The New Zealand Plant Conservation Network

Species

Pimelea mesoa subsp. macra

Etymology

Pimelea: from the Greek pimele, referring to the seeds

Common Name(s)

Pimelea

Current Conservation Status

2012 - Threatened - Nationally Vulnerable

Conservation status of New Zealand indigenous vascular plants, 2012
The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2012 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS). This report includes a statistical summary and brief notes on changes since 2009 and replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Authors: Peter J. de Lange, Jeremy R. Rolfe, Paul D. Champion, Shannel P. Courtney, Peter B. Heenan, John W. Barkla, Ewen K. Cameron, David A. Norton and Rodney A. Hitchmough. File size: 792KB

Previous Conservation Status

2009 - Threatened - Nationally Critical
2004 - Threatened - Nationally Critical

Qualifiers

2012 - OL, St

Authority

Pimela mesoa subsp. macra C.J.Burrows

Family

Thymelaeaceae

Brief Description

Very low growing shrub with hairy twigs to 30cm long bearing pairs of blueish-green pointed leaves that are hairy underneath and with hairy white flowers and orange fruit inhabiting the Cobb Valley. Leaves 4.5-7mm long by 1.8-2.5mm wide.

Flora Category

Vascular - Native

Structural Class

Dicotyledonous Trees & Shrubs

Synonyms

None (first described in 2011)

Distribution

Endemic. New Zealand: South Island (North-West Nelson (Kahurangi National Park - confined to the upper Cobb Valley))

Habitat

Montane. Confined to the valley bottom within a small area at the head of Cobb Valley which is a large glaciated valley system. Here it grows amongst tall and short tussocks and low scrub.

Features

A small sparingly (rarely much) branched, decumbent, widely-spreading, ± appressed, compact shrub forming irregular patches up to 300 mm diameter. Branching mainly sympodial, branches up to 300 mm long, radiating from a stout main stem, usually procumbent, sometimes climbing through other plants. Branches of young stems light brown, moderately covered with long grey-white or yellowish hairs, internodes 2.0–5.0 mm long. Older stems stout (to 4 mm), dark brown, glabrate to glabrous. Node buttresses lunate to elongate, brown, usually not prominent on leafless stems. Leaves decussate, ascending, loosely imbricate, becoming patent, on short (0.3-0.5 mm) reddish petioles. Lamina 4.5-7.0 × 1.8-2.5 mm, dull glaucous-green, elliptic, broad-elliptic or oblong, sometimes ovate, slightly adaxially concave, mid-vein obscure; tip obtuse; base cuneate; abaxial surface moderately densely covered with long, straight or curled hairs; stomata on both adaxial and abaxial leaf surfaces. Inflorescences terminal, 4-12-flowered; involucral bracts 4, wider than ordinary leaves (6-8 × 3-4 mm). Receptacles densely hairy. Plants gynodioecious. Flowers white, scented, on short (0.2 mm) pedicels, very hairy outside, inside hairless. Female tube 3-4 mm long, ovary portion 2 mm, calyx lobes 2 × 1 mm; hermaphrodite tube 5-6 mm long, ovary portion 1.5 mm, calyx lobes 3 × 1.5 mm. Anther dehiscence introrse. Ovary with sparse short hairs on apex. Fruits ovoid, fleshy, yellow to orange 4.0-5.0 × 2.0-3.2 mm. Seeds 2.5 × 1.3 mm.

Similar Taxa

Pimelea mesoa subsp. macra has been confused in the past with Pimelea sericeovillosa from which it differs by its larger size, elongate, prostrate stems, larger, adaxially glabrous leaves and larger, more numerous flowers. From Pimelea mesoa subsp. mesoa it differs from by its slender root stock, sprawling procumbent growth habit (though stems may climb through surrounding vegetation), much longer non-radiating stems, longer internodes (2.0-5.0 mm cf. 0.5-2.5 mm in subsp. mesoa) and less tightly imbricating and lax leaf arrangement.

Flowering

September - February

Flower Colours

White

Fruiting

Unknown

Propagation Technique

Unknown. Probably easily grown from semi-hard and hardwood cuttings.

Threats

Pimela mesoa subsp. macra as Pimelea aff. sericeovillosa (CHR 467766; Cobb) was listed as "Threatened/Nationally Critical" by de Lange et al. (2009) and qualified as "RR" (Range Restricted), "St" (stable). This threat status still applies because the subspecies is still only known from a single small area (area < 1 ha). However, within its only known location the population is reasonably large and apparently stable. There are no known threats affecting P. mesoa subsp. macra and all known plants occur within a National Park. Burrows (2011) offers no data contradicting this earlier assessment.

Endemic Taxon

Yes

Endemic Genus

No

Endemic Family

No

This page last updated on 27 Oct 2019