This article relates to the flora of New Zealand, especially
indigenous
Indigenous may refer to:
*Indigenous peoples
*Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention
*Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band
*Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...
strains.
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
's
geographical
Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and ...
human migration
Human migration is the movement of people from one place to another with intentions of settling, permanently or temporarily, at a new location (geographic region). The movement often occurs over long distances and from one country to another (ex ...
has led to the importation of many other plants (generally referred to as 'exotics' in New Zealand) as well as widespread damage to the indigenous flora, especially after the advent of European colonisation, due to the combined efforts of farmers and specialised societies dedicated to importing European plants & animals.
Characteristics
Indigenous New Zealand flora generally has the following characteristics:
* the majority are evergreen.
* few annual herbs.
* few cold-tolerant trees.
* majority are dispersed by birds.
* very few have defences against mammalian browsers.
* few
nitrogen fixing
Nitrogen fixation is a chemical process by which molecular nitrogen (), with a strong triple covalent bond, in the Atmosphere of Earth, air is converted into ammonia () or related nitrogenous compounds, typically in soil or aquatic systems but al ...
plants.
* few fire-adapted species.
* many
dioecious
Dioecy (; ; adj. dioecious , ) is a characteristic of a species, meaning that it has distinct individual organisms (unisexual) that produce male or female gametes, either directly (in animals) or indirectly (in seed plants). Dioecious reproductio ...
species.
* flowers are typically small and white.
* many plants have
divaricating
Divaricate means branching, or having separation or a degree of separation. The angle between branches is wide.
In botany
In botany, the term is often used to describe the branching pattern of plants. Plants are said to be divaricating when the ...
growth forms.
* many plants have evolved into larger forms compared with similar plant families in other countries.
List of plants
Trees and shrubs
*
Akeake
Akeake is the name of at least three New Zealand species of tree:
*''Dodonaea viscosa'', akeake
*''Olearia avicenniifolia'', mountain akeake or tree daisy
*''Olearia traversiorum'', Chatham Island akeake or Chatham Island tree daisy
The species a ...
Beech
Beech (''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia, and North America. Recent classifications recognize 10 to 13 species in two distinct subgenera, ''Engleriana'' and ''Fagus''. The ''Engle ...
Broom
A broom (also known in some forms as a broomstick) is a cleaning tool consisting of usually stiff fibers (often made of materials such as plastic, hair, or corn husks) attached to, and roughly parallel to, a cylindrical handle, the broomstick. I ...
*
Cabbage tree Cabbage tree is a common name for several plant species:
* '' Andira inermis'', native to Central and South America
* Various members of the genus ''Cordyline'' native to New Zealand.
**''Cordyline australis'' (Cabbage tree)
**''Cordyline banksii'' ...
or Tī rākau / Tī kōuka
*
Coprosma
''Coprosma'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. It is found in New Zealand, Hawaiian Islands, Borneo, Java, New Guinea, islands of the Pacific Ocean to Australia and the Juan Fernández Islands.
Description
The name ''Copros ...
Dracophyllum
''Dracophyllum'' is a genus of plants belonging to the family Ericaceae, formerly Epacridaceae. There are 61 species in the genus, mostly shrubs, but also cushion plants and trees, found in New Zealand, Australia, Lord Howe Island and New Caledon ...
*
Five finger Five finger is a common name for several plants and may refer to:
* The genus '' Dasiphora''
* The genus ''Potentilla''
* Carambola
* ''Pseudopanax arboreus'', a shrub native to New Zealand
* ''Tabebuia
''Tabebuia'' is a genus of flowering plan ...
*
Fuchsia
''Fuchsia'' () is a genus of flowering plants that consists mostly of shrubs or small trees. The first to be scientifically described, '' Fuchsia triphylla'', was discovered on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republi ...
Kahikatea
''Dacrycarpus dacrydioides'', commonly known as kahikatea (from Māori) and white pine, is a coniferous tree endemic to New Zealand. A podocarp, it is New Zealand's tallest tree, gaining heights of 60 m and a life span of 600 years. It was fi ...
or White Pine
*
Kaka Beak
''Clianthus'', commonly known as kakabeak (''kōwhai ngutukākā'' in Māori), is a genus of flowering plants in the legume family Fabaceae, comprising two species of shrubs native to New Zealand. They have striking clusters of red flowers whi ...
Kauri
''Agathis'', commonly known as kauri or dammara, is a genus of 22 species of evergreen tree. The genus is part of the ancient conifer family Araucariaceae, a group once widespread during the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods, but now largely res ...
