''Tetratheca aphylla'', also known as the Bungalbin Tetratheca, is a species of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

in the

quandong Quandong, quandang or quondong, is a common name for the species ''Santalum acuminatum'' (desert, sweet, Western quandong), especially its edible fruit, but may also refer to * '' Aceratium concinnum'' (highroot quandong) * '' Peripentadenia mear ...

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

that 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 ...

Subspecies

* ''Tetratheca aphylla'' subsp. ''aphylla'' * ''Tetratheca aphylla'' subsp. ''megacarpa''

Description

The species grows as an erect, spreading, leafless

shrub A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees ...

to 60 cm in height. The flowers are pink or pink-purple, appearing from September to October.

Distribution and habitat

The range of the species lies within the Coolgardie and Mallee

IBRA The Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia (IBRA) is a biogeographic regionalisation of Australia developed by the Australian government's Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population, and Communities. It was devel ...

bioregion A bioregion is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a biogeographic realm, but larger than an ecoregion or an ecosystem, in the World Wide Fund for Nature classification scheme. There is also an attempt to use the ...

s of south-west

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 ...

, where it occurs in the Helena Aurora Range, 50 km north-north-east of

Koolyanobbing Koolyanobbing is located north-northeast of the town of Southern Cross, Western Australia. A subsidiary of Cleveland-Cliffs of Cleveland, Ohio mines Iron ore here. The ore is railed to the port at Esperance for export. Current operations commen ...

, and 80 km east of Newdegate. The plants grow in pockets of skeletal soil among banded iron formations, rock outcrops and debris, in

shrubland Shrubland, scrubland, scrub, brush, or bush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally or be the result of human activity. It m ...

Conservation

The species is listed as Vulnerable under Australia's

EPBC Act The ''Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999'' (Cth) is an Act of the Parliament of Australia that provides a framework for protection of the Australian environment, including its biodiversity and its natural and cultu ...

. The main potential threats are mining activities, inappropriate

fire regime A fire regime is the pattern, frequency, and intensity of the bushfires and wildfires that prevail in an area over long periods of time. It is an integral part of fire ecology, and renewal for certain types of ecosystems. A fire regime describes th ...

s and roadworks.

References

aphylla ''Aphylla'' is a widespread Neotropical genus of dragonflies of the Gomphidae family. They are commonly known as the greater forceptails because of their forceps Forceps (plural forceps or considered a plural noun without a singular, often a ...

Eudicots of Western Australia Oxalidales of Australia Taxa named by Ferdinand von Mueller Plants described in 1882 {{Australia-rosid-stub