''Chorilaena quercifolia'', commonly known as karri oak or chorilaena, is a species of bushy 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 else ...

to the karri forests of south-west Western Australia. It is the sole species in the genus ''Chorilaena''. It has papery, broadly egg-shaped leaves with lobed edges and variously-coloured flowers arranged in

umbel In botany, an umbel is an inflorescence that consists of a number of short flower stalks (called pedicels) that spread from a common point, somewhat like umbrella ribs. The word was coined in botanical usage in the 1590s, from Latin ''umbella'' "p ...

s of five, 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 coine ...

s and petals hairy on the outside and the stamens protruding beyond the petals.

Description

''Chorilaena quercifolia'' is a bushy shrub that typically grows to a high and wide. The leaves are papery, broadly egg-shaped, long on a thin petiole about long. The flowers are usually green, sometimes yellow, white red or pink and are arranged in umbels of five on a downturned peduncle about long. The central flower is

sessile Sessility, or sessile, may refer to: * Sessility (motility), organisms which are not able to move about * Sessility (botany), flowers or leaves that grow directly from the stem or peduncle of a plant * Sessility (medicine), tumors and polyps that ...

, the surrounding four flowers on horizontally spreading

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 ...

about long. At the base of the sepals there are thread-like to spatula-shaped bracts and

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 o ...

that are about the same length as the flowers. The sepals are joined at the base with narrow triangular lobes about long and covered on the outside with woolly and star-shaped hairs. The petals are oblong to elliptical, long with star-shaped hairs on the outside and the stamens are two to three times as long as the petals. Flowering mainly occurs between October and February.

Taxonomy

''Chorilaena quercifolia'' was first formally described in 1837 by Austrian botanist Stephan Endlicher. The description was published in his book, ''

Enumeratio plantarum quas in Novae Hollandiae ora austro-occidentali ad fluvium Cygnorum et in sinu Regis Georgii collegit Carolus Liber Baro de Hügel ''Enumeratio plantarum quas in Novae Hollandiæ ora austro-occidentali ad fluvium Cygnorum et in sinu Regis Georgii collegit Carolus Liber Baro de Hügel'' is a description of the plants collected at the Swan River colony and King George Sound in ...

'', based on plant material collected from

King George Sound King George Sound ( nys , Menang Koort) is a sound on the south coast of Western Australia. Named King George the Third's Sound in 1791, it was referred to as King George's Sound from 1805. The name "King George Sound" gradually came into use ...

Charles von Hügel Charles von Hügel (born Carl Alexander Anselm Baron von Hügel; 25 April 1795 – 2 June 1870), sometimes spelt in English Huegel, was an Austrian nobleman, army officer, diplomat, botanist, and explorer, now primarily remembered for his t ...

. The leaves are shaped like those of an

oak An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...

(genus ''Quercus''), hence the specific epithet ''quercifolia''.

Distribution and habitat

Karri oak grows on rocky coasts and on hillsides within of the coast between

Cape Naturaliste Cape Naturaliste is a headland in the south western region of Western Australia at the western edge of the Geographe Bay. It is the northernmost point of the Leeuwin-Naturaliste Ridge which was named after the cape. Also the Leeuwin-Naturaliste ...

and Bald Island in Western Australia.

Conservation status

This species is listed as "not threatened" by the Government of Western Australia

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, from1=Q5105059, from2=Q5767206 Sapindales of Australia Rosids of Western Australia Monotypic Rutaceae genera Plants described in 1837 Taxa named by Stephan Endlicher Zanthoxyloideae Zanthoxyloideae genera