''Bossiaea rufa'' is a species of flowering plant in the family

Fabaceae The Fabaceae or Leguminosae,International Code of Nomenc ...

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 is a loose, many-branched shrub with elliptic to egg-shaped leaves with the narrower end towards the base, and deep yellow and red flowers.

Description

''Bossiaea rufa'' is a loose, many-branched shrub that typically grows to a height of up to when supported by surrounding vegetation. The stems are flattened and winged, up to wide and are sometimes leafless. The leaves, when present, are elliptic to egg-shaped with the narrower end towards the base, mostly long and wide on a petiole long with egg-shaped

stipule In botany, a stipule is an outgrowth typically borne on both sides (sometimes on just one side) of the base of a leafstalk (the petiole). Stipules are considered part of the anatomy of the leaf of a typical flowering plant, although in many speci ...

s long at the base. The flowers are arranged singly or in pairs in leaf axils on

pedicels In botany, a pedicel is a stem that attaches a single flower to the inflorescence. Such inflorescences are described as ''pedicellate''. Description Pedicel refers to a structure connecting a single flower to its inflorescence. In the absenc ...

long, with egg-shaped

bract In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, especially one associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis or cone scale. Bracts are usually different from foliage leaves. They may be smaller, larger, or of ...

s long at the base. The five

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined b ...

s are long and joined at the base, forming a tube long, the two upper lobes long and the lower lobes long. The

standard Standard may refer to: Symbols * Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs * Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification Norms, conventions or requirements * Standard (metrology), an object th ...

petal is deep yellow with a purplish-red base and long, the

wings A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expresse ...

reddish and long, and the

keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element on a vessel. On some sailboats, it may have a hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose, as well. As the laying down of the keel is the initial step in the construction of a ship, in Br ...

reddish and long. Flowering occurs from September to January and the fruit is an oblong pod long.

Taxonomy and naming

''Bossiaea rufa'' was first formally described in 1812 by Robert Brown in ''

Hortus Kewensis ''Hortus Kewensis, or a Catalogue of the Plants Cultivated in the Royal Botanic Garden at Kew'' by William Aiton was a 1789 catalogue of all the plant species then in cultivation at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is ...

''. 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 ...

(''rufa'') means "reddish-brown".

Distribution and habitat

This bossiaea usually grows in sandy soil in moist places near streams and swamps in the

Esperance Plains Esperance Plains, also known as Eyre Botanical District, is a biogeographic region in southern Western Australia on the south coast between the Avon Wheatbelt and Hampton bioregions, and bordered to the north by the Mallee region. It is a pl ...

Jarrah Forest Jarrah forest is tall open forest in which the dominant overstory tree is ''Eucalyptus marginata'' (jarrah). The ecosystem occurs only in the Southwest Botanical Province of Western Australia. It is most common in the biogeographic region named in ...

, Mallee,

Swan Coastal Plain The Swan Coastal Plain in Western Australia is the geographic feature which contains the Swan River as it travels west to the Indian Ocean. The coastal plain continues well beyond the boundaries of the Swan River and its tributaries, as a geol ...

and

Warren A warren is a network of wild rodent or lagomorph, typically rabbit burrows. Domestic warrens are artificial, enclosed establishment of animal husbandry dedicated to the raising of rabbits for meat and fur. The term evolved from the medieval Angl ...

biogeographic regions of south-western Western Australia.

Conservation status

''Bossiaea rufa'' is classified as "not threatened" by the Government of Western Australia

Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions The Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA) is the Western Australian government The Government of Western Australia, formally referred to as His Majesty's Government of Western Australia, is the Australian state de ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15525729 rufa Flora of Western Australia Plants described in 1812 Taxa named by Robert Brown (botanist, born 1773)