Species

Myosotis pansa subsp. pansa

Etymology

Myosotis: mouse-eared

Common Name(s)

Forget-me-not

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 - Threatened - Nationally Endangered
2004 - Threatened - Nationally Endangered

Qualifiers

2012 - Sp
2009 - Sp

Authority

Myosotis pansa (L.B.Moore) Meudt, Prebble, R.J.Stanley & Thorsen subsp. pansa

Family

Boraginaceae

Flora Category

Vascular - Native

Structural Class

Dicotyledonous Herbs other than Composites

Synonyms

Myosotis petiolata var. pansa L.B.Moore

Distribution

Endemic to the Waitakere coastline, western North Island from Muriwai Beach to Waterfall Bay

Habitat

Open, coastal forest, scrub or flaxland, or amongst ferns and low grasses, in semi-shaded sites, on banks, cliffs, ledges and colluvial slopes directly above the sea. Occasionally found up to 300 m inland from the sea.

Features

Stout, robust to weakly erect plants up to 250 x 250 mm. Rosettes and laterals often greatly elongated. Petiole long and narrowly winged up to 30 x 5 mm, margins fringed by long spreading hairs. Rosette-leaves variable in size and shape, up to 40 x 35 mm, bright lettuce green, green, dark-green or bronze-green, sometimes suffused with red, orbicular to broadly elliptic or elliptic, apex rounded or retuse, usually finely apiculate, base obtuse to broadly attenuate; both leaf surfaces sparsely covered in widely spaced, short, straight, stiff, more or less appressed hairs. Lateral branches few- to many, 60-500 mm long, weakly erect to flaccid, very leafy, often rooting on contact with soil; internode length variable, usually approximating leaf length. Stem leaves broadly elliptic, elliptic to ovate, at first petiolate, becoming sessile toward lateral apex, hairs as for rosette-leaves, though more closely appressed near lamina margin. Inflorescence cymose, cymes simple, without bracts, many-flowered, 40-160 mm, internodes 4-8 mm. Pedicels 4-10 mm long. Calyx 4-6 mm, cut almost to base, lobes 3-5 mm long, narrowly lanceolate, subacute to acute, spreading at fruiting. Flowers white. Corolla 9-16 mm diameter, lobes 6-8 mm, broad-oblong to oblong, obtuse or rounded, spreading, corolla tube 1.5-2 x 2.5-4 mm, wider than long, funnelform, scales placed well below calyx lobe apices, stamens 1.2-2(-3) mm long, style 1.5-3.5 mm, stigma capitate. Nutlets 1.5-1.9 x 1.2-1.4 mm, black, glossy, ovate to broadly ovate.

Similar Taxa

Myosotis forsteri, and M. venosa are vegetatively similar species. However, these species do not naturally occur in the narrow coastal zone that M. pansa occupies. M. forsteri differs from M. pansa by the anthers which are placed below the corolla-scales. M. venosa differs by the calyx lobes which are cut to about 1/2 the calyx length, rather broad and distinctly ribbed, and by the leaf hairs which are flexuose, never retrorse. M. pottsiana is rather similar, but this is a rheophytic species that occurs on vertical rock walls in river gorges only in the eastern Bay of Plenty. Vegetatively M. pansa differs from M. pottsiana by the flowers whose corolla tube is wider than long, funnelform, and by the corolla-scales with are placed at or near the calyx-tips. Myosotis pansa subsp. pansa is distinguished from subsp. praeceps by the ebracteate inflorescences (with the the cauline leaves present proximally up to the base of the inflorescence only, not subtending or alternating with the flowers more distally) (Meudt et al. 2013).

Flowering

September - February

Flower Colours

White

Fruiting

November - July

Propagation Technique

An attractive and easily grown native forget-me-not. It grows well in a moist but free draining soil, and can tolerate open sunny conditions or semi-shade. Fresh seed germinates readily, and plants once established, freely set seed, producing numerous seedlings. However, in humid climates plants are prone to powdery mildew infections, and like many other indigenous forget-me-nots plants are prone rust infections, which make the leaves swollen and unsightly.

Threats

Loss of habitat through coastal development; susceptible to goat, deer and pig impacts; competition from weeds, especially Mexican daisy (Erigeron karvinskianus) and Mexican devil (Ageratina adenophora)

Chromosome No.

2n = 44

Endemic Taxon

Yes

Endemic Genus

No

Endemic Family

No

 

 



 
  
 

Attribution

Fact Sheet prepared by NZPCN by P.J. de Lange 1 February 2008. Description subsequently published in de Lange et al. (2010). For a more recent assessment see Meudt et al. (2013).

References and further reading

Allan, H.H. 1961: Flora of New Zealand. Vol. I. Goverment Printer, Wellington.

de Lange, P.J.; Heenan, P.B.; Norton, D.A.; Rolfe, J.R.; Sawyer, J.W.D. 2010: Threatened Plants of New Zealand. Canterbury University Press, Christchurch.

Meudt, H.M.; Prebble, J.M.; Stanley, R.J.; Thorsen, M.J. 2013: Morphological and amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) data show that New Zealand endemic Myosotis petiolata
(Boraginaceae) comprises three rare and threatened species. Australian Systematic Botany 26: 210-232.

This page last updated on 19 Dec 2014