Species

Vittadinia australis

Etymology

Vittadinia: man's name
australis: southern

Common Name(s)

white fuzzweed

Current Conservation Status

2012 - Not Threatened

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 - Not Threatened
2004 - Data Deficient

Authority

Vittadinia australis A.Rich.

Family

Asteraceae

Flora Category

Vascular - Native

NVS Species Code

VITAUS

The National Vegetation Survey (NVS) Databank is a physical archive and electronic databank containing records of over 94,000 vegetation survey plots - including data from over 19,000 permanent plots. NVS maintains a standard set of species code abbreviations that correspond to standard scientific plant names from the Ngä Tipu o Aotearoa - New Zealand Plants database.

Structural Class

Dicotyledonous Herbs - Composites

Synonyms

None

Distribution

Endemic. North and South Islands. Mainly in the drier eastern regions from Great Barrier Island south to Southland.

Habitat

In stony eroding tussock grassland, dry hill slopes, rock outcrops (including limestone, greywacke), riverbeds and stony places. Lowland through low-alpine zone to 1,500m.

Features

Fine, spreading, prostrate to ascending, perennial herb, up to 30cm tall with stout root. Stems usually sparsely to densely clothed in long, white, erect hairs and glandular hairs, becoming hairless and woody towards the base. Leaves dull green, hairy, often 3- to 5-lobed, up to 1.5cm long. Flower heads small daisies, 1-1.5cm across, with white petals and yellow centres, occurring singly at branch tips. Seed heads spherical and fluffy.

Similar Taxa

Introduced weedy Vittadinia gracilis and Vi. cuneata. V. australis has spreading white stem hairs and white flowers. The introduced species have purple flowers and tightly pressed stem hairs.

Flowering

October to June

Flower Colours

White,Yellow

Fruiting

November to August

Propagation Technique

Easily grown from cuttings and fresh seed but can be hard to maintain in cultivation.

Threats

Vittadinia australis has declined from large parts of its North Island range, and is now possibly extinct north of the Bay of Plenty. It has also declined from large parts of the south Wellington coast. In the South Island there is also some evidence of decline. The exact cause(s) of this observed decline is unclear but the spread of weeds, including introduced Vittadinia spp., and browsing animals are likely factors.

Chromosome No.

2n = 18, 36

Endemic Taxon

Yes

Endemic Genus

No

Endemic Family

No

This page last updated on 6 Dec 2014