Kohekohe
Kohekohe (''Dysoxylum spectabile'') is a medium-sized tree in the Meliaceae family, native to New Zealand. It is found in lowland and coastal forests throughout most of the North Island and also occurs in the Marlborough Sounds in the north ...
Kōwhai
Kōwhai ( or ) are small woody legume trees within the genus ''Sophora'' in the family Fabaceae that are native to New Zealand. There are eight species, with ''Sophora microphylla'' and '' S. tetraptera'' being the most recognised as large trees. ...
Manawa Manawa can refer to:
*Manawa, Wisconsin, a city in Wisconsin
* ''Manawa'' (crustacean): ''Manawa'' Hornibrook, 1949, a genus of ostracod
*''Manawa'' Forster, 1970 an invalid genus of spider: now '' Mesudus'' Özdikmen, 2007
*''Manawa'' Bergquist & F ...
or White or Grey mangrove
* Mānuka or Tea Tree
* Māpou or Red Matipo
* Matagouri
*
Mataī
''Prumnopitys taxifolia'', the mataī ( mi, mataī) or black pine, is an endemic New Zealand coniferous tree that grows on the North Island and South Island. It also occurs on Stewart Island/Rakiura (47 °S) but is uncommon there.
It grows up ...
or Black Pine
*
Mingimingi Mingimingi is a Māori word meaning 'twisted' or similar. The name is used to describe at least three different species of New Zealand plants:
*'' Coprosma propinqua'' (Mingimingi), a widespread small leaved shrub.
*'' Leucopogon fasciculatus'' (T ...
Manoao
''Manoao'' is a monotypic genus in the family ''Podocarpaceae.'' The single species, ''M. colensoi'', known as manoao (Māori), silver pine, Westland pine, or white silver pine, is endemic to New Zealand. Before 1996 it was classified in genu ...
Neinei
''Dracophyllum'' is a genus of plants belonging to the family Ericaceae, formerly Epacridaceae. There are 61 species in the genus, mostly shrubs, but also cushion plants and trees, found in New Zealand, Australia, Lord Howe Island and New Caled ...
Nikau
''Rhopalostylis sapida'', commonly known as nīkau ( mi, nīkau), is a palm tree endemic to New Zealand, and the only palm native to mainland New Zealand.
Etymology
is a Māori word; in the closely related Eastern Polynesian languages of the ...
*
Northern rātā
''Metrosideros robusta'', the northern rātā, is a forest tree endemic to New Zealand. It grows up to or taller, and usually begins its life as a hemiepiphyte high in the branches of a mature forest tree; over centuries the young tree sends d ...
*
Olearia
''Olearia'', most commonly known as daisy-bush, is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the family Asteraceae, the largest of the flowering plant families in the world. Olearia are found in Australia, New Guinea and New Zealand. The genus i ...
* Ongaonga or Tree nettle
* Patē or Seven Finger
* Other
Pittosporum
''Pittosporum'' ( or ) is a genus of about 200 species of flowering plants in the family Pittosporaceae. The genus is probably Gondwanan in origin; its present range extends from Australasia, Oceania, eastern Asia and some parts of Africa. '' Ci ...
s
*
Pōhutukawa
''Metrosideros excelsa'', commonly known as pōhutukawa ( mi, pōhutukawa), New Zealand Christmas tree, New Zealand Christmas bush, and iron tree, is a coastal evergreen tree in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae, that produces a brilliant display o ...
*
Poroporo
''Solanum aviculare'', commonly called poroporo or pōporo (New Zealand), bumurra (Dharug), kangaroo apple, pam plum (Australia), or New Zealand nightshade, is a soft-wooded shrub native to New Zealand and the east coast of Australia.
The M ...
Rangiora
Rangiora is the largest town and seat of the Waimakariri District, in Canterbury, New Zealand. It is north of Christchurch, and is part of the Christchurch metropolitan area. With an estimated population of Rangiora is the 30th largest urba ...
or Bushman's friend
*
Rewarewa
''Knightia excelsa'', commonly called rewarewa (from Māori), is an evergreen tree endemic to the low elevation and valley forests of New Zealand's North Island and Marlborough Sounds (41° S) and the type species for the genus ''Knightia''.
...
or New Zealand honeysuckle
* Ribbonwood or Manatu
*
Rimu
''Dacrydium cupressinum'', commonly known as rimu, is a large evergreen coniferous tree endemic to the forests of New Zealand. It is a member of the southern conifer group, the podocarps.
The Māori name ''rimu'' comes from the Polynesian ...
Toatoa Toatoa is a Māori word that is the common name for several species of plants that are endemic to New Zealand.
