''Eucalyptus foecunda'', commonly known as narrow-leaved red mallee, Fremantle mallee or coastal dune mallee, is a species of plant in the myrtle

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

that 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 Western Australia. It has rough bark on the trunk, smooth bark above, narrow lance-shaped adult leaves, flower buds in groups of nine or eleven, creamy white flowers and cup-shaped fruit. It was previously included with the more widespread '' Eucalyptus leptophylla''. Eucalyptus foecunda buds

Description

''Eucalyptus foecunda'' is a mallee that typically grows to a height of , occasionally a tree to , and forms a

lignotuber A lignotuber is a woody swelling of the root crown possessed by some plants as a protection against destruction of the plant stem, such as by fire. Other woody plants may develop basal burls as a similar survival strategy, often as a response t ...

. The bark is flaky at the base, otherwise smooth, grey and reddish-brown in colour. Young plants and

coppice Coppicing is a traditional method of woodland management which exploits the capacity of many species of trees to put out new shoots from their stump or roots if cut down. In a coppiced wood, which is called a copse, young tree stems are repeated ...

regrowth have dull green, elliptic to lance-shaped leaves that are and wide. Adult leaves are narrow lance-shaped to narrow oblong, the same glossy green on both sides, and wide on a petiole long. The flower buds are arranged in leaf

axil A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, st ...

s in groups of nine or eleven on an unbranched peduncle long, the individual buds on

pedicels In botany, a pedicel is a stem that attaches a single flower to the inflorescence. Such inflorescences are described as ''pedicellate''. Description Pedicel refers to a structure connecting a single flower to its inflorescence. In the absenc ...

long. Mature buds are oval to spindle-shaped, and wide with a conical or beaked operculum long. Flowering occurs in August or from January to February and the flowers are creamy white. The fruit is a woody, cup-shaped capsule long and wide. This mallee has a similar appearance to ''

Eucalyptus petrensis ''Eucalyptus petrensis'', commonly known as limestone mallee, straggly mallee or koodjat, is a species of straggly Mallee (habit), mallee that is Endemism, endemic to Western Australia. It has mostly smooth bark, lance-shaped adult leaves, flow ...

'' but ''E. petrensis'' has a more persistent style on the fruit. ''

Eucalyptus leucophylla ''Eucalyptus leucophylla'', commonly known as Cloncurry box, is a species of tree or mallee that is predominantly found in northwest Queensland with small populations possibly also occurring in the eastern Kimberley region Western Australia. It ...

'' was once included in ''E. foecunda'' but has broader juvenile leaves, mostly smooth bark and a shorter, more rounded operculum.

Taxonomy and naming

''Eucalyptus foecunda'' was first formally described in 1844 by

Johannes Conrad Schauer Johannes Conrad Schauer (16 February 1813 – 24 October 1848) was a botanist interested in Spermatophytes. He was born in Frankfurt am Main and attended the gymnasium of Mainz from 1825 to 1837. For the next three years he worked at the Hofgar ...

and the description was published in Lehmann's book ''Plantae Preissianae'' from a specimen collected at

Freemantle Freemantle is a suburb and electoral ward in Southampton, England. There are similarly named places in Hampshire: notably Henry II's hunting lodge in Kingsclere; a suburb of Hannington, Hampshire, Hannington; and Freemantle Common in Bitterne. ...

. 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 ...

(''foecunda'') refers to the prolific flowering of this species.

Distribution and habitat

Narrow-leaved red mallee grows on limy sands near the coast of Western Australia between Lancelin and

Mandurah Mandurah () is a coastal city in the Australian state of Western Australia, situated approximately south of the state capital, Perth. It is the state's second most populous city, with a population of 107,641 as of the 2021 Australian census, 2 ...

Conservation status

This eucalypt is classified as "not threatened" by the Western Australian Government

Department of Parks and Wildlife The Department of Parks and Wildlife (DPaW) was the department of the Government of Western Australia responsible for managing lands described in the ''Conservation and Land Management Act 1984'' and implementing the state's conservation and e ...

. Image:Eucalyptus foecunda from "Eucalyptographia. A descriptive atlas of the eucalypts of Australia and the adjoining islands"; (1879) (20165942804).jpg, Illustration from Mueller's ''Eucalyptographia'' Image:Eucalyptus foecunda flowers.jpg, Flowers and buds in

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q7212802 foecunda Myrtales of Australia Plants described in 1844 Eucalypts of Western Australia Mallees (habit) Taxa named by Johannes Conrad Schauer

Description

Taxonomy and naming

Distribution and habitat

Conservation status

See also

References