Anigozanthos
Encyclopedia
Anigozanthos is a small genus
of Australia
n plants in the Bloodwort family Haemodoraceae
. The 11 species and several subspecies are commonly known as kangaroo paw
and catspaw depending on the shape of their flowers. A further species, previously identified as Anigozanthos fuliginosus and commonly known as the Black Kangaroo Paw, has been transferred to its own monotypic genus and is now known as Macropidia fuliginosa.
These perennials
are endemic
to dry sandy, siliceous areas of southwest Australia, but they occur as well in a variety of other environments and soil types. They are grown commercially in Australia
, the United States
, Japan
and Israel
.
The plant grows from short, underground, horizontal rhizome
s. The length and the character of these may vary between the species: some are fleshy, others are fragile. The sap
in the root
system allows the plants to survive extreme dry spells. In summer, a number of species die back to the rhizome, growing back in autumn.
The plants have a basal rosette
of long green to greyish-green leaves
. The leaves of some species are hairy. From the heart of this roset merge long leafless stalks, which can reach 2 m, ending in a raceme of flower
s. The size and the height of these stalks varies between the species. They can be clothed in coloured hairs. The tuber
ous flower bud
s are also covered with coloured hairs, giving it a velvety aspect. These long furry hairs also determine the colour of the flower. The flowers can have different colours, ranging from almost black to yellow, orange and red. Some species are even dichromatic (as Anigozanthos manglesii). The tubular form of the flower bud resembles a kangaroo paw, hence its name. The flower tip spreads fanlike into six petals. Full-grown plants can have up to ten flowers at the end of each stalk.
In recent years a number of numerous hybrids and cultivars have been developed. Kangaroo paws are much in demand as house plants and as cut flowers.
The genus was first named by Jacques Labillardière
in his popular work, Relation du Voyage à la Recherche de la Pérouse
, issued in 1800. The French botanist collected and described the type species
, Anigozanthus rufus, during the d'Entrecasteaux expedition's visit to Southwest Australia
in 1792.
The diversity of the genus is classified by 11 species, several of their subspecies are recognised by FloraBase
as rare or endangered taxa.
lists twenty seven registered names and descriptions of cultivars derived from the genus. A larger number of patents for these, accepted or granted 'varieties', are recorded in the Plant breeders' rights
database.
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 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...
n plants in the Bloodwort family Haemodoraceae
Haemodoraceae
Haemodoraceae is a family of flowering plants. It is sometimes known as the "Bloodwort family". Primarily a Southern Hemisphere family, they are found in South Africa, Australia and New Guinea, and in the Americas Haemodoraceae is a family of flowering plants. It is sometimes known as the...
. The 11 species and several subspecies are commonly known as kangaroo paw
Kangaroo paw
Kangaroo paw is a common name for a number of species, in two genera of the family Haemodoraceae, that are endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. These perennial plants are noted for their unique bird attracting flowers...
and catspaw depending on the shape of their flowers. A further species, previously identified as Anigozanthos fuliginosus and commonly known as the Black Kangaroo Paw, has been transferred to its own monotypic genus and is now known as Macropidia fuliginosa.
These perennials
Perennial plant
A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives for more than two years. The term is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter lived annuals and biennials. The term is sometimes misused by commercial gardeners or horticulturalists to describe only herbaceous perennials...
are endemic
Endemic (ecology)
Endemism is the ecological state of being unique to a defined geographic location, such as an island, nation or other defined zone, or habitat type; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsewhere. For example, all species of lemur are endemic to the...
to dry sandy, siliceous areas of southwest Australia, but they occur as well in a variety of other environments and soil types. They are grown commercially in 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...
, the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
.
The plant grows from short, underground, horizontal rhizome
Rhizome
In botany and dendrology, a rhizome is a characteristically horizontal stem of a plant that is usually found underground, often sending out roots and shoots from its nodes...
s. The length and the character of these may vary between the species: some are fleshy, others are fragile. The sap
Sap
Sap may refer to:* Plant sap, the fluid transported in xylem cells or phloem sieve tube elements of a plant* Sap , a village in the Dunajská Streda District of Slovakia...
in the root
Root
In vascular plants, the root is the organ of a plant that typically lies below the surface of the soil. This is not always the case, however, since a root can also be aerial or aerating . Furthermore, a stem normally occurring below ground is not exceptional either...
system allows the plants to survive extreme dry spells. In summer, a number of species die back to the rhizome, growing back in autumn.
