''Epacris cerasicollina'' is a species of flowering plant in the heath family Ericaceae and is endemic to Tasmania. It is a shrub with lance-shaped to egg-shaped, slightly concave leaves and tube-shaped white flowers mostly clustered in upper leaf axils.

Description

''Epacris cerasicollina'' is a shrub that typically grows to a height of and has several erect stems. Its leaves are more or less flat, lance-shaped to egg-shaped, slightly concave at the base, long and wide on a petiole less than long and with a sharply pointed tip. The flowers are clustered in a few leaf axils near the ends of branches, each on a

peduncle Peduncle may refer to: *Peduncle (botany), a stalk supporting an inflorescence, which is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed *Peduncle (anatomy), a stem, through which a mass of tissue is attached to a body **Peduncle (art ...

long. The five sepals are glabrous apart from a few hairs on the edges and the

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 are white, joined at the base to form a white tube long. The five

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 and the style extend slightly beyond the end of the petal tube.

Taxonomy and naming

''Epacris cerasicollina'' was first formally described in 1995 by R.K.Crowden in the journal '' Muelleria'' from specimens collected near the Swan River in 1987. 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 ...

(''cerasicollina'') means "cherry hill", referring to Cherry Tree Hill, where there is a large population of this species.

Distribution and habitat

This epacris grows in grassland and open woodland, often in moist places and near watercourses, and occurs on the east coast of Tasmania, including on the

Freycinet Peninsula The Freycinet Peninsula is a large peninsula located on the eastern coast of Tasmania, Australia. The peninsula is located north of Schouten Island and is contained within the Freycinet National Park. The locality of Freycinet is in the local go ...

and Schouten Island, and inland as far as

Lake Leake Lake Leake (palawa kani: kunawi) is the name of both a man-made water storage reservoir and a small township in the eastern midlands of Tasmania. The locality is split between two local authorities, as follows: * Northern Midlands Council (53%), ...

, at altitudes up to .

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q17248515 cerasicollina Ericales of Australia Flora of Tasmania Plants described in 2007 Endemic flora of Australia