*'' Haloragis erecta''
*''Phyllocladus alpinus''
*'' Phyllocladus toatoa''
*''Phyllocladus trichomanoides
''Phyllocladus trichomanoid ...
*
Toru TORU or Toru may refer to:
*TORU, spacecraft system
*Toru (given name), Japanese male given name
*Toru, Pakistan, village in Mardan District of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
*Tõru
Tõru is a village in Saaremaa Parish, Saare County in western Est ...
*
Tōtara
''Podocarpus totara'' (; from the Maori-language ; the spelling "totara" is also common in English) is a species of podocarp tree endemic to New Zealand. It grows throughout the North Island and northeastern South Island in lowland, montane a ...
Yellow pine
In ecology and forestry, yellow pine refers to a number of conifer species that tend to grow in similar plant communities and yield similar strong wood. In the Western United States, yellow pine refers to Jeffrey pine or ponderosa pine. In the ...
Wineberry Wineberry may refer to the following plants:
* '' Aristotelia chilensis'', Chilean wineberry
* '' Aristotelia serrata'', a tree which is endemic to New Zealand
* '' Rubus phoenicolasius'', a type of raspberry native to Asia and introduced to North ...
or Makomako
Ferns
While most of the world's
fern
A fern (Polypodiopsida or Polypodiophyta ) is a member of a group of vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. The polypodiophytes include all living pteridophytes except t ...
s grow in tropical climates, New Zealand hosts an unusual number of ferns for a temperate country. These exhibit a variety of forms, from stereotypical feather-shaped tufted ferns and
tree ferns
The tree ferns are arborescent (tree-like) ferns that grow with a trunk elevating the fronds above ground level, making them trees. Many extant tree ferns are members of the order Cyatheales, to which belong the families Cyatheaceae (scaly tre ...
to less typical filmy, leafy and climbing ferns. Both the
koru
The ''koru'' () is a spiral shape based on the appearance of a new unfurling silver fern frond. It is an integral symbol in Māori art, carving and tattooing, where it symbolises new life, growth, strength and peace.
Its shape "conveys the ide ...
, in the shape of an unfurling fern frond, and the
silver fern
''Alsophila dealbata'', synonym ''Cyathea dealbata'', commonly known as the silver fern or silver tree-fern, or as ponga or punga (from Māori or ),The Māori word , pronounced , has been borrowed into New Zealand English as a generic term fo ...
are widely accepted symbols of New Zealand.
New Zealand has ten species of tree ferns, but there are numerous ground, climbing and perching smaller ferns to be found throughout the countries forests, the largest of which is the king fern.
*
Silver fern
''Alsophila dealbata'', synonym ''Cyathea dealbata'', commonly known as the silver fern or silver tree-fern, or as ponga or punga (from Māori or ),The Māori word , pronounced , has been borrowed into New Zealand English as a generic term fo ...
Kuripaka
''Dicksonia fibrosa'', the golden tree fern, whekī-ponga or kuripaka (in Māori) is a species of medium-sized tree fern native to New Zealand.
''D. fibrosa'' has a thick, soft and fibrous rusty brown trunk. It holds on to its dead leaves pro ...
New Zealand has a greater density of liverworts than any other country, due to its cool, wet and temperate climate. About half the species are
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 New Zealand.
There are 606 species known in New Zealand. While these include some thallose liverworts, with liver-shaped thalli, most are leafy liverworts which can be confused with mosses and filmy ferns. Undescribed species, and those not previously recorded in New Zealand, continue to be found in lowland forests. Ninety species and varieties are listed on the 2001
Department of Conservation
An environmental ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for the environment and/or natural resources. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of the Environment ...
threatened plants list, and 157 liverwort species and varieties will be included on the next version of the list as a result of better knowledge of the group.
A three-volume work on liverworts in New Zealand is being written by John Engel and David Glenny, with the first volume published in 2008. The first volume will also be placed online in June 2009 as part o Floraseries David Glenny, ''New Zealand's liverworts, no longer a forgotten group'', ''Te Taiao'', Number 6, July 2006, ISSN 1176-2454
Grasses
There are 187 species of native grasses in New Zealand: 157 endemic and 30 indigenous species.
The grasses belong to the following tribes and genera:
*
Ehrharteae
Ehrharteae is a tribe in the grass family, comprising four genera.
References
Poaceae tribes
Oryzoideae
{{Poaceae-stub ...
** ''
Microlaena
''Microlaena'' is a genus of grass with a single species ''Microlaena stipoides'' or ''Ehrharta stipoides''. It occurs naturally in all states of Australia as well as in New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and the Philippines.
