Australian Tropical Rainforest Plants - Online edition

Capparis jacobsii Hewson


Shrub (woody or herbaceous, 1-6 m tall)
Click/tap on images to enlarge
Leaves and flowers. © R.L. Barrett
Flower. © R.L. Barrett
Flower buds. © R.L. Barrett
Leaves and immature fruit. © R.L. Barrett
Fruit. © R.L. Barrett
Scale bar 10mm. © CSIRO
Family

Hewson, H. () Flora of Australia 8: 388. Type: Western Australia, Barker Gorge, Napier Range, May 1965, J.S. Beard 4122; holo: PERTH.

Stem

May attain the dimensions of a small tree but usually flowers and fruits as a shrub.

Leaves

Leaf blades about 4-11 x 2-4.5 cm, petioles about 0.8-1.7 cm. Underside of the leaf blade clothed in very short (velvety) hairs. Twigs and stems often armed with recurved spines about 2-5 mm long. Lateral veins about 6-8 on each side of the midrib, often forming loops inside to blade margin.

Flowers

Sepals 2 + 2, hairy on the outer surface, +/- orbicular, about 2-2.5 cm long. Outer pair of sepals fused to form a calyptra which splits irregularly. Inner pair of sepals free from one another. Petals about 2.5-3 cm long, both the inner and outer surfaces clothed in hairs. Stamens about 100 per flower, each filament about 4-6 cm long, anthers about 2-2.5 mm long. Gynophore about 5-5.5 cm long. Ovary about 5 mm long.

Fruit

Fruits globose, about 4-5 cm diam. and seeds about 8 mm long. (Fide Hewson 1982). Fruits borne on long stalks.

Seedlings

Features not available.

Distribution and Ecology

Occurs in WA and NT. Altitudinal range not known. Often found growing on substrates derived from limestone.

RFK Code
3543
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