Dendroseris litoralis

Dendroseris litoralis
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Eudicots
(unranked): Asterids
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Tribe: Cichorieae
Genus: Dendroseris
Species: D. litoralis
Binomial name
Dendroseris litoralis
Seedling of Dendroseris litoralis - The Cabbage Tree.

The cabbage tree, Dendroseris litoralis, is a species of evergreen, perennial species in the daisy and sunflower family (Asteraceae), with woody, tree-like stems, and rubbery leaves up to 46 centimetres (18 in) long. It is found only on the Juan Fernández Islands, west of Chile, and threatened by habitat loss. Native only to tiny, volcanic Robinson Crusoe Island, one of the Juan Fernández Islands in the southeast Pacific, far off the coast of Chile, and home of the famed Juania australis and many other fascinating endemic plants, this strange, small tree has literally been brought back from the brink of extinction. It had been reduced to only a few individuals by feral goats on the island and is still considered critically endangered. It grows into a small, gnarled tree with several somewhat palm-like crowns of very large, round leaves on whitish leaf stalks and bright orange flowers. It is easy to cultivate and enjoys a cool, humid climate. It is hardy to light freezes and coastal conditions.

Hummingbird pollination

In their recent studies Anderson et al. (2001) studied the reproductive biology of D. litoralis. They concluded that the large orange corolla capitula of D. litoralis were hummingbird pollinated, having observed hummingbird visitors on all plants observed. The same team also determined in 2000 that the nectar composition of Dendroseris litoralis has large quantities of sucrose (73%), 15% fructose and 10.9% glucose (Bernardello et al. 2000).[1]

References

  1. ↑ Hind, Nicholas; Johnson, Nick (2006). "Dendroseris litoralis. Compositae Plant in Peril 29". Curtis's Botanical Magazine. 23 (4): 314–324. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8748.2006.00546.x.


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.