''Petrophile biternata'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae and 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 else ...

to southwestern Western Australia. It is a shrub with

biternate The following is a list of terms which are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (a single leaf blade or lamina) or compound (with several leaflets). The edge of the leaf may be regular o ...

pinnate Pinnation (also called pennation) is the arrangement of feather-like or multi-divided features arising from both sides of a common axis. Pinnation occurs in biological morphology, in crystals, such as some forms of ice or metal crystals, and in ...

, sharply-pointed leaves, and oval or spherical heads of

glabrous Glabrousness (from the Latin '' glaber'' meaning "bald", "hairless", "shaved", "smooth") is the technical term for a lack of hair, down, setae, trichomes or other such covering. A glabrous surface may be a natural characteristic of all or part of ...

, sticky, yellow flowers.

Description

''Petrophile biternata'' is a shrub that typically grows to a height of and has more or less glabrous branchlets. The leaves are biternate or pinnate, long on a petiole long with five to ten flat, sharply-pointed lobes. The flowers are arranged on the ends of branchlets in oval to spherical heads long, with short, sticky involucral bracts at the base. The flowers are long, yellow or creamy yellow, glabrous and sticky. Flowering occurs from August to October and the fruit is a

nut Nut often refers to: * Nut (fruit), fruit composed of a hard shell and a seed, or a collective noun for dry and edible fruits or seeds * Nut (hardware), fastener used with a bolt Nut or Nuts may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Co ...

, fused with others in an oval head about long.

Taxonomy

''Petrophile biternata'' was first formally described in 1855 by

Carl Meissner Carl Daniel Friedrich Meissner (1 November 1800 – 2 May 1874) was a Swiss botanist. Biography Born in Bern, Switzerland on 1 November 1800, he was christened Meisner but later changed the spelling of his name to Meissner. For most of his 40 ...

in '' Hooker's Journal of Botany and Kew Garden Miscellany'' from material collected by James Drummond between the Moore and Murchison Rivers. The specific epithet (''biternata'') refers to the leaves.

Distribution and habitat

This petrophile grows in shrubland and heath in scattered populations in the Moora-

Watheroo Watheroo is a small town in the Wheatbelt region of Western Australia. There are 137 residents, according to the . History Land in the area was settled by James Oliver in 1851, the area was surveyed in 1871 and the name Watheroo was charted fo ...

areas and near

New Norcia New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

, in southwestern Western Australia.

Conservation status

''Petrophile biternata'' is classified as " Priority Three" by the Government of Western Australia

Department of Parks and Wildlife The Department of Parks and Wildlife (DPaW) was the department of the Government of Western Australia responsible for managing lands described in the ''Conservation and Land Management Act 1984'' and implementing the state's conservation and e ...

meaning that it is poorly known and known from only a few locations but is not under imminent threat.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Petrophile biternata biternata Eudicots of Western Australia Endemic flora of Western Australia Plants described in 1855 Taxa named by Carl Meissner