Anigozanthos gabrielae facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Anigozanthos gabrielae |
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| Anigozanthos gabrielae from Western Australia: Albany, Avon Wheatbelt | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Anigozanthos
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| Species: |
gabrielae
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| Occurrence data from AVH | |
| Synonyms | |
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There are no synonyms |
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Anigozanthos gabrielae is a special type of plant, part of the Anigozanthos group. It belongs to the Haemodoraceae plant family. People often call it the dwarf kangaroo paw because its flowers look a bit like a kangaroo's paw!
This plant is a perennial, meaning it lives for more than two years. It grows from an underground stem called a rhizome. You can only find this plant in Southwest Australia. It grows in sandy places that get wet in winter.
A scientist named Karel Domin first described this plant in 1912. He wrote about it in a science journal called Journal of the Linnean Society, Botany.
Contents
What Does Dwarf Kangaroo Paw Look Like?
The Anigozanthos gabrielae plant has flat leaves. These leaves are usually between 20 and 120 millimeters (about 0.8 to 4.7 inches) long. They are also quite narrow, from 0.8 to 3 millimeters (about 0.03 to 0.1 inches) wide. You won't find any hairs or bristles on the edges or surfaces of its leaves.
Flowers and Stems
The plant has a special flower stalk called a scape. This scape is hairy and can grow from 90 to 230 millimeters (about 3.5 to 9 inches) tall. At the base of the flower cluster, there's a small leaf-like part called a bract. This bract is between 9 and 30 millimeters long.
Each individual flower also has its own small bract, which is 6.5 to 15 millimeters long. The flowers themselves are on short stems, from 2 to 6.5 millimeters long. The flowers are between 20 and 39 millimeters long.
Flower Colors and Parts
The flowers of the dwarf kangaroo paw are hairy and have a unique shape. They are red and green in color. They have six petal-like parts, called tepals. Inside the flower, there are six stamens, which are the parts that produce pollen. These stamens are arranged in pairs at three different levels.
The stamen filaments (the stalks holding the pollen parts) are 1.5 to 2.3 millimeters long. The anthers (the pollen-producing parts) are 1.5 to 2.4 millimeters long and don't have any extra parts. The style, which is part of the female reproductive organ, is 18 to 28 millimeters long. This plant usually flowers in September or October.
Where Does Dwarf Kangaroo Paw Grow?
You can find Anigozanthos gabrielae in several areas of Southwest Australia. These areas are part of what scientists call the Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation of Australia (IBRA) regions.
The specific regions where this plant grows include:
- Avon Wheatbelt
- Jarrah Forest
- Mallee
- Esperance Plains
