Plant of the Week

It’s quiet here today as I realized the journal article I brought from home is actually largely irrelevant, loaded with theoretical mathmatics and ergo, ripe for the recycling bin. I’m also flat out preparing for my trip to Coastal NSW on the 20th (flying out at 6.40am ^^..^^) so it’s nice to take a break from arranging permits and getting identification books sorted out.
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So, this week’s plant of the week is another member of the pea family (Fabaceae), one of the few native peas found in New Zealand, apart from the kowhai (Sophora spp.) and native brooms (Carmichaelia spp.).

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Kowhai-ngutu-kaka – Clianthus puniceus – Kakabeak

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This plant is really striking, with beautiful red flowers that apparently look something like the beak of the native Kaka (Nestor meridionalis), hence the common name.

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Kakabeak flowers look remarkably similar to the other pea that I have profiled Sturt’s Desert Pea, that the latter was originally classified in the Clianthus genus before being reassigned to Swainsona. Kakabeak is now the only remaining species within the Clianthus genus.

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Despite being a popular garden cultivar, Kakabeak is actually a threatened native species. It occurs naturally in the East Cape/Hawkes Bay area, where only about 200 wild individuals survive. Most of the garden varieties that people have are clones or cultivars, which means that the genetic diversity of the species is actually far smaller than what would be expected from the number of individuals alive. In the wild, Kakabeak is threatened by goat, deer, pig and possum browsing.

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Plant of the Week

As I was writing yesterday’s post, I happened across a few photos of a plant that I had been very eager to see while on my trip. It’s an iconic outback plant, and you really have to see it for yourself to experience it. It’s a truly remarkable sight:

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Sturt’s Desert Pea – Swainsona formosa

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The Swainsona genus is an iconic and ubiquitous Australian taxon, comprising >40 species spread throughout the dry arid zone, and along the wetter margins of the east and west coast. Swainsona is in the Fabaceae or pea family, which is one of the most widespread and diverse in Australia – particularly because of the Acacia genus (the wattles) of which there are approximately 800 species in Australia.Sturt’s Desert Pea, like much in the Outback, is named after the (in)famous 19th Century Explorer, Charles Sturt, who led an expedition into the centre of Australia in search of the ‘Great Inland Sea’. Needless to say, it didn’t end too well. It is an ephemeral plant, which means that it’s growth and reproduction occurs in response, or is timed to occur, after the seasonal rains that provide temporary relief to this harsh environment. It grows at an amazing rate, and is a sight to behold as it spreads across ephemeral creek beds, usually close to the ground in a way reminiscent of the The Red Weed

The flowers themselves are just exquisite, and so different to other members of the Swainsona genus. They are about 8-9cm long, arranged usually in a group of six in a circular arrangement. The blood red petals are long and pointed, and in the centre of the flower is a deep black spot that lends an even more surreal quality to the plants. The specific name formosa is a derivative of the latin formosus for beautiful. The pictures below show just how beautiful these flowers are, taken in Dead Horse Gully in Sturt National Park, just 5 minutes from Tibooburra.

S. formosa growing across an ephemeral creek bed
at Dead Horse Gully, Sturt National Park.
[Click Image to Enlarge]

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