Lepidothamnus

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Lepidothamnus
Systematics
Department : Vascular plants (tracheophyta)
Subdivision : Seed plants (Spermatophytina)
Class : Coniferopsida
Order : Conifers (Coniferales)
Family : Stonecaceae (Podocarpaceae)
Genre : Lepidothamnus
Scientific name
Lepidothamnus
Phil.

Lepidothamnus is a genus of plants inthe stone slab family (Podocarpaceae). The area is strongly disjoint : of the only three species, one species occurs only in southern South America and the other two species only occur in New Zealand .

description

Vegetative characteristics

Lepidothamnus species usually grow as shrubs or, less often, as small trees . The leaves are not needle-shaped, but rather have lanceolate leaves when they are young, later scaly leaves that are coarse and leathery.

Generative characteristics

These species are dioecious ( dioecious ) or monoecious monoecious . The sessile, male cones sit individually on the branches. The female cones sit individually at the ends of the branches, each with one or two fertile cone scales. On the dark seeds that ripen in the second year there is a small asymmetrical aril .

Systematics and distribution

The genus Lepidothamnus was established in 1860 by Rodolph Amandus Philippi in Linnaea , Volume 30, Pages 730. The generic name Lepidothamnus is derived from ancient Greek and means shrub with scales, this refers to habit and foliage. The type species is Lepidothamnus fonkii Phil. The species were previously contained in the then polyphyletic genus Dacrydium , until David John de Laubenfels in 1969 divided them into several monophyletic genera.

The genus Lepidothamnus has a strongly disjoint area : one species is endemic in southern Chile ( Tierra del Fuego ) and the other two species are native to New Zealand (see species for distribution).

There are only three species in the genus Lepidothamnus :

  • Lepidothamnus fonkii Phil. (Syn .: Dacrydium foncki (Phil.) Benth. & Hook. F. ): They are shrubs with heights of up to 60 centimeters. It is distributed from Tierra del Fuego to southern Chile in the provinces of Aisén , Los Lagos and Magallanes and in southern Argentina in the provinces of Chubut , Neuquén and Rio Negro up to 40 ° south latitude. It thrives at altitudes of 2 to 20 meters. This species is part of the Magellanic subpolar bog and bush vegetation.
  • Lepidothamnus intermedius (Kirk) Quinn. (Syn .: Dacrydium intermedium T. Kirk ): It occurs in large parts of New Zealand , both on the South and North Island. The small trees reach heights of growth of 15 meters and trunk diameters of 0.60 meters. The reddish yellow wood is very hard and hardly inflammable.
  • Dwarf stone slice ( Lepidothamnus laxifolius (Hook. F.) Quinn. , Dacrydium laxifolium Hook. F. ): This semi-upright shrub is one of the smallest known species within the Pinophyta , it reaches a maximum height of 1 m, but fruiting specimens have been found were only 3 inches high. It occurs in New Zealand on the North and South Island and on Stewart Island .

swell

  • Christopher J. Earle: Lepidothamnus. In: The Gymnosperm Database. www.conifers.org, January 17, 2020, accessed on March 27, 2020 (English).

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g h i Christopher J. Earle: Lepidothamnus. In: The Gymnosperm Database. www.conifers.org, January 17, 2020, accessed on March 27, 2020 (English).
  2. ↑ a b Lepidothamnus at Tropicos.org. Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, accessed March 27, 2020.

Web links