''Epacris sprengelioides'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Ericaceae and is endemic to a small area in the Blue Mountains in New South Wales. It is an erect shrub with shaggy-hairy branchlets, more or less erect, narrowly elliptic leaves, and white or cream-coloured, tube-shaped flowers.

Description

''Epacris sprengelioides'' is an erect shrub that typically grows to a height of up to , its branchlets covered with shaggy hairs. The leaves are more or less erect, narrowly elliptic, long and wide on a petiole up to long. The leaves are relatively thin, concave on the upper surface and have a rounded tip. The flowers are white or cream-coloured, in diameter, and are borne 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 with pointed

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 near the base. The sepals are long, the petal tube long with spreading lobes long. Flowering occurs from September to February and the fruit is a capsule about long.

Taxonomy

This species was first formally described in 1899 by Joseph Maiden and

Ernst Betche Daniel Ludwig Ernst Betche (31 December 1851, in Potsdam – 28 June 1913, in Sydney) was a German-Australian horticulturist and botanist. His mother died at his birth and he was of delicate constitution all his life. His father was sufficiently ...

who gave it the name ''Rupicola sprengelioides'' in the ''

Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales The Linnean Society of New South Wales promotes ''the Cultivation and Study of the Science of Natural History in all its Branches'' and was founded in Sydney, New South Wales ( Australia) in 1874 and incorporated in 1884. History The Society suc ...

'', from specimens collected in 1898 at the southern edge of the

Kings Tableland The Kings Tableland is a plateau, located in the Blue Mountains in Wollondilly Shire, New South Wales, Australia. The ridge is an eroded remnant of a sandstone layer that is approximately AMSL, situated immediately south of Wentworth Falls. The ...

in the Blue Mountains. In 2015, Elizabeth Brown changed the name to ''Epacris sprengelioides'' in '' Australian Systematic Botany''.

Distribution and habitat

''Epacris sprengelioides'' grows on sandstone ledges, cliff faces and rocky ground in the

Burragorang Valley Burragorang or Burragorang Valley is a locality in the Macarthur Region of New South Wales, Australia, in Wollondilly Shire. It is home to Lake Burragorang, which is impounded by Warragamba Dam. It is located within the Blue Mountains National P ...

section of the Blue Mountains in eastern New South Wales.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q17270796 sprengelioides Ericales of Australia Flora of New South Wales Taxa named by Joseph Maiden Taxa named by Ernst Betche Plants described in 1899