The New Zealand Plant Conservation Network

Species

Montia erythrophylla

Etymology

Montia: Named after the Italian botanist, Giuseppe Monti (1682-1760);

Common Name(s)

None known

Current Conservation Status

2012 - At Risk - Naturally Uncommon

Conservation status of New Zealand indigenous vascular plants, 2012
The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2012 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS). This report includes a statistical summary and brief notes on changes since 2009 and replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Authors: Peter J. de Lange, Jeremy R. Rolfe, Paul D. Champion, Shannel P. Courtney, Peter B. Heenan, John W. Barkla, Ewen K. Cameron, David A. Norton and Rodney A. Hitchmough. File size: 792KB

Previous Conservation Status

2009 - At Risk - Naturally Uncommon
2004 - Sparse

Qualifiers

2012 - RR, Sp
2009 - DP

Authority

Montia erythrophylla (Heenan) Heenan

Family

Montiaceae

Flora Category

Vascular - Native

Structural Class

Dicotyledonous Herbs other than Composites

Synonyms

Neopaxia erythrophylla Heenan; Previously all the New Zealand Neopaxia had been known as Neopaxia australasica (Hook.f.) O.Nilsson which is now regarded as an Australian endemic

Distribution

Endemic. South island, easterly along the main divide from Marlborough to Canterbury

Habitat

A scree species where it usually grows in fine-grained, more stable, moist screes, and in gravel, debris slopes and on or near rock outcrops.

Features

Herb up to 200 mm diameter, forming loose to compact mats. Leaves up to 35 x 3.2 mm, spathulate; lamina narrowly elliptic to elliptic; both leaf surfaces red-brown to red, dull; undersides with flat surfaces or sometimes slightly concave; upper surface flat or slightly convex; apex obtuse; base attenuate; petiole often distinct but grading into lamina base; old leaves orange to orange-yellow. Involucral leaves 3.0-3.5 x 3.2-3.5 mm, red-brown; lateral fold absent or indistinct; apex obtuse. Flower 9.5-14 mm diameter. Tepals 4.8-7.9 x 2.3-4.6 mm, broadly elliptic to obovate, white in bud and at maturity - usually flushed pink, not overlapping; apex obtuse, rarely notched; claw weakly differentiated. Nectary green. Filaments 2.8-3.8 mm long, slightly > or more or less equal 1/2 tepal length, white. Anthers 0.7-0.8 x 0.3-0.4 mm, pink to pink-red. Ovary 0.9-1.2 x 0.8-1 mm, obovoid, red-green to brown-green; sutures not prominent. Style 2.4-3.1 mm long; white with base flushed green. Stigmatic branches 1.2-1.6 mm long, white, 2.1 mm. Seeds 1.4-1.7 x 1.2-1.6 mm, slightly to moderately rugose, dark brown, red-brown to black.

Similar Taxa

A well marked species whose consistently dull reddish spathulate, flat leaves up to 3.2 mm wide, with distinct petioles, and pink to pink-red anthers readily distinguish this species for the other indigenous members of the genus. It is perhaps closest to N. racemosa (Buchanan) Heenan an ultramafic endemic which differs by its glossy, linear leaves up to 1.8 mm wide, coloured brown to green-brown, with indistinct petioles and cream anthers.

Flowering

November-January

Flower Colours

Red / Pink,White

Fruiting

December-March

Propagation Technique

Difficult - should not be removed from the wild

Threats

Not threatened but quite uncommon though widely and naturally sparsely distributed.

Chromosome No.

2n = c.85

Endemic Taxon

Yes

Endemic Genus

No

Endemic Family

No

This page last updated on 1 Jan 2014