''Elaeocarpus miegei'' is a species of flowering plant in the family
Elaeocarpaceae and is native to New Guinea, the
Bismarck Archipelago
The Bismarck Archipelago (, ) is a group of islands off the northeastern coast of New Guinea in the western Pacific Ocean and is part of the Islands Region of Papua New Guinea. Its area is about 50,000 square km.
History
The first inhabitants o ...
, the
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its capita ...
and the
Tiwi Islands
The Tiwi Islands ( tiw, Ratuati Irara meaning "two islands") are part of the Northern Territory, Australia, to the north of Darwin adjoining the Timor Sea. They comprise Melville Island, Bathurst Island, and nine smaller uninhabited islands, wi ...
of the Northern Territory. It is a tall tree with lance-shaped to egg-shaped leaves with the narrower end towards the base, whitish to cream-coloured flowers and bright blue, elliptical fruit.
Description
''Elaeocarpus miegei'' is a that typically grows to a height of . The leaves are leathery, lance-shaped to egg-shaped with the narrower end towards the base, or elliptic, long and wide on a
petiole long. The flowers are arranged in
raceme
A raceme ( or ) or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate type of inflorescence bearing flowers having short floral stalks along the shoots that bear the flowers. The oldest flowers grow close to the base and new flowers are produced as the s ...
s up to long, each flower on a
pedicel
Pedicle or pedicel may refer to:
Human anatomy
*Pedicle of vertebral arch, the segment between the transverse process and the vertebral body, and is often used as a radiographic marker and entry point in vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty procedures
...
up to long. The four or five
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 are long, wide and the four or five petals are whitish-cream, oblong to egg-shaped with the narrower end towards the base, about long and wide. There are between eight and fifteen
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. Flowering occurs from January to July and the fruit is an elliptical
drupe
In botany, a drupe (or stone fruit) is an indehiscent fruit in which an outer fleshy part (exocarp, or skin, and mesocarp, or flesh) surrounds a single shell (the ''pit'', ''stone'', or '' pyrena'') of hardened endocarp with a seed (''kernel'') ...
about long and wide.
Taxonomy
''Elaeocarpus miegei'' was first formally described in 1971 by
Raymond Weibel
Raymond is a male given name. It was borrowed into English from French (older French spellings were Reimund and Raimund, whereas the modern English and French spellings are identical). It originated as the Germanic ᚱᚨᚷᛁᚾᛗᚢᚾᛞ ( ...
in the journal ''
Candollea
''Stylidium'' (also known as triggerplants or trigger plants) is a genus of dicotyledonous plants that belong to the family Stylidiaceae. The genus name ''Stylidium'' is derived from the Greek ''στύλος'' or ''stylos'' (column or pillar), wh ...
''.
Distribution and habitat
''Elaeocarpus miegei'' grows in rainforest supplied by spring water. It is found in New Guinea, the Bismarck Archipelago, the Solomon Islands and the Tiwi Islands.
Conservation status
''Elaeocarpus miegei'' is listed as "critically endangered" in the Northern Territory under th
Northern Territory Government Territory Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act 1976
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q15318158
miegei
Oxalidales of Australia
Flora of the Northern Territory
Plants described in 1971