''Calothamnus validus'', commonly known as Barrens clawflower, 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 an upright or rounded shrub with stiff, cylindrical but not sharply pointed leaves and red, 4-part flowers. The common name derives from the location,

West Mount Barren West Mount Barren is part of the Fitzgerald River National Park located between Bremer Bay and Hopetoun on the south coast of Western Australia the coordinates of the summit of West Mount Barren are . West Mount Barren, along with East Mount Bar ...

, where it was found by

Spencer Moore Spencer Moore (born July 25, 1990) is a professional Canadian football fullback for the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League. He was drafted in the fifth round, 44th overall by the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the 2013 CFL Draft and ...

, the author of its formal description. It is commonly cultivated and has sometimes escaped from gardens in Western Australia.

Description

''Calothamnus validus'' grows to about tall and has leaves that are about long. The leaves are circular in cross section and taper to a point but are not prickly. The flowers are red and arranged in small clusters about long, containing usually 2 to 4 flowers. They have 4

petal Petals are modified Leaf, leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often advertising coloration, brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''c ...

s and 4 claw-like bundles of stamens, all narrow and about the same length. Unlike some others in the genus, the flowers and fruit are never buried in corky bark. Flowering occurs from July to November and is followed by fruits which are woody capsules. The fruiting capsules have two prominently thickened, curved lobes.

Taxonomy and naming

''Calothamnus validus'' was first formally described by Spencer Moore in 1920 in '' Journal of the Linnean Society, Botany'' from a specimen collected " in a rocky creek near West Mt. Barren". 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 ...

''validus'' is a Latin word meaning "strong", "sound" or "powerful".

Distribution and habitat

''Calothamnus validus'' occurs in the

Barren Mountains Barren primarily refers to a state of barrenness (infertility) Barren may also refer to: Places *Barren, Missouri * Barren County, Kentucky *Barren Island (Andaman Islands) * Barren Island, Brooklyn *Barren River Lake Other uses * ''Barren Count ...

in the Fitzgerald River National Park 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 ...

biogeographic regions. It grows in rocky

quartzite Quartzite is a hard, non- foliated metamorphic rock which was originally pure quartz sandstone.Essentials of Geology, 3rd Edition, Stephen Marshak, p 182 Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tect ...

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 ...

Ecology

This species, ''

Calothamnus quadrifidus ''Calothamnus quadrifidus'', commonly known as one-sided bottlebrush, is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. The common name alludes to the arrangement of the flowers in the infloresce ...

'' and others have been used in revegetation projects and in roadside plantings and both have escaped from cultivation.

Conservation

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

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15395036

validus The Fatal Five is a supervillain team of the 30th century in the DC Comics universe. They were created by Jim Shooter and first appeared in ''Adventure Comics'' #352 (1967) as enemies of the Legion of Super-Heroes. Fictional team history Original ...

Myrtales of Australia Plants described in 1920 Endemic flora of Western Australia