''Glottiphyllum carnosum'' is a rare

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

succulent In botany, succulent plants, also known as succulents, are plants with parts that are thickened, fleshy, and engorged, usually to retain water in arid climates or soil conditions. The word ''succulent'' comes from the Latin word ''sucus'', meani ...

plant, of the family

Aizoaceae The Aizoaceae, or fig-marigold family, is a large family of dicotyledonous flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is d ...

. It is indigenous to arid areas between the towns of Calitzdorp and

Oudtshoorn Oudtshoorn (, ), the "ostrich capital of the world", is a town in the Western Cape province of South Africa, located between the Swartberg mountains to the north and the Outeniqua Mountains to the south. Two ostrich-feather booms, during 1865–1 ...

in the

Western Cape The Western Cape is a province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , and the third most populous, with an estimated 7 million inhabitants in 2020 ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

. It co-occurs with several other species of ''

Glottiphyllum ''Glottiphyllum'' is a genus of about 57 species of succulent subtropical plants of the family Aizoaceae. It is closely related to the ''Gibbaeum'' and '' Faucaria'' genera. The name comes from ancient Greek γλωττίς ''glottis'' "tongue" an ...

''.

Description

This species has a pale, waxy layer on its leaves, which gives it a greyish colour. It has thickened leaves with edges that are often undulated and hunched at the tip. It also tends to proliferate and eventually form small clumps. Its seed capsules have a woody base, and a rounded domed top. It resembles ''

Glottiphyllum linguiforme ''Glottiphyllum linguiforme'' is a widespread species of succulent plant, of the family Aizoaceae, native to South Africa. It is the type species of the genus ''Glottiphyllum''. Description This plant's species name means "tongue-shaped" in La ...

'', which looks similar but has flatter leaves. In contrast, ''G. carnosum'' has much thicker leaves, with a hunched tip, and it tends of offset and branch far more.

References

carnosum Taxa named by N. E. Brown {{Aizoaceae-stub