''Pimelea lyallii'', commonly known as the southern sand daphne, is a species of small shrub of the family
Thymelaeaceae
The Thymelaeaceae are a cosmopolitan family of flowering plants composed of 50 genera (listed below) and 898 species.Zachary S. Rogers (2009 onwards)A World Checklist of Thymelaeaceae (version 1) Missouri Botanical Garden Website, St. Louis. It ...
.
Description
''Pimelea lyallii'' has a prostrate habit. Its stems grow up to 60 cm long, with leaves that are 5 to 7 mm long and 2 to 3 mm wide. Its flowers are hairy and white, and grow in clusters. The fruit it produces is also white.
Distribution and habitat
The species 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
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
, and found only on the
Foveaux Strait
The Foveaux Strait, (, or , ) separates Stewart Island, New Zealand's third largest island, from the South Island. The strait is about 130 km long (from Ruapuke Island to Little Solander Island), and it widens (from 14 km at Ruapuk ...
and
Stewart Island / Rakiura coasts. The shrub grows in coastal sand dunes and is often found partially covered in sand.
Conservation status
''Pimelea lyallii'' is classified as at risk under the
New Zealand Threat Classification System
The New Zealand Threat Classification System is used by the Department of Conservation to assess conservation priorities of species in New Zealand.
The system was developed because the IUCN Red List, a similar conservation status system, had some ...
(NZTCS) due to being naturally uncommon.
References
lyallii
Flora of New Zealand
Endemic flora of New Zealand
{{Thymelaeaceae-stub