''Digitalis canariensis'' is a member of the genus ''

Digitalis ''Digitalis'' ( or ) is a genus of about 20 species of herbaceous perennial plants, shrubs, and biennials, commonly called foxgloves. ''Digitalis'' is native to Europe, western Asia, and northwestern Africa. The flowers are tubular in shap ...

''.

Taxonomy

This species is part of

section Section, Sectioning or Sectioned may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Section (music), a complete, but not independent, musical idea * Section (typography), a subdivision, especially of a chapter, in books and documents ** Section sig ...

Isoplexis {{Italic title ''Isoplexis'' is a section of four species of flowering plants within the genus ''Digitalis'' in the plantain family Plantaginaceae. The species of section ''Isoplexis'' differ from other plants in the genus ''Digitalis'' in that ...

'', which was temporarily accepted as an own genus. The synonym ''Isoplexis canariensis'' also continues to be used. In general, as of 2017, opinions concerning the taxonomic status of ''Isoplexis'' species differ depending on the source.

Description

Individuals of these species are small,

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has foliage that remains green and functional through more than one growing season. This also pertains to plants that retain their foliage only in warm climates, and contrasts with deciduous plants, whic ...

plants growing into rounded shrubs up to 150 cm tall. The plant has lanceolate-ovoid leaves with toothed margins. The leaves are spirally arranged. The

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphology (biology), Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of sperma ...

is a cluster of orange-reddish, 3 cm large flowers with short petals and noticeable upper lip and lower lip. Bird pollination by the island populations of '' Phylloscopus'' species has been documented. The fruit is a capsule. Isoplexis (Digitalis) canariensis-2

''Digitalis canariensis'' contains cardenolids (cardiac glycosids),Studer, Pavanaram et al.: ''Die Glykoside der Blätter von ''Digitalis canariensis'' L. 1. Mitteilung'', 1963. which are

toxic Toxicity is the degree to which a chemical substance or a particular mixture of substances can damage an organism. Toxicity can refer to the effect on a whole organism, such as an animal, bacterium, or plant, as well as the effect on a subs ...

in the case of an overdose. Medical use is documented, primarily historical in nature.

Distribution

''Digitalis canariensis'' 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 Canary Islands where it occurs on the islands of

Tenerife Tenerife (; ; formerly spelled ''Teneriffe'') is the largest and most populous island of the Canary Islands. It is home to 43% of the total population of the archipelago. With a land area of and a population of 978,100 inhabitants as of Janu ...

La Gomera La Gomera () is one of Spain's Canary Islands, located in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa. With an area of , it is the third smallest of the eight main islands of this archipelago. It belongs to the province of Santa Cruz de Tene ...

and

La Palma La Palma (, ), also known as ''La isla bonita'' () and officially San Miguel de La Palma, is the most north-westerly island of the Canary Islands, Spain. La Palma has an area of making it the fifth largest of the eight main Canary Islands. The ...

. It grows in wooded areas in laurel forest and ''

Erica arborea ''Erica arborea'', the tree heath or tree heather, is a species of flowering plant (angiosperms) in the heather family Ericaceae, native to the Mediterranean Basin and Ethiopia, Kenya and Tanzania in East Africa. It is also cultivated as an o ...

''-covered woods.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q5807042 canariensis Endemic flora of the Canary Islands Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus