Species profile—Brunoniella spiciflora
Classification
Plantae (plants) → Equisetopsida (land plants) → Acanthaceae → Brunoniella spiciflora
Sighting data
Species details
- Kingdom
- Plantae (plants)
- Class
- Equisetopsida (land plants)
- Family
- Acanthaceae
- Scientific name
- Brunoniella spiciflora (F.Muell. ex Benth.) Bremek.
- WildNet taxon ID
- 17768
- Nature Conservation Act 1992 (NCA) status
- Least concern
- Conservation significant
- No
- Confidential
- No
- Endemicity
- Native
- Pest status
- Nil
- Description
- Brunoniella spiciflora is an erect, tuberous herb with hairy branches and stems. The leaves are egg-shaped, with finely serrated margins and are paler on the underside. Leaves are hairless or may be hairy on the midrib and veins. The leaves occur in unequal pairs, with one being significantly larger than the other. The larger leaf is 3-9cm long by 1-2.5cm wide. The smaller leaf is up to half the length of the larger leaf. The leaf stalks measure 3-8mm long.
Clusters of 5-6 flowers on a hairy stalk make up the flower heads. Individual flowers are tubular, 3-4.5mm long, with 5 petals and are white with mauve markings in the throat. The fruit is a dry capsule measuring about 12-13mm long. (Barker 1986; Barker 1996; National Herbarium of NSW 2008) - Distribution
- Brunoniella spiciflora is known to occur only from Gympie, south to the Queensland/New South Wales border. There is also an outlying population near Mackay in central-coast Queensland. (Barker 1986; Herbrecs 2008)
- Distributional limits
- -21.0567701, 148.4760922
-28.2484006, 153.3775 - Range derivation
- Range derived from extent of the taxon's verified records
- Habitat
- Brunoniella spiciflora grows along creeks and gullies in rainforest, vine forest and wet sclerophyll forest. It has been recorded growing in dark, loamy, alluvium and volcanic soils. (Herbrecs 2008; National Herbarium of NSW 2008)
- Behaviour
- This plant is a host to Hypolimnas alimena lamina, the blue-banded eggfly.
- Reproduction
- Brunoniella spiciflora flowers in September. (National Herbarium of NSW 2008)
- Notes
- Contributors: Ailsa Holland, Mellisa Mayhew 27/01/2009
- References
- Barker, R.M. (1986). A taxonomic revision of Australian Acanthaceae. Journal of the Adelaide Botanic Gardens 9: 1-286 (105-106).
Barker, R.M. (1996). Additional notes, new combinations and other notes on Acanthaceae of Australia. Journal of the Adelaide Botanic Gardens 17: 142.
Herbrecs (2008). Brunoniella spiciflora, in BriMapper version 2.12. Queensland Herbarium. Accessed 24/09/2008.
National Herbarium of New South Wales (2008). Brunoniella spiciflora, in PlantNet: New South Wales Flora Online. National Herbarium of New South Wales. Accessed 07/10/2008. http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/ - Profile author
- Ailsa Holland (27/01/2009)
Other resources
Data source
This profile data is sourced from the QLD Wildlife Data API using the Get species by ID function used under CC-By 4.0.
https://apps.des.qld.gov.au/species/?op=getspeciesbyid&taxonid=17768.
This information is sourced from the WildNet database managed by the Queensland Department of Environment and Science.
