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Photo © W.R.Barker

Photo © W.R.Barker

Photo © W.R.Barker

Synonymy

Hakea persiehana F.Muell., Australas. J. Pharm. 1 (11): 430 (1886)

T: Endeavour River, Qld, 1883, W.Persieh s.n.; lecto: MEL 1536632, fide R.M.Barker, Nuytsia 12: 4 (1998); ?isolecto: B, MEL 1536628; remaining syn: Endeavour River, Qld, 1885, W.Persieh 573; syn: MEL; Endeavour River, Qld, 1886, W.Persieh 573; syn: MEL; Endeavour River, Qld, 1886, W.Persieh 725; isosyn: MEL 1537888; probable remaining syn: Endeavour River, Qld, 1886, W.Persieh s.n.; syn: MEL 1537930 p.p., not including fruit; Endeavour River, Qld, 1886, W.Persieh 757/725; syn: MEL; Endeavour River, Qld, 1886, W.Persieh s.n.; BM, K p.p.; Endeavour River, Qld, 1886, W.Persieh s.n.; ?syn: MEL 1537930 p.p., fruit only.

Description

Tree 3–10 m high, with spreading crown; bark dark grey, deeply fissured. Branchlets densely white appressed-pubescent. Leaves simple, terete, 8–28 cm long, 0.7–1 mm wide, initially densely appressed-ferruginous, quickly glabrescent.

Peduncle simple, 5–18 mm long, densely tomentose; rachis to 6 mm long, white-pubescent. Flowers c. 50–100 per inflorescence, cream-white to pale yellow; pedicels 4–6 mm long, densely white-tomentose. Perianth 2–2.5 mm long, white-tomentose on claw, ferruginous on limb apex. Pistil 1.5–2 mm long; style recurved, rarely ±straight; pollen presenter conical, obliquely inserted.

Fruit obliquely ovate, 4.5–5.5 cm long, 2–2.7 cm wide, gradually attenuate into recurved apiculum c. 1–2 mm long. Seed occupying part of valve, c. 30 mm long, 10 mm wide.

Distribution and ecology

Found on Cape York Peninsula as far south as the Atherton region, Qld. Occurs in open woodland usually with Eucalyptus or Melaleuca.

To plot an up to date distribution map based on herbarium collections for this species see Australia's Virtual Herbarium. Localities outside the native range may represent cultivated or naturalised records.

Flowering time

Flowers usually Nov.–Feb., sometimes May–June.

Derivation of name

Named in honour of the type collection of this species, W.A. Persieh (1826-?). Persieh was one of Mueller's more prolific collectors from north Queensland.

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Relationships

Part of the Pedunculata Group of Barker et al. (1999), this group of 4 species (H. arborescens, H. pedunculata, H. persiehana and H. stenophylla) is held together morphologically by the possession of a bare peduncle below the rachis. They also have obscurely-veined leaves, oblique or conical pollen presenters, hairy perianths and woody fruits without horns.

 

While Bentham referred them to the Grevilleoides, presumably because they may sometimes have a corky bark, it seems likely that these will eventually prove to be an artificial group, with H. arborescens and H. persiehana being closely related but probably not close to H. pedunculata and H. stenophylla. Molecular studies by Mast (unpubl.) have already shown the former but the latter two species were not included in the study.   

Notes

Very similar to H. arborescens , differing from it by its terete leaves rather than flat.

Representative specimens

Qld: Portland Roads, L.J.Brass 18958 (BRI, G); 7.5 km from Fairview on Fairview–Palmerville road, J.R.Clarkson 3156 (BRI, DNA, K, NSW, PERTH); 'few' km S of Gunnawarra on the Wairuna road, B.Hyland 7170 (BRI, MEL).