''Verticordia elizabethiae'', named as Elizabeth's featherflower, is a

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 myrtle family,

Myrtaceae Myrtaceae, the myrtle family, is a family of dicotyledonous plants placed within the order Myrtales. Myrtle, pōhutukawa, bay rum tree, clove, guava, acca (feijoa), allspice, and eucalyptus are some notable members of this group. All speci ...

. An

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 ...

species of

Southwest Australia Southwest Australia is a biogeographic region in Western Australia. It includes the Mediterranean-climate area of southwestern Australia, which is home to a diverse and distinctive flora and fauna. The region is also known as the Southwest Aus ...

, it occurs near salt lakes as an erect bushy shrub.

Taxonomy

A species of ''

Verticordia :For the clam genus, see ''Verticordia'' (bivalve). ''Verticordia'' is a genus of more than 100 species of plants commonly known as featherflowers, in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. They range in form from very small shrubs such as '' V. vertico ...

'', the featherflowers, assigned to a section of the genus ''Verticordia'' sect. ''Verticordella''. The type was collected in 2018 at a location reported imprecisely as Baladjie. Previously collected specimens, including one made by Charles Gardner in 1926 and another recognised as ''Verticordia'' sp. ''Koolyanobbing'', were assigned by the authors, Barbara Rye and Matthew Barrett, to the new species. The specific epithet honours the extensive contribution of Elizabeth Anne (Berndt) George, née Sykes (1935-2012) to the collection and research of verticordias. A treatment of the population had previously been published by George as an inland variant of ''

Verticordia halophila ''Verticordia halophila'', commonly known as salt-loving featherflower, or salt-loving verticordia, is a flowering plant in the myrtle Family (biology), family, Myrtaceae and is Endemism, endemic to the Southwest Australia, south-west of Western ...

''.

Description

A low growing salt tolerant shrub between 0.4 and 1.2 metres in width and 0.3 to 0.6 m high. The species lacks evidence of a

lignotuber A lignotuber is a woody swelling of the root crown possessed by some plants as a protection against destruction of the plant stem, such as by fire. Other woody plants may develop basal burls as a similar survival strategy, often as a response t ...

Distribution and habitat

Only known at a restricted distribution range within the semi-arid

Coolgardie bioregion Coolgardie is an Australian bioregion consisting of an area of low hills and plains of infertile sandy soil in Western Australia. It has an area of . It includes much of the Great Western Woodlands. Location and description This is a transiti ...

, in an area near

Southern Cross, Western Australia Southern Cross is a town in Western Australia, 371 kilometres east of state capital Perth on the Great Eastern Highway. It was founded by gold prospectors in 1888, and gazetted in 1890. It is the major town and administrative centre of the Shire ...

. It occurs on flats around salt lakes amongst other

halophyte A halophyte is a salt-tolerant plant that grows in soil or waters of high salinity, coming into contact with saline water through its roots or by salt spray, such as in saline semi-deserts, mangrove swamps, marshes and sloughs and seashores. T ...

s forming heath communities, species of ''

Maireana ''Maireana '' is a genus of around 57 species of perennial shrubs and herbs in the family Amaranthaceae which are endemic to Australia. Species in this genus were formerly classified within the genus ''Kochia''. The genus was described in 1840 b ...

'', '' Gunniopsis'' and ''

Frankenia ''Frankenia'' (sea heath) is the only genus in the Frankeniaceae family of flowering plants. Other genera have been recognized within the family, such as ''Anthobryum'', ''Hypericopsis'' and ''Niederleinia'', but molecular phylogenetic studies ...

'', associated with ''

Callitris ''Callitris'' is a genus of coniferous trees in the Cupressaceae (cypress family). There are 16 recognized species in the genus, of which 13 are native to Australia and the other three (''C. neocaledonica, C. sulcata'' and ''C. p ...

''.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q106910202 elizabethiae Halophytes Endemic flora of Western Australia Rosids of Western Australia Plants described in 2020