''Livistona alfredii'', the millstream palm or millstream fan palm, is a species of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

in the family

Arecaceae The Arecaceae is a family of perennial flowering plants in the monocot order Arecales. Their growth form can be climbers, shrubs, tree-like and stemless plants, all commonly known as palms. Those having a tree-like form are called palm trees ...

. It is found only in the north-west of

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

where it is threatened by

habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...

Description

''Livistona alfredii'' has cream flowers, flowers from July to September, and fruits from December to May. It is a

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 ...

palm, growing to 12 m, with prominent leaf scars. The petioles of dead leaves persist for the first metre, but shed higher up the stem. Fibres in the leaf-base are prominent, coarse, and persistent. The leaves are pale green-grey to

glaucous ''Glaucous'' (, ) is used to describe the pale grey or bluish-green appearance of the surfaces of some plants, as well as in the names of birds, such as the glaucous gull (''Larus hyperboreus''), glaucous-winged gull (''Larus glaucescens''), g ...

on the upper surface, and light green-grey and waxy and dull on the lower surface. The inflorescences are unbranched at the base, and do not extend beyond the limit of the crown, but branch up to three orders. The flowers are solitary or in pairs, cylindrical in bud with triangular sepals.

Distribution

This palm 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 the north-west of

. It has been found in Beard's

Eremaean Province The Eremaean province is a botanical region in Western Australia, characterised by a desert climate. It is sometimes referred to as the ''dry and arid inland'' or ''interior'' region of Western Australia It is one of John Stanley Beard's phytog ...

in the

IBRA regions The Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia (IBRA) is a biogeographic regionalisation of Australia developed by the Australian government's Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population, and Communities. It was devel ...

of Carnarvon and

Pilbara The Pilbara () is a large, dry, thinly populated region in the north of Western Australia. It is known for its Aboriginal peoples; its ancient landscapes; the red earth; and its vast mineral deposits, in particular iron ore. It is also a glo ...

, by the edges of permanent pools.

Taxonomy

''Livistona alfredii'' was first formally described 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 ...

in 1892.

References

alfredii Palms of Australia Conservation dependent flora of Australia Angiosperms of Western Australia Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Taxa named by Ferdinand von Mueller Dioecious plants Endemic flora of Western Australia {{WesternAustralia-plant-stub