Home | > | List of families | > | Acanthaceae | > | Barleria | > | capitata |
Synonyms: |
Barleria megalosiphon Mildbr. |
Common names: | |
Frequency: | |
Status: | Native |
Description: |
Perennial spreading subshrub with decumbent to suberect stems. Leaves opposite, sometimes appearing clustered, oblong-elliptic, 2-5 cm long, grey-green, hairy, particularly on the veins and margin. Flowers in dense capitate heads with closely overlapping enlarged calyx lobes with spiny margins. Corolla actinomorphic, 5-lobed, white, tube extremely long, up to 10 cm, narrowly cylindric, yellowish, pubescent. |
Notes: | A very unusual species with closely packed calyx lobes, symmetrical corolla and extremely long corolla tube. The flowers appear to open in the evening and are finished the next morning. This, together with the shape and colour of the flowers, indicate the flowers are moth-pollinated. |
Derivation of specific name: | capitata: in the form of a head, capitate |
Habitat: | In dry open woodland, scrub and open grassland. |
Altitude range: (metres) | |
Flowering time: | |
Worldwide distribution: | Botswana, Caprivi Strip, Mozambique, Zambia, Zimbabwe |
Zimbabwe distribution: | N,W |
Growth form(s): | |
Endemic status: | |
Red data list status: | |
Insects associated with this species: | |
Spot characters: | Display spot characters for this species |
Images last updated: | Sunday 24 January 2010 |
Literature: |
Darbyshire, I., Vollesen, K. & Kelbessa, E. (2015). Acanthaceae (Part 2) Flora Zambesiaca 8(6) Pages 74 - 75. Mapaura, A. & Timberlake, J. (eds) (2004). A checklist of Zimbabwean vascular plants Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report No. 33 Sabonet, Pretoria and Harare Page 13. Setshogo, M.P. (2005). Preliminary checklist of the plants of Botswana. Sabonet Report no. 37. Sabonet, Pretoria and Gaborone Page 17. |
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