''Banksia platycarpa'' is a species of small shrub that is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to the south-west of Western Australia. It has broadly linear pinnatipartite leaves, with up to twenty-five sharply pointed lobes on each side, creamy-yellow to orange flowers in heads of up to seventy-five, and egg-shaped follicles.

Description

''Banksia platycarpa'' is a shrub with column-like branches that typically grows to a height of , has hairy stems and does not form a lignotuber. Its leaves are broadly linear and pinnatipartite, long and wide with between ten and twenty-five sharply-pointed, linear to narrow triangular lobes up to long on each side. The flowers are creamy-yellow to orange and arranged in heads of between sixty and seventy-five with many linear involucral bracts about long at the base of the head. The

perianth The perianth (perigonium, perigon or perigone in monocots) is the non-reproductive part of the flower, and structure that forms an envelope surrounding the sexual organs, consisting of the calyx (sepals) and the corolla (petals) or tepals when ...

is long and the

pistil Gynoecium (; ) is most commonly used as a collective term for the parts of a flower that produce ovules and ultimately develop into the fruit and seeds. The gynoecium is the innermost whorl of a flower; it consists of (one or more) ''pistils'' ...

long and downturned. Flowering occurs from May to August and the follicles are egg-shaped, long and wide.

Taxonomy and naming

This species was first formally described in 1996 by

Alex George Alexander or Alex George may refer to: *Alex George (botanist) (born 1939), Australian botanist * Alexander L. George (1920–2006), American political scientist * Alexander George (philosopher), American philosopher *Alex George (motorcyclist), Sc ...

who gave it the name ''Dryandra platycarpa'' and published the description in the journal ''

Nuytsia ''Nuytsia floribunda'' is a hemiparasitic tree found in Western Australia. The species is known locally as moodjar and, more recently, the Christmas tree or Western Australian Christmas tree. The display of intensely bright flowers during the ...

'' from specimens he collected in the Alexander Morrison National Park in 1986. The

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

(''platycarpa'') is from Greek words meaning "wide" and "fruit", referring to the follicles. In 2007, Austin Mast and Kevin Thiele transferred all the dryandras to the genus '' Banksia'' and this species became ''Banksia platycarpa''.

Distribution and habitat

''Banksia platycarpa'' grows in

kwongan Kwongan is plant community found in south-western Western Australia. The name is a Bibbelmun (Noongar) Aboriginal term of wide geographical use defined by Beard (1976) as Kwongan has replaced other terms applied by European botanists such as ...

between Eneabba and Mogumber.

Conservation status

This ''Banksia'' is classified as "not threatened" by the Western Australian Government

Department of Parks and Wildlife The Department of Parks and Wildlife (DPaW) was the department of the Government of Western Australia responsible for managing lands described in the ''Conservation and Land Management Act 1984'' and implementing the state's conservation and e ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q4856671 platycarpa Plants described in 1996 Taxa named by Alex George