Species profile—Commersonia beeronensis
Classification
Plantae (plants) → Equisetopsida (land plants) → Byttneriaceae → Commersonia beeronensis
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Sighting data
Species details
- Kingdom
- Plantae (plants)
- Class
- Equisetopsida (land plants)
- Family
- Byttneriaceae
- Scientific name
- Commersonia beeronensis Guymer
- WildNet taxon ID
- 30590
- Nature Conservation Act 1992 (NCA) status
- CR
- Conservation significant
- Yes
- Confidential
- No
- Endemicity
- Native
- Pest status
- Nil
- Description
- Commersonia beeronensis is a shrub growing from 1 to 2.5 m tall with the above-ground stems suckering from rhizomes. The branchlets are golden pubescent (with stellate hairs 0.3 to 1 mm in diameter). The leaves are green, pubescent above and paler, golden brown stellate pubescent below. The leaf blades are entire, the lower leaves are sometimes 3-lobed, ovate to lanceolate, 5 to 12 cm long and 1 to 4 cm wide. The leaf margins are denticulate, with 24 to 30 pairs of teeth up to 1 mm long. The petioles are stellate-pubescent and 4 to 7 mm long. The stipules are triangular or ovate, 1.5 to 6 mm long and 0.7 to 1 mm wide, early deciduous, and stellate pubescent. The inflorescences are 2 to 5cm long and contain 9 to 24 flowers which are cream in colour and 6 to 7 mm in diameter. The peduncles are 6 to 10 mm long and stellate-pubescent. The calyx lobes are triangular, 2 to 2.2 mm long and 2 to 2.5 mm wide, stellate-pubescent outside, sparsely puberulous inside. The petals are 4.5 to 4.8 mm long, with the central lobe obovate and entire. The ovary is 5-lobed and 5-winged, 0.8 to 0.9 mm in diameter, with rudimentary bristles and stellate hairs. The capsules have 5 wings which are chartaceous, 4.5 to 6 mm long. The capsule is 18 to 22 mm in diameter and dark brown in colour with bristles which are 1.4 to 2.1 mm long and with stellate hairs. There are 1 to 3 seeds per loculus. The seeds are ovoid and angular, tuberculate, 2.5 to 2.9 mm long and 1.9 to 2.1 mm wide and dark brown to black in colour. The strophiole is 0.8 to 1.1 mm long, and fawn or tan in colour (Guymer, 2005).
C. beeronensis is related to C. fraseri but differs from that species by the golden pubescent branchlets, leaves and inflorescences (Guymer, 2005). - Map
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- Distribution
- Commersonia beeronensis is confined to Beeron National Park (previously known as Beeron Holding) in south east Queensland (Guymer, 2005; Queensland Herbarium, 2012).
- Distributional limits
- -25.9839456, 151.3052167
-26.0092918, 151.3506469 - Range derivation
- Range derived from extent of the taxon's verified records
- Habitat
- Commersonia beeronensis occurs on granite outcrops, on slopes and at the base of granite domes in open eucalypt forests and woodlands dominated by Eucalyptus dura, Corymbia petalophylla, E. acmenoides and Lophostemon confertus (Guymer, 2005; Queensland Herbarium, 2012).
- Reproduction
- Flowers and fruits of Commersonia beeronensis have been collected in August, September and November (Guymer, 2005; Queensland Herbarium, 2012).
- Threatening processes
- Commersonia beeronensis is only known from one area, and is an uncommon plant where it occurs. Severe wildfires kill the above ground parts of this plant with regeneration occurring from subterranean suckers and seeds (Guymer, 2005).
- Status notes
- Commersonia beeronensis is listed as Vulnerable under the Queensland Nature Conservation Act 1992.
- Notes
- C. beeronensis is found in the Burnett pastoral district (Bostock and Holland, 2010; Queensland Herbarium, 2012).
- References
- Bostock, P.D. and Holland, A.E. (eds) (2010). Census of the Queensland Flora 2010. Queensland Herbarium, Department of Environment and Resource Management, Brisbane.
Guymer, G.P. (2005). New species of Commersonia J.R.Forst. and G.Forst. (Sterculiaceae) from Eastern Australia and Vanuatu. Austrobaileya 7 (1): 236-238.
Queensland Herbarium (2012). Specimen label information. Queensland Herbarium. Accessed 01/02/2012. - Profile author
- Lynise Wearne (31/01/2012)
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=30590.
This information is sourced from the WildNet database managed by the Queensland Department of Environment and Science.
