''Stylidium repens'', the matted triggerplant, is a

dicotyledon The dicotyledons, also known as dicots (or, more rarely, dicotyls), are one of the two groups into which all the flowering plants (angiosperms) were formerly divided. The name refers to one of the typical characteristics of the group: namely, t ...

ous

plant Plants are predominantly photosynthetic eukaryotes of the kingdom Plantae. Historically, the plant kingdom encompassed all living things that were not animals, and included algae and fungi; however, all current definitions of Plantae exclud ...

that belongs to the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

Stylidium ''Stylidium'' (also known as triggerplants or trigger plants) is a genus of dicotyledonous plants that belong to the family Stylidiaceae. The genus name ''Stylidium'' is derived from the Greek ''στύλος'' or ''stylos'' (column or pillar), wh ...

'' (family Stylidiaceae). ''S. repens'' 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 ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

and is found primarily in southwest

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 ...

. This species is a creeping or scrambling triggerplant, which can spread over large areas as a tangled mat of stems and aerial roots. The older stems are grey whereas younger stems appear red and have terminal rosettes of small leaves, five mm to one cm in length. When the rains come, new roots and a one to three flowers emerge from the terminal rosettes. This is the only species of triggerplant known to regularly flower twice a year—in autumn and late spring. Pollination, which is typically very specialized in this genus, is achieved with a variety of insects in this species.Erickson, Rica. (1958). ''Triggerplants''. Perth: Paterson Brokensha Pty. Ltd. ''Stylidium repens'' is primarily found in

jarrah ''Eucalyptus marginata'', commonly known as jarrah, djarraly in Noongar language and historically as Swan River mahogany, is a plant in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae and is endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a tree with roug ...

and

wandoo Wandoo is the common name for a number of Western Australian ''Eucalyptus'' species, all of which have smooth white bark. The original "wandoo" is ''Eucalyptus wandoo''. Additional species have been given this name because of a perceived likeness w ...

forests, in sand, and in scrubby heath. It is widely distributed from north of Geraldton to east of Esperance, south to the coast and inland to Dangin. ''Stylidium repens''

var. In botanical nomenclature, variety (abbreviated var.; in la, varietas) is a taxonomic rank below that of species and subspecies, but above that of form. As such, it gets a three-part infraspecific name. It is sometimes recommended that the ...

''diplectroglossum'' (Erickson & Willis) was believed to be a distinct variety of this species, noted for its narrower leaves and free calyx lobes. This variety has since been renamed '' S. diplectroglossum'', reflecting its status as a distinct species. In her 1958 book, ''Triggerplants'', Rica Erickson suggested that due to the morphological similarities, what was known as ''S. radicans'' ( Sond.) is really a

synonym A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are all ...

for ''S. repens''.

Allen Lowrie Allen Lowrie (10 October 1948 - 30 August 2021) was a Western Australian botanist. He was recognised for his expertise on the genera ''Drosera'' and '' Stylidium''.Council of Heads of Australasian HerbariaResources of Australian Herbaria: Western ...

and his research team confirmed the earlier suspicion in their taxonomic revision of the creeping triggerplants.Lowrie, A., Burbidge, A.H., and Kenneally, K.F. (1999). A taxonomic revision of the creeping triggerplants (Stylidiaceae: ''Stylidium'' sect. ''Appressae'') from southern Australia. ''Nuytsia'', 13(1): 89-157.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q16992835 Carnivorous plants of Australia Eudicots of Western Australia repens Asterales of Australia

See also

References