The New Zealand Plant Conservation Network

Species

Melicytus drucei

Etymology

Melicytus: From the Greek meli (honey) and kytos (hollow container), referring to the staminal nectaries of the flowers. Literally "honey-cave"
drucei: after A.P. Druce, one of New Zealand's most respected field botanists

Common Name(s)

Mt Egmont Shrub Mahoe, Druces Mahoe

Current Conservation Status

2012 - Threatened - Nationally Endangered

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 - Range Restricted

Qualifiers

2012 - CD, RR
2009 - CD, RC, OL

Authority

Melicytus drucei Molloy et B.D.Clarkson

Family

Violaceae

Brief Description

Greyish widely branched tangled shrub with speckled twigs inhabiting one small area in Mt Egmont National Park. Leaves not immediately obvious, 7-12mm long by 2mm wide, dark green. Flowers small, bell-shaped, under branches. Fruit small, purple.

Flora Category

Vascular - Native

Structural Class

Dicotyledonous Trees & Shrubs

Synonyms

None (first described in 1996)

Distribution

Endemic. New Zealand: North Island (Mt Egmont National Park (Ahukawakawa Swamp and Pouakai Range)

Habitat

Known from two sites. At the Ahukawakawa Swamp it grows along the colluvial toeslope, alluvial fan, and alluvial terrace, in the canopy layer or scrub margins of mixed scrub/shrubland (grey scrub) in places exposed to full sunlight. On the Pouakai Range it grows near or above tree-line on flat or gentle slopes with waterlogged peat soils or on steep sided, scrubby ridge lines.

Features

Erect, ± evergreen shrubs 2 m or more tall. Exposed plants with compact, rigid, grey-brown crowns up to 1 m diameter, composed of tightly filiramulate-divaricate branches. Shaded plants with smaller, less filiramulate-divaricate, segmented crowns intermixed with those of other shrubs. Stems erect or suberect, 20-40 mm diameter, knobbly and crooked with regular coppice and epicormic shoots and occasional layered stems. Branchlets initially slender, later stout, curved or straight, green densely lenticellate, tapering to spinous tips; strongly interlaced on exposed plants with branch angles of 70-90°, less interlaced on shaded plants. Adult leaves alternate, 7-12 × 2 mm, solitary or in fascicles of 2-3, shortly petiolate or ± sessile, linear-oblong, often ± parallel-sided, entire or irregularly lobed, distinctly reflexed, thin, dark green above, paler beneath, glabrous when mature, minutely pubescent when young, margins finely revolute, apex retuse, often with a minute central apiculus. Flowers hermaphrodite, nectariferous, scented, solitary or more rarely paired, axillary, pendulous on lower side of branches. Peduncles slender, 0.5-2.0 mm long, decurved, green, with 2 minute, unequal, opposite, ovate, erose, orange bracteoles near the base, sometimes also at the middle. Flowers 2.5-3.5 mm diameter sepals unequal, ovate to deltoid, 1.0-1.5 mm long, green suffused with red, with paler, membranous, erosulate-ciliate margins; petals ± fleshy, broadly oblong to cuneate, 3-4 × 2 mm, cream or yellow, with reflexed slightly thickened tips and erosulate-ciliate margins; anthers sessile, oblong, 0.5 mm long, 2-loculed, creamy yellow, with an extended, toothed, membranous, orange connective. Erect nectary appendage attached basally to the dorsal surface of each stamen, 0.5 mm long, cuneate, green. Anthers fused to form an urceolate tube surrounding the gynoecium. Ovary 1 mm long, ovoid, green; style slender, 0.5 mm long, not reaching corolla rim, 2-fid, green; stigma lobes flared, erosulate-papillate. Fruit a globose berry 4-5 mm diameter, white with scattered purple to black spots or patches. Pyrenes (1-)2, 3-4 mm long, plano-convex, purplish-brown.

Similar Taxa

Allied to Melicytus flexuosus Molloy et A.Druce from which it differs by its shorter stature, compact rigid crown of tightly divaricating branches and mostly leafy branchlets, hermaphrodite flowers, chromosome number (2n = 48) and geographic isolation.

Flowering

October to December

Flower Colours

Green,Red / Pink

Fruiting

March to May

Propagation Technique

Slow from seed and cuttings. A very slow growing plant which has an attractive growth habit. It is rarely seen in cultivation.

Threats

Melicytus drucei is a naturally uncommon, range restricted endemic. However it is browsed avidly by introduced animals such as possums and hares. When these animals are controlled M. drucei plants thrive and set abundant seed. Seedlings and saplings have become common since possum numbers have been greatly reduced within the National Park following the use of 1080 by the New Zealand Department of Conservation in the late 1990’s.

Chromosome No.

2n = 48

Endemic Taxon

Yes

Endemic Genus

No

Endemic Family

No

This page last updated on 21 Dec 2013