Stipeae
The Stipeae are a tribe of grasses within the subfamily Pooidae, with up to 600 described species.
Description
The defining morphological features of the Stipeae include single-flowered spikelets lacking a rachilla extension, and the lemmas (th ...
Anemanthele
''Anemanthele'' is a genus of plants in the grass family native to New Zealand.
The only known species is ''Anemanthele lessoniana'', often called gossamer grass or New Zealand wind grass or pheasant's tail grass. This is a naturally rare gra ...
'', 1 species
** ''
Austrostipa
''Austrostipa'' is a primarily Australian genus of plants in the grass family, commonly called speargrass.
The genus includes species formerly included in the genus ''Stipa.'' All known species are native to Australia, most of them found nowher ...
'', 1 species
*
Poeae
The Poeae are the largest tribe of the grasses, with around 2,500 species in 121 genera. The tribe includes many lawn and pasture grasses.
Taxonomy
Two separate tribes, Poeae and Aveneae, used to be distinguished based on morphology, but phylog ...
** ''
Austrofestuca
''Austrofestuca'', called beach fescue, is a genus of Australian and New Zealand plants in the grass family. The only accepted species is ''Austrofestuca littoralis'', native to seacoast regions in Australia (all states except Queensland) and Ne ...
'', 1 species
** ''
Festuca
''Festuca'' (fescue) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the grass family Poaceae (subfamily Pooideae). They are evergreen or herbaceous perennial tufted grasses with a height range of and a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on every ...
Puccinellia
''Puccinellia'' is a genus of plants in the grass family, known as alkali grass or salt grass.
These grasses grow in wet environments, often in saline or alkaline conditions. They are native to temperate to Arctic regions of the Northern and S ...
Agrostis
''Agrostis'' (bent or bentgrass) is a large and very nearly cosmopolitan genus of plants in the grass family, found in nearly all the countries in the world. It has been bred as a GMO creeping bent grass.
Species
* '' Agrostis aequivalvi'' ...
'', 10 species
** '' Amphibromus'', 1 species
** ''
Deschampsia
''Deschampsia'' is a genus of plants in the grass family, commonly known as hair grass or tussock grass. The genus is widespread across many countries.
'', 5 species
** ''
Deyeuxia
''Deyeuxia'' is a genus of plants allied to the Poaceae
Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos and the gras ...
'', 5 species
** ''
Dichelachne
''Dichelachne'' is a genus of Australian, Indonesian, and Pacific Island plants in the grass family. They are known commonly as plumegrasses.Echinopogon'', 1 species
** ''
Hierochloe
''Hierochloe'' is a genus of plants in the grass family known generally as sweetgrass. These are perennial rhizomatous grasses found primarily in temperate and subarctic regions of Eurasia and North America, although some species extend southward ...
'', 7 species
** ''
Koeleria
''Koeleria'' is a common and widespread genus of plants in the grass family, found on all continents except Antarctica and on various oceanic islands. It includes species known generally as Junegrasses.
The genus was named after German botanist ...
'', 3 species
** ''
Lachnagrostis
''Lachnagrostis'' is a genus of African, Australian, Pacific Island, and South American plants in the grass family. They are often treated as members of genus ''Agrostis''.
; SpeciesRúgolo de Agrasar, Z. & A. M. Molina. 2002. El género ''Lachn ...
'', 12 species
** ''
Trisetum
''Trisetum'' is a genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biologica ...
Stenostachys
''Stenostachys'' is a genus of plants in the grass family, found only in New Zealand. It is sometimes included in the genus '' Elymus''.
; Species
* '' Stenostachys deceptorix'' Connor - South I
* '' Stenostachys enysii'' (Kirk) Barkworth & S. ...
'', 3 species
*
Danthonieae
Danthonioideae is a mainly southern hemisphere subfamily of grasses, containing the single tribe Danthonieae and one unplaced genus, with altogether roughly 300 species. It includes herbaceous to partially woody perennial or annual (less common) ...
Cortaderia
''Cortaderia'' is a genus of South American and Central American plants in the Poaceae grass family.
Etymology
The common name pampas grass, though strictly referring to ''C. selloana'', is frequently applied to all species in the genus (and so ...
Rytidosperma
''Rytidosperma'' is a genus of plants in the grass family. Most of the species occur in Australasia, with a few in insular Southeast Asia, southern South America (Chile + Argentina), and certain islands of the Pacific (Hawaii + Easter Island).
Lepturus
''Lepturus'' (common name thintail) is a genus of plants in the grass family, native to Asia, Africa, Australia, and various islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans.
; Species
* '' Lepturus anadabolavensis'' A.Camus - Madagascar
* '' Lepturus a ...
