''Amyema fitzgeraldii'', the pincushion mistletoe, is a species of

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 ...

within the genus ''

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 ...

'', 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

the Northern Territory The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory shares its borders with Western Aust ...

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

and

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

Description

The leaves are flat. The

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed o ...

is a single group of 3-5 green and red flowers. The central flower has no bracts, unlike the surrounding flowers. It flowers from April to October.

Ecology

''A. fitzgeraldii'' is only found on

Acacia ''Acacia'', commonly known as the wattles or acacias, is a large genus of shrubs and trees in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the pea family Fabaceae. Initially, it comprised a group of plant species native to Africa and Australasia. The genus na ...

Taxonomy

''A. fitzgeraldii'' was first described by Blakely in 1922 as ''Loranthus fitzgeraldii'', 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, from=Q15378407 fitzgeraldii Eudicots of Western Australia Flora of the Northern Territory Flora of South Australia Parasitic plants Epiphytes Taxa named by William Blakely Plants described in 1922