''Mirbelia ovata'' is a species of flowering plant in the family
and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a spreading or prostrate shrub that typically grows to a height of and many branches, covered with woolly or shaggy hairs. Its leaves are egg-shaped, less than long and sharply-pointed. The flowers are arranged in pairs or threes at the base of branches and are yellow or orange and purple and appear from August to October.
It was first formally described in 1844 by
Carl Meissner in
Lehmann's ''
Plantae Preissianae
''Plantae preissianae sive enumeratio plantarum quas in australasia occidentali et meridionali-occidentali annis 1838-1841 collegit Ludovicus Preiss'', more commonly known as ''Plantae preissianae'', is a book written by Johann Georg Christian Leh ...
''.
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 ...
(''ovata'') means "wider below the middle".
This mirbelia grows on undulating plains in the
Avon Wheatbelt,
Esperance Plains
Esperance Plains, also known as Eyre Botanical District, is a biogeographic region in southern Western Australia on the south coast between the Avon Wheatbelt and Hampton bioregions, and bordered to the north by the Mallee region. It is a pl ...
,
Jarrah Forest
Jarrah forest is tall open forest in which the dominant overstory tree is ''Eucalyptus marginata'' (jarrah). The ecosystem occurs only in the Southwest Botanical Province of Western Australia. It is most common in the biogeographic region named in ...
,
Mallee and
Warren
A warren is a network of wild rodent or lagomorph, typically rabbit burrows. Domestic warrens are artificial, enclosed establishment of animal husbandry dedicated to the raising of rabbits for meat and fur. The term evolved from the medieval Angl ...
bioregions of south-western Western Australia, and is listed as "not threatened" by the Government of Western Australia
Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions
The Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA) is the Western Australian government
The Government of Western Australia, formally referred to as His Majesty's Government of Western Australia, is the Australian state de ...
.
References
ovata
Fabales of Australia
Flora of Western Australia
Plants described in 1822
Taxa named by Carl Meissner
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