''Dillwynia elegans'' is a species of flowering plant in the family
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 eastern New South Wales. It is an erect shrub with more or less cylindrical, grooved leaves and yellow flowers with red markings.
Description
''Dillwynia elegans'' is an erect shrub that typically grows to a height of and has stems that are hairy when young but become
glabrous
Glabrousness (from the Latin ''glaber'' meaning "bald", "hairless", "shaved", "smooth") is the technical term for a lack of hair, down, setae, trichomes or other such covering. A glabrous surface may be a natural characteristic of all or part of ...
later. The leaves are crowded, linear, more or less cylindrical with a longitudinal groove and long. The flowers are arranged in pairs in leaf axils, in clusters near the ends of branches. The flowers are on
peduncles with egg-shaped to lance-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 and shorter
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 ...
. The flowers are yellow with red markings, 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 long and the
standard petal long but much broader.
[Robinson, L. Field Guide to the Native Plants of Sydney. page 77]
Taxonomy
''Dillwynia elegans'' was first formally described in 1839 by
Stephan Endlicher
Stephan Ladislaus Endlicher also known as Endlicher István László (24 June 1804, Bratislava (Pozsony) – 28 March 1849, Vienna) was an Austrian botanist, numismatist and Sinologist. He was a director of the Botanical Garden of Vienna.
Bio ...
in ''Novarum stirpium decades editae a Museo Caesario Palatino Vindobonensi'' from a specimen growing in
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 tra ...
's garden.
This species is regarded as a
synonym
A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are all ...
of ''Dillwynia floribunda'' var. ''teretifolia'' (DC.) Blakely by the
National Herbarium of New South Wales
The National Herbarium of New South Wales was established in 1853. The Herbarium has a collection of more than 1.4 million plant specimens, making it the second largest collection of pressed, dried plant specimens in Australia,Thiers, B. ...
.
Distribution and habitat
This dillwynia grows on rocky, sandy ridges in heath and forest from
Port Jackson
Port Jackson, consisting of the waters of Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour, North Harbour and the Lane Cove and Parramatta Rivers, is the ria or natural harbour of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The harbour is an inlet of the Tasman Sea (p ...
to near
Rylstone
Rylstone is a village and civil parish in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England. It is situated very near to Cracoe and about 6 miles south west of Grassington. The population of the civil parish as of the 2011 census was 160.
Ryls ...
.
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q54465854
elegans
Fabales of Australia
Flora of New South Wales
Plants described in 1839
Taxa named by Stephan Endlicher