''Bossiaea zarae'', commonly known as Princess May winged pea, is a species of flowering plant in the pea family

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

Kimberley Kimberly or Kimberley may refer to: Places and historical events Australia * Kimberley (Western Australia) ** Roman Catholic Diocese of Kimberley * Kimberley Warm Springs, Tasmania * Kimberley, Tasmania a small town * County of Kimberley, a ...

region of Western Australia. It is an erect shrub with winged stems, winged cladodes, scale-like leaves and yellow, and reddish-brown flowers.

Description

''Bossiaea zarae'' is an erect shrub that typically grows up to high and wide. The stems are flattened, winged and up to wide, ending in winged cladodes wide. The leaves are reduced to dark brown, narrow egg-shaped scales, long. The flowers are arranged singly or in pairs 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 overlapping, narrow 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 up to long at the base and narrow egg-shaped

bracteoles 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 ...

about long attached to the pedicels. The

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, the two upper lobes long and the lower three 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 golden yellow with reddish brown marking, a yellow centre 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 ...

uniformly yellow and long, 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 ...

yellowish and long. Flowering has been observed in August and January and the fruit is an oblong pod long.

Taxonomy and naming

''Bossiaea zarae'' was first formally described in 2015 by

Russell Lindsay Barrett Russell Lindsay Barrett (born 1977) is an Australian botanist. Names published (incomplete list of the 129 published names) *'' Typhonium peltandroides'' Nuytsia, 13(1): 243 (1999) *'' Gahnia halmaturina'' R.L.Barrett & K.L.Wilson Journal Ade ...

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 collected on

Bigge Island Bigge Island is an island off the coast of the Kimberley region in Western Australia, within the Shire of Wyndham-East Kimberley. The island lies approximately from the mainland, from which it is separated by Scott Strait. It is located betw ...

in 2008. 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 ...

(''zarae'') is from "the Arabic and Hebrew name Zara (meaning princess)", referring to the Princess May Ranges where this species was discovered.

Distribution and habitat

Princess May winged pea grows on sandstone ridges and pavements in low shrubland in the

Prince Regent National Park Prince Regent National Park, formerly the Prince Regent Nature Reserve, is a protected area in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. In 1978 the area was nominated as a UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve. Land The national park covers a tot ...

and on Bigge Island in the northern Kimberley region of Western Australia.

Conservation status

This bossiaea is listed as " Priority Three" 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 ...

, meaning that it is poorly known and known from only a few locations but is not under imminent threat.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q22987917 zarae Rosids of Western Australia Taxa named by Russell Lindsay Barrett Plants described in 2015