Lomatia
Encyclopedia
Lomatia is a genus
of 12 species of evergreen
flowering plant
s in the protea family Proteaceae
. Within the family, they have been placed, alone, in their own subtribe, Lomatiinae according to Johnson & Briggs 1975 classification of the family and subsequently in Flora of Australia (1995).
The genus has a Pacific Rim
distribution, with members native to eastern Australia
and southern South America
, forming a part of the Antarctic flora
. The species range from prostrate shrub
s less than 0.5 m tall to small tree
s up to 12 m tall.
Selected species
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of 12 species of evergreen
Evergreen
In botany, an evergreen plant is a plant that has leaves in all seasons. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which completely lose their foliage during the winter or dry season.There are many different kinds of evergreen plants, both trees and shrubs...
flowering plant
Flowering plant
The flowering plants , also known as Angiospermae or Magnoliophyta, are the most diverse group of land plants. Angiosperms are seed-producing plants like the gymnosperms and can be distinguished from the gymnosperms by a series of synapomorphies...
s in the protea family Proteaceae
Proteaceae
Proteaceae is a family of flowering plants distributed in the Southern Hemisphere. The family comprises about 80 genera with about 1600 species. Together with the Platanaceae and Nelumbonaceae they make up the order Proteales. Well known genera include Protea, Banksia, Embothrium, Grevillea,...
. Within the family, they have been placed, alone, in their own subtribe, Lomatiinae according to Johnson & Briggs 1975 classification of the family and subsequently in Flora of Australia (1995).
The genus has a Pacific Rim
Pacific Rim
The Pacific Rim refers to places around the edge of the Pacific Ocean. The term "Pacific Basin" includes the Pacific Rim and islands in the Pacific Ocean...
distribution, with members native to eastern Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and southern South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
, forming a part of the Antarctic flora
Antarctic flora
The Antarctic flora is a distinct community of vascular plants which evolved millions of years ago on the supercontinent of Gondwana, and is now found on several separate areas of the Southern Hemisphere, including southern South America, southernmost Africa, New Zealand, Australia and New Caledonia...
. The species range from prostrate shrub
Shrub
A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
s less than 0.5 m tall to small tree
Tree
A tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
s up to 12 m tall.
Selected species
- Lomatia arborescens - eastern AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
- Lomatia dentata - ChileChileChile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
, ArgentinaArgentinaArgentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires... - Lomatia ferrugineaLomatia ferrugineaLomatia ferruginea known as Fuinque is a small evergreen tree native to Chile in the Proteaceae family, it grows from Curicó Province to Magallanes...
- Chile, Argentina - Lomatia fraseriLomatia fraseriLomatia fraseri is a shrub or small tree which is native to rainforest margins in mountainous regions of Victoria and New South Wales in Australia...
- eastern Australia - Lomatia fraxinifolia - QueenslandQueenslandQueensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
- Lomatia hirsutaLomatia hirsutaLomatia hirsuta, known as Radal is a tree native to Chile. It grows from Coquimbo to Chiloe . It grows on a variety of soils and humidity. It grows on poor soils near ravines.-Description:...
- Chile, PeruPeruPeru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
, Argentina - Lomatia ilicifoliaLomatia ilicifoliaLomatia ilicifolia, commonly known as Holly Lomatia or Native Holly, is a shrub species that is native to eastern Australia. The species grows up to 3 metres high and has ovate to elliptic, prickly leaves that are 10 to 18 cm long and 2.5 to 5.5 centimetres wide...
- eastern AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area... - Lomatia myricoidesLomatia myricoidesLomatia myricoides is a shrub native to Australia.-Taxonomy:English botanist C.F. Gaertner first described this species as Embothrium myricoides in 1807. It was given its current binomial name by Karel Domin in 1921....
- southeastern Australia - Lomatia polymorpha - TasmaniaTasmaniaTasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...
- Lomatia silaifoliaLomatia silaifoliaLomatia silaifolia, commonly known as crinkle bush or parsley fern, is a shrub native to Australia.-Taxonomy:English botanist James Edward Smith first described this species as Embothrium silaifolium in 1793. At the time, Embothrium was a wastebasket taxon to which many proteaceae were assigned...
- eastern Australia - Lomatia tasmanica (King's Lomatia) - Tasmania
- Lomatia tinctoria - Tasmania
External links
- Pictures of Lomatia dentata, Lomatia ferruginea and Lomatia hirsuta from Chilebosque.
- pantherfile.uwm.edu/hoot/www/Prot.html - Hoot/Proteaceae