''Sporadanthus ferrugineus'', the bamboo rush or giant wire rush, is a restiad plant

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 northern

North Island The North Island, also officially named Te Ika-a-Māui, is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but much less populous South Island by the Cook Strait. The island's area is , making it the world's 14th-largest ...

of New Zealand.

Taxonomy

It was long considered that ''Sporadanthus'' plants in the North Island were the same species as '' Sporadanthus traversii'', which is native to

Chatham Island Chatham Island ( ) (Moriori: ''Rēkohu'', 'Misty Sun'; mi, Wharekauri) is by far the largest island of the Chatham Islands group, in the south Pacific Ocean off the eastern coast of New Zealand's South Island. It is said to be "halfway bet ...

, east of the New Zealand mainland. The North Island plants were described as the separate species ''S. ferrugineus'' in 1999, with ''S. traversii'' becoming regarded as endemic to Chatham Island.

Distribution

''S. ferrugineus'' grows in acidic,

ombrotrophic Ombrotrophic ("cloud-fed"), from Ancient Greek ὄμβρος (''ómvros'') meaning "rain" and τροφή (''trofí'') meaning "food"), refers to Soil, soils or vegetation which receive all of their water and nutrients from precipitation, rather ...

, restiad-dominated

raised bog Raised bogs, also called ombrotrophic bogs, are acidic, wet habitats that are poor in mineral salts and are home to flora and fauna that can cope with such extreme conditions. Raised bogs, unlike fens, are exclusively fed by precipitation ( ombro ...

s. Draining of such bogs for farming in the northern North Island has greatly reduced their extent. ''S. ferrugineus'' is now mainly found at the peat domes of Kopuatai and Torehape on the

Hauraki Plains The Hauraki Plains are a geographical feature and non-administrative area (though Hauraki Plains County Council existed from 1920 to 1989 and a statistical Area Unit remains) located in the northern North Island of New Zealand, at the lower ( ...

and Moanatuatua Swamp in the Waikato basin.

Biology

Houdinia flexilissima feeding damage on Sporadanthus ferrugineus

''S. ferrugineus'' is the only known

food source Food is any substance consumed by an organism for nutritional support. Food is usually of plant, animal, or fungal origin, and contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals. The substance is inge ...

for the moth '' Houdinia flexilissima''.

Conservation

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 ...

, it is classified as "At Risk - Relict" (It has both a restricted range, and its documented decline shows it as now occupying less than 10% of its former range, but the population is considered stable.) In 2011, it was voted "Plant of the Year" in a poll run by the

New Zealand Plant Conservation Network The New Zealand Plant Conservation Network (NZPCN) is a non-governmental organisation devoted to the protection and restoration of New Zealand's indigenous plant life, including vascular plants, mosses, liverworts, hornworts and lichens. Descr ...

References

External links

*
''Sporadanthus ferrugineus''
at the New Zealand Plant Conservation Network {{Taxonbar, from=Q7579199 Restionaceae Endemic flora of New Zealand Flora of the North Island Plants described in 1999 Taxa named by Peter James de Lange Taxa named by Peter Brian Heenan