 18, 1943, Groningen), often abbreviated B. H. Danser, was a Dutch taxonomist and botanist. Danser specialised in the plant families Loranthaceae, Nepenthaceae, and Polygonaceae. In ...

References

{{Taxonbar cambagei Flora of New South Wales Flora of Queensland Parasitic plants Epiphytes Taxa named by William Blakely Plants described in 1922