''Amyema pendula'', also known as drooping mistletoe or furry drooping 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 ...

, 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 ...

, found attached to several species of Australian

eucalypt Eucalypt is a descriptive name for woody plants with capsule fruiting bodies belonging to seven closely related genera (of the tribe Eucalypteae) found across Australasia: ''Eucalyptus'', '' Corymbia'', '' Angophora'', ''Stockwellia'', ''Allosyn ...

and occasionally on some species of

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 ...

. It is endemic to south-eastern Australia. It is the most common mistletoe in

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

, especially on the coastal side of the

Great Dividing Range The Great Dividing Range, also known as the East Australian Cordillera or the Eastern Highlands, is a cordillera system in eastern Australia consisting of an expansive collection of mountain ranges, plateaus and rolling hills, that runs rough ...

. It has shiny leaves and red flowers arranged in groups of 3 or 4. It is distinguished from the similar ''

Amyema miquelii ''Amyema miquelii'', also known as box mistletoe, is a species of flowering plant, an epiphytic hemiparasitic plant of the family Loranthaceae, found attached to several species of Australian eucalypt and occasionally on some species of Acacia. ...

'' through the lack of individual stalks on the flowers. There are two subspecies: * ''A. pendula'' subsp. ''pendula'' with short flower stalks and anthers to the east of the Great Dividing Range * ''A. pendula'' subsp. ''longifolia'' with longer stalks and anthers to the west and inland.

Taxonomy

''Amyema pendula'' was first described in 1827 as ''Loranthum pendulus'' by

Franz Sieber Franz Wilhelm Sieber (30 March 1789 – 17 December 1844), was a botanist and collector who travelled to Europe, the Middle East, Southern Africa and Australia. Early life Franz Sieber was born in Prague, Bohemia on 30 March 1789. After 5 ...

Sprengel Sprengel is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Hermann Sprengel (1834–1906), chemist * Karl or Carl Sprengel (1787–1859), botanist * Kurt Sprengel (1766–1833), botanist * Christian Konrad Sprengel (1750–1816), teacher and ...

's ''Curae Posteriores''. It was transferred to 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 ...

'' in 1894 by

Philippe Édouard Léon Van Tieghem Philippe Édouard Léon Van Tieghem (; 19 April 1839 – 28 April 1914) was a French botanist born in Baillleul in the département of Nord. He was one of the best known French botanists of the latter nineteenth century. Life Van Tieghem's f ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q4749510 pendula Flora of New South Wales Flora of the Northern Territory Flora of Queensland Flora of South Australia Flora of Victoria (Australia) Eudicots of Western Australia Parasitic plants Epiphytes Plants described in 1827