The New Zealand Plant Conservation Network

Species

Pimelea nitens subsp. nitens

Etymology

Pimelea: from the Greek pimele, referring to the seeds

Common Name(s)

Pimelea

Current Conservation Status

2012 - Data Deficient

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 - Data Deficient

Authority

Pimelea nitens C.J.Burrows et Courtney subsp. nitens

Family

Thymelaeaceae

Brief Description

Low growing sprawling shrub with densely hairy dark twigs bearing pairs of slightly overlapping oval leaves that have hairs on the underside, hairy white flowers and red fruit inhabiting rocky areas of the northern South Island. Leaves 5-8mm long by 2-3mm wide, hairs glisten, straight.

Flora Category

Vascular - Native

Structural Class

Dicotyledonous Trees & Shrubs

Synonyms

None (first described in 2011)

Distribution

Endemic. New Zealand: South Island (western Nelson, central and eastern Marlborough, north Canterbury (head of the Clarence River)

Habitat

Montane to alpine. A component of tall tussock grassland and also on rock outcrops and cliffs, especially marble, limestone and sandstone (occasionally on ultramafics).

Features

Robust, much-branched, procumbent, decumbent or sometimes semi-upright shrubs up to 250 mm tall; stems usually stiff, up to 400 mm long. Branching mainly sympodial. Young stems brown, densely covered in short, white to greyish or yellowish, fine to coarse, appressed to ascending hairs. Internodes 1-2 mm, densely hairy. Older stems thick (to 12 mm), glabrate, dark grey-brown. Node buttresses lunate, 0.2 mm long, smooth, brown, usually not very prominent on leafless stems. Leaves decussate, ascending, loosely imbricate, on short (0.5 mm), red petioles. Lamina 5-8 × 2-3 mm, medium to dark green, ovate to broadly ovate, slightly keeled; tip sharply acute; base cuneate; abaxial surface densely to moderately densely covered by short, straight, appressed, glistening white, straight hairs; stomata on both adaxial and abaxial surfaces. Inflorescences terminal, 3-7-flowered. Involucral bracts wider than adjacent leaves (5.0-6.0 × 3.5-3.9 mm). Receptacles with dense short hairs. Plants gynodioecious. Flowers white, on short (0.3 mm) pedicels, densely covered outside with short hairs; inside hairless. Female tube to 3.5 mm long, ovary portion 2 mm, calyx lobes 1.5 × 1.0 mm; hermaphrodite tube to 6 mm long, ovary portion 2 mm, calyx lobes 2.0 × 1.5 mm. Anther dehiscence introrse. Ovary with a cluster of long hairs at summit and sparse, short hairs to base. Fruits ovoid, fleshy, red, 5.0 × 3.5 mm. Seeds 2.5 × 1.8 mm.

Similar Taxa

Pimelea nitens subsp. nitens is distinguished from subsp. aspera by the dark grey-brown colour of the older stems, mostly ovate to broad-ovate leaves with mostly sharply acute (rarely blunt) apices, which are abaxially furnished with shorter mostly appressed, straight, glistening white hairs.

Flowering

December - February

Flower Colours

White

Fruiting

February - April

Propagation Technique

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

Threats

Burrows (2011) offers little information noting that Pimelea nitens subsp. nitens is not well known but that it (p. 87) "seems to be relatively common in western Nelson, but that a thorough survey of its situation is needed. No attempt to provide a threat status using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (see Townsend et al. 2008) was made but it seems clear from the little information provided that an interim threat assessment of "Data Deficient" is probably appropriate.

Endemic Taxon

Yes

Endemic Genus

No

Endemic Family

No

This page last updated on 8 Aug 2014