''Calothamnus formosus'' is a plant in the myrtle

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Myrtaceae Myrtaceae, the myrtle family, is a family of dicotyledonous plants placed within the order Myrtales. Myrtle, pōhutukawa, bay rum tree, clove, guava, acca (feijoa), allspice, and eucalyptus are some notable members of this group. All speci ...

and 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 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 ...

. It is a large, spreading, densely foliaged shrub with almost cylindrical, pointed leaves and red flowers in spring or summer. There are two subspecies, differing mainly in the length of their leaves. (In 2014 Craven, Edwards and Cowley proposed that the species be renamed ''Melaleuca aglaia''.)

Description

''Calothamnus formosus'' is a large, spreading, densely branched shrub growing to a height of about , sometimes higher, with thick bark on the older stems. Its leaves are crowded on the ends of the younger branches, long, wide, linear, almost circular in cross section and tapering to a sharp but not prickly point. The flowers are crimson and arranged in short clusters of 3 to 5, usually on the older, leafless stems. The petals are thin and papery, long. The

stamen The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filame ...

s are arranged in claw-like bundles with 26 to 32 stamens per bundle. The claws are yellow-green near the base but otherwise crimson. Flowering occurs from August to December and is followed by fruits which are woody, roughly cylindrical capsules, long, in diameter and have a warty surface.

Taxonomy and naming

''Calothamnus formosus'' was first formally described in 1984 in

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 ...

by Trevor Hawkeswood from a specimen found on a roadside about south east of Denham. 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 ...

(''formosus'') is a

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

word meaning “beautifully formed” or "handsome". There are two subspecies: * ''Calothamnus formosus'' subsp. ''formosus'' which has leaves that are mostly less than long and occurs in the

Shark Bay Shark Bay (Malgana: ''Gathaagudu'', "two waters") is a World Heritage Site in the Gascoyne region of Western Australia. The http://www.environment.gov.au/heritage/places/world/shark-bay area is located approximately north of Perth, on the ...

area; * ''Calothamnus formosus'' subsp. ''rigidus'' which has leaves that are mostly more than long and occurs between the

Overlander Roadhouse __NOTOC__ The Overlander Roadhouse is a petrol service station in Western Australia, between Geraldton and Carnarvon on the North West Coastal Highway. Its remoteness has led to the area around it being known as ''Overlander'', though there ...

and

Yuna Yuna may refer to: Geography *Yuna River, Dominican Republic *Yuna, Western Australia Music * ''Yuna'' (album), a 2012 album by Malaysian singer Yuna * ''Yuna'' (EP), a 2008 album by Malaysian acoustic singer Yuna People Japanese *Yuna Aoi, wr ...

district.

Distribution and habitat

''Calothamnus formosus'' is found in and between the Shark Bay and Yuna districts in the Carnarvon,

Geraldton Sandplains Geraldton (Wajarri: ''Jambinu'', Wilunyu: ''Jambinbirri'') is a coastal city in the Mid West region of the Australian state of Western Australia, north of the state capital, Perth. At June 2018, Geraldton had an urban population of 37,648. ...

and Yalgoo biogeographic regions. It grows in sand on sandplains.

Conservation

''Calothamnus formosus'' is classified as "not threatened" by the Western Australian government department of parks and wildlife.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15395116

formosus Pope Formosus (896) was the bishop of Rome and ruler of the Papal States from 6 October 891 until his death on 4 April 896. His reign as pope was troubled, marked by interventions in power struggles over the Patriarchate of Constantinople, the K ...

Myrtales of Australia Plants described in 1984 Endemic flora of Western Australia