''Petrophile aculeata'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae and 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 else ...

to southwestern Western Australia. It is a small shrub with narrow egg-shaped leaves with the narrower end towards the base and with irregular teeth near the end, and more or less spherical heads of hairy yellow flowers.

Description

''Petrophile aculeata'' is a shrub that typically grows to a height of and has hairy branchlets and leaves but that become

glabrous Glabrousness (from the Latin '' glaber'' meaning "bald", "hairless", "shaved", "smooth") is the technical term for a lack of hair, down, setae, trichomes or other such covering. A glabrous surface may be a natural characteristic of all or part of ...

with age. The leaves are narrow egg-shaped with the narrower end towards the base, long and wide with irregular teeth in the upper half. The flowers are arranged in

sessile Sessility, or sessile, may refer to: * Sessility (motility), organisms which are not able to move about * Sessility (botany), flowers or leaves that grow directly from the stem or peduncle of a plant * Sessility (medicine), tumors and polyps that ...

, more or less spherical heads in diameter, with hairy grey involucral bracts at the base. The flowers are about long, yellow and hairy. Flowering occurs from October to November and the fruit is a

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 Co ...

, fused with others in a more or less spherical head up to in diameter.

Taxonomy

''Petrophile aculeata'' was first formally described in 1995 by

Donald Bruce Foreman Don Foreman was an Australian botanist who worked on the Monimiaceae and Proteaceae of Australia. He also helped with the editing of selected Flora of Victoria and Flora of Australia Volumes. Career After Foreman graduated from the Univers ...

in ''

Flora of Australia The flora of Australia comprises a vast assemblage of plant species estimated to over 30,000 vascular and 14,000 non-vascular plants, 250,000 species of fungi and over 3,000 lichens. The flora has strong affinities with the flora of Gondwana, ...

''. The specific epithet (''aculeata'') means "prickly", referring to "the prickly appearance and feel of the specimens".

Distribution and habitat

This petrophile grows in low heath in the

Alexander Morrison National Park Alexander Morrison National Park is a national park in Western Australia, located north of Perth in the Shire of Coorow along the Green Head-Coorow Road. It was named for Alexander Morrison (botanist), Alexander Morrison, the first Government Bo ...

near Coorow and in a separate population south of Eneabba where it grows in sandy soils over laterite in the

Avon Wheatbelt The Avon Wheatbelt is a bioregion in Western Australia. It has an area of . It is considered part of the larger Southwest Australia savanna ecoregion. Geography The Avon Wheatbelt bioregion is mostly a gently undulating landscape with low reli ...

and

Geraldton Sandplains Geraldton (Wajarri: ''Jambinu'', Wilunyu: ''Jambinbirri'') is a coastal city in the Mid West region of the Australian state of Western Australia, north of the state capital, Perth. At June 2018, Geraldton had an urban population of 37,648. ...

biogeographic regions of southwestern Western Australia.

Conservation status

''Petrophile aculeata'' is classified as "not threatened" by the Western Australian Government

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

{{DEFAULTSORT:Petrophile aculeata

aculeata Aculeata is a subclade of Hymenoptera containing ants, bees, and stinging wasps. The name is a reference to the defining feature of the group, which is the modification of the ovipositor into a stinger. However, many members of the group canno ...

Eudicots of Western Australia Endemic flora of Western Australia Plants described in 1995