Hakea chromatropa
Encyclopedia
Hakea chromatropa is a species of shrub found in Southwest Australia
. The distribution is restricted to an area around Wongan Hills
, where it is found on gravelly loam in open shrubland. The flowers are white or creamy, becoming pink, and without a scent.
The flowering period is between July and the beginning of October, with mutable colouring in the flower as it ages; this characteristic is described by the specific epithet, chromatropa is derived from the Greek for 'colour' and 'a turning'. The habit of the plant is bushy, it lacks the lignotuber
and corymbose arrangement of other hakea. The leaves are usually found to be serrated on the margin, one to five teeth or entire, giving a width between 8–20 mm. The length of the leaf is from 18 to 55 milimetres. They are ovoid in outline, concave, and markedly curved toward the narrower base of the leaf. The texture of the bark is finely cracked.
The species was first published in 2007 and placed with the hakeas of the Grevilleoideae
subfamily of Proteaceae
. The description was based on dried specimens and a 2006 collection of living material, the type locality of the latter is deliberately unspecified. It has been recorded in several localities in the Avon Wheatbelt
and, in the adjacent northern section, the Jarrah Forest
regions on the botanical province. Hakea chromatropa has an affinity with Hakea ilicifolia, found near the southwestern coast in the Esperance Plain region.
The authors note that while new taxa in Hakea
is anticipated to found in remote regions of Australia, this species is found in a region settled shortly after the founding of the Swan River Colony
and near to the home of the notable collector James Drummond
. Early specimens of fruiting material had been collected since 1969, but the new taxon was described from flowering specimens obtained in 2006.
Hakea chromatropa is listed on the Declared Rare and Priority Flora List as P1. The conservation status of some populations, occurring on private properties, has not been assessed. The same authors had published Hakea serrata in an earlier manuscript, which was attributed with the same conservation status, this is now regarded as a synonym.
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...
. The distribution is restricted to an area around Wongan Hills
Wongan Hills
Wongan Hills is a range of low flat-topped hills in the Avon Wheatbelt biogeographic region of Western Australia. It is located at , in northern parts of the Avon Wheatbelt biogeographic region....
, where it is found on gravelly loam in open shrubland. The flowers are white or creamy, becoming pink, and without a scent.
The flowering period is between July and the beginning of October, with mutable colouring in the flower as it ages; this characteristic is described by the specific epithet, chromatropa is derived from the Greek for 'colour' and 'a turning'. The habit of the plant is bushy, it lacks the lignotuber
Lignotuber
A lignotuber is a starchy swelling of the root crown possessed by some plants as a protection against destruction of the plant stem by fire. The crown contains buds from which new stems may sprout, and a sufficient store of nutrients to support a period of growth in the absence of...
and corymbose arrangement of other hakea. The leaves are usually found to be serrated on the margin, one to five teeth or entire, giving a width between 8–20 mm. The length of the leaf is from 18 to 55 milimetres. They are ovoid in outline, concave, and markedly curved toward the narrower base of the leaf. The texture of the bark is finely cracked.
The species was first published in 2007 and placed with the hakeas of the Grevilleoideae
Grevilleoideae
Grevilleoideae is a subfamily of the Proteaceae family of flowering plants. Mainly restricted to the southern hemisphere, it contains around 44 genera and about 950 species. Genera include Banksia, Grevillea and Macadamia.-Description:...
subfamily of 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,...
. The description was based on dried specimens and a 2006 collection of living material, the type locality of the latter is deliberately unspecified. It has been recorded in several localities in the Avon Wheatbelt
Avon Wheatbelt
Avon Wheatbelt is an Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia region in Western Australia and part of the larger Southwest Australia savanna ecoregion.-Further reading:...
and, in the adjacent northern section, the Jarrah Forest
Jarrah Forest
Jarrah Forest is an Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia region in Western Australia.-Location and description:The ecoregion stands on the 300m high Yilgarn block inland plateau and includes wooded valleys such as those of Western Australia's Murray River and the Helena River near...
regions on the botanical province. Hakea chromatropa has an affinity with Hakea ilicifolia, found near the southwestern coast in the Esperance Plain region.
The authors note that while new taxa in Hakea
Hakea
Hakea is a genus of 149 species of shrubs and small trees in the Proteaceae, native to Australia. They are found throughout the country, with the highest species diversity being found in the south west of Western Australia....
is anticipated to found in remote regions of Australia, this species is found in a region settled shortly after the founding of the Swan River Colony
Swan River Colony
The Swan River Colony was a British settlement established in 1829 on the Swan River, in Western Australia. The name was a pars pro toto for Western Australia. In 1832, the colony was officially renamed Western Australia, when the colony's founding Lieutenant-Governor, Captain James Stirling,...
and near to the home of the notable collector James Drummond
James Drummond
James Drummond may refer to:*James Drummond, 1st Baron Maderty*James Drummond , Bishop of Brechin*James Drummond , Scottish-born botanist and naturalist, early settler in Western Australia....
. Early specimens of fruiting material had been collected since 1969, but the new taxon was described from flowering specimens obtained in 2006.
Hakea chromatropa is listed on the Declared Rare and Priority Flora List as P1. The conservation status of some populations, occurring on private properties, has not been assessed. The same authors had published Hakea serrata in an earlier manuscript, which was attributed with the same conservation status, this is now regarded as a synonym.