Senecio lamarckianus
Encyclopedia
Senecio lamarckianus, the Bois De Chèvre (Goat of the Wood), is a species of flowering plant
in the Asteraceae
family and a member of the genus
Senecio. It is endemic to the island Mauritius
and is threatened by habitat loss.
S. lamarckianus is named after the French philosopher, botanist and zoologist Jean-Baptiste Pierre Antoine de Monet, Chevalier de Lamarck
.
Leaves and stems:
The stalk and branches are densely covered with white hairs. Oblong leather-like leaves are silvery greenish colored,
11 centimetres (4.3 in) to 13 centimetres (5.1 in) long by 3 centimetres (1.2 in) to 5.2 centimetres (2 in) wide and are attached to the branch with a leaf stalk 1 centimetre (0.393700787401575 in) to 2 centimetre (0.78740157480315 in) long, which bear on opposite sides small, well-spaced lanceolate lobules. Pointed at the tips and slender at the base; serrated, more so at the tips, mostly hairless on the tops and densely hairy underneath.
Flowers:
Numerous flower heads which cluster into a flat top, each on its own flower stalk; center flower heads tending to open first. Inflorescence is completely covered in white hairs and appears in groups of seven. Clusters composed of ray florets, with 2.8 millimetre (0.110236220472441 in) long yellow rays, tube 2 millimetre (0.078740157480315 in) long. Internal florets, with yellow 3.9 millimetre (0.153543307086614 in) corolla with 1.6 millimetre (0.062992125984252 in) long lobes.
Fruits:
Achenes can vary between 1.2 millimetre (0.047244094488189 in) and 1.8 millimetre (0.0708661417322835 in) in length, are smooth and bear a pappus of 2.7 millimetre (0.106299212598425 in) to 3 millimetre (0.118110236220472 in) long with white hairs.
Localities: Mondrain, Pieter Both Mountain
, Gubbies, Piton du Fouge Ridge Forest
, crests above Port Louis, most of them in Piton du Fouge. There is a chance there are more individuals in more remote areas.
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...
in the Asteraceae
Asteraceae
The Asteraceae or Compositae , is an exceedingly large and widespread family of vascular plants. The group has more than 22,750 currently accepted species, spread across 1620 genera and 12 subfamilies...
family and a member of the genus
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...
Senecio. It is endemic to the island Mauritius
Mauritius
Mauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar...
and is threatened by habitat loss.
S. lamarckianus is named after the French philosopher, botanist and zoologist Jean-Baptiste Pierre Antoine de Monet, Chevalier de Lamarck
Jean-Baptiste Lamarck
Jean-Baptiste Pierre Antoine de Monet, Chevalier de la Marck , often known simply as Lamarck, was a French naturalist...
.
Description
Goat of the Wood or S. lamarckianus is a many branched perennial shrub that grows to be 2 metres (6.6 ft) to 3 metres (9.8 ft) tall.Leaves and stems:
The stalk and branches are densely covered with white hairs. Oblong leather-like leaves are silvery greenish colored,
11 centimetres (4.3 in) to 13 centimetres (5.1 in) long by 3 centimetres (1.2 in) to 5.2 centimetres (2 in) wide and are attached to the branch with a leaf stalk 1 centimetre (0.393700787401575 in) to 2 centimetre (0.78740157480315 in) long, which bear on opposite sides small, well-spaced lanceolate lobules. Pointed at the tips and slender at the base; serrated, more so at the tips, mostly hairless on the tops and densely hairy underneath.
Flowers:
Numerous flower heads which cluster into a flat top, each on its own flower stalk; center flower heads tending to open first. Inflorescence is completely covered in white hairs and appears in groups of seven. Clusters composed of ray florets, with 2.8 millimetre (0.110236220472441 in) long yellow rays, tube 2 millimetre (0.078740157480315 in) long. Internal florets, with yellow 3.9 millimetre (0.153543307086614 in) corolla with 1.6 millimetre (0.062992125984252 in) long lobes.
Fruits:
Achenes can vary between 1.2 millimetre (0.047244094488189 in) and 1.8 millimetre (0.0708661417322835 in) in length, are smooth and bear a pappus of 2.7 millimetre (0.106299212598425 in) to 3 millimetre (0.118110236220472 in) long with white hairs.
Distribution
Endiemic to Mauritius, now very rare, found in dry mountainous regions around the summit peaks of the island.Localities: Mondrain, Pieter Both Mountain
Pieter Both (mountain)
Pieter Both is the second highest mountain of Mauritius. It is 820 metres tall. It is named after Pieter Both, the first Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies. The notable feature of this mountain is the gigantic rock formation at the very top of it, which resembles a human head.To climb the...
, Gubbies, Piton du Fouge Ridge Forest
Piton de la Petite Rivière Noire
Piton de la Petite Rivière Noire is the highest mountain on the island of Mauritius,in the Indian Ocean. Located in the Black River district and rising to a height of 828 m above sea level, it forms part of the Black River mountain range.There are two other main mountain ranges in Mauritius:...
, crests above Port Louis, most of them in Piton du Fouge. There is a chance there are more individuals in more remote areas.
Possible synonyms
- Senecio lyratus Forssk.
- Senecio auriculatus Vahl
- Senecio lyratipartitus A.Rich.
- Cineraria schimperi Oliv. & Hiern
- Senecio basipinnatus Baker
- Senecio masonii De Wild.
- Senecio lyratipartita (A.Rich.) Cuf.