Rosette (botany)
In botany, a rosette is a circular arrangement of leaves, with all the leaves at a single height.Though rosettes usually sit near the soil, their structure is an example of a modified stem.-Function:...
of long green to greyish-green leaves
Leaf
A leaf is an organ of a vascular plant, as defined in botanical terms, and in particular in plant morphology. Foliage is a mass noun that refers to leaves as a feature of plants....
. The leaves of some species are hairy. From the heart of this roset merge long leafless stalks, which can reach 2 m, ending in a raceme of flower
Flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to effect reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism for the union of sperm with eggs...
s. The size and the height of these stalks varies between the species. They can be clothed in coloured hairs. The tuber
Tuber
Tubers are various types of modified plant structures that are enlarged to store nutrients. They are used by plants to survive the winter or dry months and provide energy and nutrients for regrowth during the next growing season and they are a means of asexual reproduction...
ous flower bud
Bud
In botany, a bud is an undeveloped or embryonic shoot and normally occurs in the axil of a leaf or at the tip of the stem. Once formed, a bud may remain for some time in a dormant condition, or it may form a shoot immediately. Buds may be specialized to develop flowers or short shoots, or may have...
s are also covered with coloured hairs, giving it a velvety aspect. These long furry hairs also determine the colour of the flower. The flowers can have different colours, ranging from almost black to yellow, orange and red. Some species are even dichromatic (as Anigozanthos manglesii). The tubular form of the flower bud resembles a kangaroo paw, hence its name. The flower tip spreads fanlike into six petals. Full-grown plants can have up to ten flowers at the end of each stalk.
In recent years a number of numerous hybrids and cultivars have been developed. Kangaroo paws are much in demand as house plants and as cut flowers.
The genus was first named by Jacques Labillardière
Jacques Labillardière
Jacques-Julien Houtou de Labillardière was a French naturalist noted for his descriptions of the flora of Australia. Labillardière was a member of a voyage in search of the La Pérouse expedition...
in his popular work, Relation du Voyage à la Recherche de la Pérouse
Relation du Voyage à la Recherche de la Pérouse
Relation du Voyage à la Recherche de la Pérouse is a book , issued in 1800, that gives an account of the 1791-1793 d'Entrecasteaux expedition to Australasia. The title refers to the search for La Pérouse, who disappeared in the region in 1788, a popular, though unsuccessful, object of the mission...
, issued in 1800. The French botanist collected and described the type species
Type species
In biological nomenclature, a type species is both a concept and a practical system which is used in the classification and nomenclature of animals and plants. The value of a "type species" lies in the fact that it makes clear what is meant by a particular genus name. A type species is the species...
, Anigozanthus rufus, during the d'Entrecasteaux expedition's visit to Southwest Australia
Southwest Australia
Southwest Australia is a biodiversity hotspot that includes the Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub ecoregions of Western Australia. The region has a wet-winter, dry-summer Mediterranean climate, one of five such regions in the world...
in 1792.
Diversity
FloraBase
FloraBase is a public access web-based database of the flora of Western Australia. It provides authoritative scientific information on 12,978 taxa, including descriptions, maps, images, conservation status and nomenclatural details...
as rare or endangered taxa.
- Anigozanthos bicolor
- Anigozanthos bicolor ssp. bicolor : Two-coloured Kangaroo Paw
- Anigozanthos bicolor ssp. decrescens
- Anigozanthos bicolor ssp. exstans
- Anigozanthos bicolor ssp. minor
- Anigozanthos flavidusAnigozanthos flavidusAnigozanthos flavidus is a species of plant found in Southwest Australia. It is member of the Haemodoraceae family. It is commonly known as the tall, yellow, or evergreen, kangaroo paw...
: Tall Kangaroo Paw, Yellow Kangaroo Paw - Anigozanthos gabrielae : Dwarf Kangaroo Paw
- Anigozanthos humilisAnigozanthos humilisAnigozanthos humilis is a plant species in the family Haemodoraceae, one of several referred to as the catspaw. This perennial herb is endemic to the Southwest Australia region and widespread in its open forests....
