''Eucalyptus lansdowneana'', commonly known as the crimson mallee or the red-flowered mallee box, is a species of slender stemmed, straggly mallee 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 a restricted area of South Australia. It has rough, fibrous or flaky bark at the base, smooth, grey over creamy-white bark, lance-shaped adult leaves, flower buds in groups of seven, crimson flowers and barrel-shaped fruit. Eucalyptus lansdowneana flowers

Description

''Eucalyptus lansdowneana'' is a mallee that typically grows to a height of 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 ...

. It has about of rough, fibrous or flaky bark at the base, smooth, grey over creamy-white bark that is shed in short strips above. 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 broadly lance-shaped to egg-shaped leaves that are long and wide. Adult leaves are glossy green, lance-shaped, long and wide on a petiole long. The flower buds are arranged on both branched peduncles long on the ends of branchlets each branch with a group of seven buds and on unbranched peduncles in leaf axils, the individual buds

sessile Sessility, or sessile, may refer to: * Sessility (motility), organisms which are not able to move about * Sessility (botany), flowers or leaves that grow directly from the stem or peduncle of a plant * Sessility (medicine), tumors and polyps that ...

or 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 ...

up to long. Mature buds are oval, long and wide with a conical to rounded operculum. Flowering mainly occurs between August and October and the flowers are crimson, ageing to pink. The fruit is a woody barrel-shaped capsule long and wide with the valves below rim level.

Taxonomy and naming

''Eucalyptus lansdownea'' was first formally described in 1891 by

Ferdinand von Mueller Baron Sir Ferdinand Jacob Heinrich von Mueller, (german: Müller; 30 June 1825 – 10 October 1896) was a German-Australian physician, geographer, and most notably, a botanist. He was appointed government botanist for the then colony of Vict ...

and

John Ednie Brown John Ednie Brown, (1848–1899) J.P., F.L.S., was an author on sylviculture and state conservator of forests. Biography The author's contemporary entry in George E. Loyau's ''Notable South Australians'' relates his biographical details: He ...

in volume 9 of Brown's book, ''The forest flora of South Australia''. 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 ...

(''lansdowneana'') honours Thomas Lansdowne Browne, who collected the type specimens. In 1974,

Clifford David Boomsma Clifford David Boomsma (20 October 1915 – 13 January 2004) was an Australian forester, botanist and botanical collector. Boomsma was born in Gawler, South Australia, Gawler in South Australia in 1915 and became a ward of the state at three year ...

described ''Eucalyptus lansdownea'' subsp. ''albopurpurea'' in the journal ''South Australian Naturalist'' but in 2000,

Dean Nicolle 270px, Dean Nicolle and '' Eucalyptus deanei'' Dean Nicolle (born 1974), is an Australian botanist, arborist and ecologist. He is widely recognised as the leading authority on the genus ''Eucalyptus''. Nicolle was born in Adelaide, South Austr ...

raised the subspecies to species level as '' E. albopurpurea''. ''Eucalyptus albopurpurea'' has a larger, more robust habit, broader leaves, usually smaller buds and fruit and white, pink or purple flowers.

Distribution and habitat

Crimson mallee is restricted to the south western part of the

Gawler Ranges The Gawler Ranges are a range of stoney hills in South Australia to the north of Eyre Peninsula. The Eyre Highway skirts the south of the ranges. The Gawler Ranges National Park is in the ranges north of Kimba, South Australia, Kimba and Wudinna ...

where it grows in mallee vegetation on rocky outcrops and hilltops.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q5405621 lansdowneana Myrtales of Australia Flora of South Australia Plants described in 1891 Taxa named by Ferdinand von Mueller