''Isopogon tridens'', commonly known as the three-toothed coneflower, is a species of flowering plant in the family

Proteaceae The Proteaceae form a family of flowering plants predominantly distributed in the Southern Hemisphere. The family comprises 83 genera with about 1,660 known species. Together with the Platanaceae and Nelumbonaceae, they make up the order Pro ...

and is endemic to the southwest of Western Australia. It is a shrub with wedge-shaped leaves with two or three sharply-pointed teeth, and flattened-spherical heads of glabrous creamy white, sometimes purple flowers.

Description

''Isopogon tridens'' is a shrub that typically grows to a height of and has hairy, pale reddish to greyish-brown branchlets. The leaves are wedge-shaped, long, with two or three sharply-pointed lobes or teeth near the tip. The flowers are arranged on the ends of branchlets in sessile, flattened-spherical heads in diameter with hairy, broadly egg-shaped involucral bracts at the base. The flowers are more or less glabrous, creamy white or rarely deep purple, and long. Flowering occurs from June to July and the fruit is a hairy

nut Nut often refers to: * Nut (fruit), fruit composed of a hard shell and a seed, or a collective noun for dry and edible fruits or seeds * Nut (hardware), fastener used with a bolt Nut or Nuts may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Com ...

, fused with others in a flattened-spherical head about in diameter.

Taxonomy

Three-toothed coneflower was first formally described in 1855 by Carl Meissner who gave it the name ''Isopogon trilobus'' var. ''tridens'' in ''

Hooker's Journal of Botany and Kew Garden Miscellany ''Hooker's Journal of Botany and Kew Garden Miscellany'' was a scientific journal In academic publishing, a scientific journal is a periodical publication intended to further the progress of science, usually by reporting new research. Cont ...

'' from specimens collected by James Drummond. In 1868,

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 ...

changed the name to ''Isopogon tridens'' in '' Fragmenta phytographiae Australiae''.

Distribution and habitat

''Isopogon tridens'' usually grows in shrubland or heath and in a small area from near the

Arrowsmith River The Arrowsmith River lies within the Mid West region of Western Australia. The explorer George Grey found the river on 11 April 1839, on his second expedition along the west coast. He named it after the distinguished English cartographer Joh ...

to Eneabba in the Geraldton Sandplains

biogeographic region An ecoregion (ecological region) or ecozone (ecological zone) is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than a biogeographic realm. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of l ...

in the south-west of Western Australia.

Conservation status

This isopogon is classified as "not threatened" by the Government of Western Australia

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 ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q18076183 tridens Eudicots of Western Australia Plants described in 1855 Taxa named by Carl Meissner