Zieria verrucosa facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Zieria verrucosa |
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|---|---|
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Zieria
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| Species: |
verrucosa
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The Zieria verrucosa is a special plant. It belongs to the citrus family called Rutaceae. This plant only grows in a small area of Queensland, Australia. It is a bushy, hairy shrub with leaves that look a bit like clover. It also has pretty groups of creamy-white to pink flowers with four petals.
What Does it Look Like?
The Zieria verrucosa is a bushy, hairy shrub. It can grow up to about 1.5 meters (5 feet) tall. Its leaves are made of three narrow parts, called leaflets. The middle leaflet can be from 8 to 50 millimeters (0.3 to 2 inches) long. It is also 1 to 5 millimeters (0.04 to 0.2 inches) wide.
The top of the leaflets is dark green with some scattered hairs. The bottom side is whitish and feels velvety. The leaves have tiny glands and many small bumps. They have a strong smell, especially if you crush them.
The flowers grow in groups of up to 60. They appear where the leaves meet the stem, called the leaf axil. The flowers are small, about 4 to 6 millimeters (0.16 to 0.24 inches) across. They are creamy-white to pink. This plant flowers between August and February. After flowering, it grows smooth seed pods with many glands.
How it Got its Name
The Zieria verrucosa was officially named in 2002. It was described by a scientist named James Armstrong. This description was published in a science journal called Australian Systematic Botany.
The second part of its name, verrucosa, is a Latin word. It means "full of warts." This name was chosen because the plant's leaves have many small bumps or "warts."
Where it Lives
This special zieria plant is only found in a small area. It lives near a town called Mundubbera in Queensland. It grows in places like vine thickets or woodlands. These woodlands often have Eucalyptus crebra or ironbark trees.
Protecting This Plant
The Zieria verrucosa is listed as "Vulnerable." This means it is at risk of disappearing. It is protected under two important laws. These are the Commonwealth Government Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 and the Queensland Nature Conservation Act 1992.
The main things that threaten this plant are:
- Land clearing: When its habitat is removed for other uses.
- Cattle grazing: When cows eat the plants.
- Wrong way of managing fires: Fires that are too frequent or too intense can harm it.