: Cat's Paw- Anigozanthos humilis ssp. chrysanthus : Mogumber Cat's Paw
- Anigozanthos humilis ssp. grandis : Tall Cat's Paw
- Anigozanthos kalbarriensis : Kalbarri Cat's Paw
- Anigozanthos manglesiiAnigozanthos manglesiiAnigozanthos manglesii, commonly known as the Red and Green Kangaroo Paw or Mangles Kangaroo Paw, is a plant species endemic to Western Australia, and the floral emblem of that state....
: Red-and-green Kangaroo Paw (floral emblem of Western Australia)- Anigozanthos manglesii ssp. manglesii
- Anigozanthos manglesii ssp. quadrans
- Anigozanthos onycis : Branched Cat's Paw
- Anigozanthos preissiiAnigozanthos preissiiAnigozanthos preissii, the Albany Cat's paw, is a herbaceous plant species in the family Haemodoraceae, endemic to Western Australia....
: Albany Cat's Paw - Anigozanthos pulcherrimus : Golden Kangaroo Paw
- Anigozanthos rufus : Red Kangaroo Paw
- Anigozanthos viridis : Green Kangaroo Paw
- Anigozanthos viridis subsp. terraspectans Dwarf Green Kangaroo Paw
- Anigozanthos viridis subsp. metallica : Metallic Green Kangaroo Paw
Commercial hybrids
The popularity of Anigozanthos, as a garden plant or commercially produced cut-flower, has led to the development of cultivars. The Australian Cultivar Registration AuthorityAustralian Cultivar Registration Authority
The Australian Cultivar Registration Authority is the International Cultivar Registration Authority for Australian plant genera, excluding those genera or groups for which other ICRAs have been appointed...
lists twenty seven registered names and descriptions of cultivars derived from the genus. A larger number of patents for these, accepted or granted 'varieties', are recorded in the Plant breeders' rights
Plant breeders' rights
Plant breeders' rights , also known as plant variety rights , are rights granted to the breeder of a new variety of plant that give him exclusive control over the propagating material and harvested material of a new variety for a number of years.With these rights, the breeder can choose...
database.
- Anigozanthos ‘Amber Velvet’
- Anigozanthos ‘Autumn Mystery’
- Anigozanthos ‘Autumn Sunrise’
- Anigozanthos ‘Baby Roo’
- Anigozanthos ‘Big Red’
- Anigozanthos ‘Bush Ember’
- Anigozanthos ‘Bush Emerald’
- Anigozanthos ‘Bush Glow’
- Anigozanthos ‘Bush Inferno’
- Anigozanthos ‘Bush Ochre’
- Anigozanthos ‘Bush Pearl’
- Anigozanthos ‘Bush Ranger’
- Anigozanthos ‘Bush Spark’
- Anigozanthos ‘Charm’
- Anigozanthos ‘Copper Charm’
- Anigozanthos ‘Dwarf Delight’
- Anigozanthos ‘Early Spring’
- Anigozanthos ‘Gold Velvet’
- Anigozanthos ‘Green Dragon’
- Anigozanthos ‘Harmony’
- Anigozanthos ‘Hickman’s Delight’
- Anigozanthos ‘Kings Park Federation Flame’
- Anigozanthos ‘Lilac Queen’
- Anigozanthos ‘Little Jewel’
- Anigozanthos ‘Mini Red’
- Anigozanthos ‘Miniprolific’
- Anigozanthos ‘Patricia’
- Anigozanthos ‘Pink Joey’
- Anigozanthos ‘Ramboball’
- Anigozanthos ‘Ramboblitz’
- Anigozanthos ‘Rambubona’
- Anigozanthos ‘Rambueleg’
- Anigozanthos ‘Rambudan’
- Anigozanthos ‘Rambodiam’
- Anigozanthos ‘Rambofury’
- Anigozanthos ‘Ramboramp’
- Anigozanthos ‘Regal Claw’
- Anigozanthos ‘Regal Velvet’
- Anigozanthos ‘Red Cross’
- Anigozanthos ‘Rogue Radiance’
- Anigozanthos ‘Ruby Jools’
- Anigozanthos ‘Space Age’
- Anigozanthos ‘Spence‘s Spectacular’
- Anigozanthos ‘Sue Dixon’
- Anigozanthos ‘Unity’
- Anigozanthos ‘Velvet Harmony’
- Anigozanthos ‘Werite Woorata’
External links
- Western Australian Herbarium: Anigozanthos Department of Environment and Conservation