''Tetratheca erubescens'' 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 ...

Etymology

The

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

''erubescens'' (‘blushing’) refers to the appearance of the flowers.

Description

The species grows as a low, tangled

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 50 cm in height and 1.5 m wide. The flowers are white, pink or mauve, with darker flecks and speckles.

Distribution and habitat

The range of the species lies within the Coolgardie

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 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 is limited to the Koolyanobbing Range. The plants grow in rock crevices among hill crests, slopes and cliffs, on red-brown sandy and gravelly soils and ironstone.

References

erubescens Eudicots of Western Australia Oxalidales of Australia Plants described in 2007 {{Australia-rosid-stub