Banksia fililoba facts for kids

Banksia fililoba is a type of shrub that grows only in Western Australia. It has special leaves with sharp, pointed parts. It also has heads with up to eighty yellowish flowers and egg-shaped fruits. This plant mostly grows in a unique type of land called kwongan in the southwest part of Western Australia.

What it Looks Like

Banksia fililoba is a bushy plant that usually grows up to 1 m (3 ft 3 in) tall. It does not have a special woody swelling at its base called a lignotuber, which helps some plants regrow after fire.

Its stems are hairy. The leaves are deeply divided into many parts, a bit like a feather. These leaves are usually 150–300 mm (5.9–11.8 in) long and 7–14 mm (0.28–0.55 in) wide. They grow on a stalk called a petiole, which is 50–150 mm (2.0–5.9 in) long. Each side of the leaf has between ten and seventeen sharply pointed, narrow sections, each 50–150 mm (2.0–5.9 in) long.

The flowers grow in a cluster, or head. Each head has between fifty-five and eighty flowers. At the bottom of the flower head, there are special leaf-like parts called involucral bracts. These are egg-shaped to oblong, about 25–42 mm (0.98–1.65 in) long, and covered with silky, rusty brown hairs.

The flowers themselves have a pale yellow perianth, which is the outer part of the flower, about 50–53 mm (2.0–2.1 in) long. The pistil, which is the female part of the flower, is cream-coloured and about 49–52 mm (1.9–2.0 in) long. This plant mainly flowers from May to July. After flowering, it produces egg-shaped fruits called follicles, which are about 17 mm (0.67 in) long and hairy when they first appear.

How it Got its Name

This Banksia plant was first officially described in 1996 by a scientist named Alex George. He found specimens near Lake Grace. He named it Dryandra fililoba in a science journal called Nuytsia.

Later, in 2007, two other scientists, Austin Mast and Kevin Thiele, decided to move all the Dryandra plants into the Banksia group. So, this plant became Banksia fililoba. The second part of its name, fililoba, comes from Latin words. "Fili" means "a thread," and "loba" means "a lobe." This refers to the fine, thread-like parts of its leaves.

Where it Grows

Banksia fililoba grows in a special type of shrubland called kwongan. Sometimes, it can also be found in wandoo woodland. You can find it in the area between Woodanilling, Lake Grace, and Harrismith. These areas are part of the Avon Wheatbelt and Mallee biogeographic regions in Western Australia.

Is it Endangered?

The Western Australian Government's Department of Parks and Wildlife has classified this Banksia as "not threatened." This means it is not currently at risk of disappearing.