'', 1 species
*
Paniceae
Paniceae is a large tribe of the subfamily Panicoideae in the grasses (Poaceae), the only in the monotypic supertribe Panicodae. It includes roughly 1,500 species in 84 genera, primarily found in tropical and subtropical regions of the world. Pan ...
Oplismenus
''Oplismenus'' is a small genus of annual or perennial grasses, commonly known as basketgrass, found throughout the tropics, subtropics, and in some cases, temperate regions of the Americas, Africa, Asia, and Australia. The systematics of the ...
Isachneae
Isachneae is a tribe of tropical and subtropical grasses in subfamily Micrairoideae
Micrairoideae is a subfamily of the grass family Poaceae, distributed in tropical and subtropical regions. Within the PACMAD clade, it is sister to subfami ...
Andropogoneae
The Andropogoneae, sometimes called the sorghum tribe, are a large tribe of grasses (family Poaceae) with roughly 1,200 species in 90 genera, mainly distributed in tropical and subtropical areas. They include such important crops as maize (corn), ...
** ''
Imperata
''Imperata'' is a small but widespread genus of tropical and subtropical grasses, commonly known as satintails.
Satintail grass species are perennial rhizomatous herbs with solid, erect stems and silky inflorescences. The best known species is ...
'', 1 species
Mosses
There are 523 known
moss
Mosses are small, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic division Bryophyta (, ) '' sensu stricto''. Bryophyta (''sensu lato'', Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryophytes, which comprise liverworts, mosses, and hor ...
species and 23 varieties in New Zealand, with 208 genera represented. 108 species and 11 genera are considered endemic. Most New Zealand mosses originated in
Gondwana
Gondwana () was a large landmass, often referred to as a supercontinent, that formed during the late Neoproterozoic (about 550 million years ago) and began to break up during the Jurassic period (about 180 million years ago). The final stages ...
, so there are strong relationships with species in
Tasmania
)
, nickname =
, image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdi ...
, South-eastern
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
Sphagnum
''Sphagnum'' is a genus of approximately 380 accepted species of mosses, commonly known as sphagnum moss, peat moss, also bog moss and quacker moss (although that term is also sometimes used for peat). Accumulations of ''Sphagnum'' can store wa ...
Megaherbs
Megaherbs are a group of herbaceous wildflowers growing in the New Zealand subantarctic islands and on the other subantarctic islands. They are characterised by their great size, with huge leaves and very large and often unusually coloured flowers, ...
* Nine species of
mistletoe
Mistletoe is the common name for obligate hemiparasitic plants in the order Santalales. They are attached to their host tree or shrub by a structure called the haustorium, through which they extract water and nutrients from the host plant.
...
New Zealand flax
New Zealand flax describes the common New Zealand perennial plants ''Phormium tenax'' and ''Phormium colensoi'', known by the Māori names ''harakeke'' and ''wharariki'' respectively. Although given the common name 'flax' they are quite distinc ...
Pingao
''Ficinia spiralis'' (pīngao, pīkao, or golden sand sedge) is a coastal sedge endemic to New Zealand (including the Chatham Islands). Originally widespread, it has suffered severely from competition with introduced marram grass and animal gra ...
Environment of New Zealand
The environment of New Zealand is characterised by an endemic flora and fauna which has evolved in near isolation from the rest of the world. The main islands of New Zealand span two biomes, temperate and subtropical, complicated by large mount ...
*
Biodiversity of New Zealand
The biodiversity of New Zealand, a large island country located in the south-western Pacific Ocean, is varied and distinctive. The species of New Zealand accumulated over many millions of years as lineages evolved in the local circumstances. Ne ...
*
List of trees native to New Zealand
New Zealand's long geological isolation means that most of its flora is unique, with many durable hard woods. There is a wide variety of native trees, adapted to all the various micro-climates in New Zealand. The native bush (forest) ranges fro ...
*
Hebe Society
The Hebe Society promotes the cultivation and conservation of hebes and other New Zealand native plants.
It was formed in 1985 by a group of enthusiastic gardeners and nurserymen, under the auspices of the Royal Horticultural Society. The role ...
Canterbury, New Zealand
Canterbury ( mi, Waitaha) is a region of New Zealand, located in the central-eastern South Island. The region covers an area of , making it the largest region in the country by area. It is home to a population of
The region in its current f ...
New Zealand Plant Conservation Network * http://www.landcareresearch.co.nz/resources/identification/plants/grass-key (a Lucid key to naturalised and indigenous grasses of New Zealand)
University of Auckland
{{DEFAULTSORT:Flora Of New Zealand