Actites

Actites, commonly known as the dune thistle, beach thistle or coastal sow thistle,[2] is a genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae. It is endemic to Australia and contains only one species, Actites megalocarpa . It is a large, clumping herb with yellow flowers.

Dune thistle
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Plantae
(unranked):
Angiosperms
(unranked):
Eudicots
(unranked):
Asterids
Order:
Asterales
Family:
Asteraceae
Subfamily:
Carduoideae
Tribe:
Cichorieae
Genus:
Actites

Species:
A. megalocarpa
Binomial name
Actites megalocarpa
(Hook.f.) Lander[1]
Synonyms
  • Sonchus megalocarpus <

Description

Actites megalocarpus is a fleshy perennial herb. The leaves are stiff, prominently veined, margins toothed and wavy, elliptic to oblanceolate shaped, 1.5–26 cm (0.59–10.24 in) long, 0.5–4.5 cm (0.20–1.77 in) wide, either tapering at the base or heart-shaped and sessile. The yellow dandelion-like flowers are 1–2 cm (0.39–0.79 in) in diameter, occasionally pale purple near the base, and on a peduncle 1–10 mm (0.039–0.394 in) long. The bracts are narrow-triangular shaped, the lower midrib of outer bracts has spines. Flowering occurs from September to June and the fruit is a compressed, light to dark brown one-seeded achene, 4–8 mm (0.16–0.31 in) long with 3 longitudinal ribs.[2][3]

Taxonomy and naming

Actites megalocarpus was first formally described in 1976 by Nicholas Sean Lander and the description was published in Telopea.[4][5] The specific epithet (megalocarpus) means "large fruited".[6]

Distribution and habitat

Dune thistle is usually found on coastal dunes and cliffs from Toorbul in Queensland to Middleton Beach in Western Australia and the south-east coast of Tasmania.[3][7][8]

References
  1. "Actites megalocarpus". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 30 August 2021.
  2. "Dune Thistle". Victorian Resources Online. Department of Primary Industries, Victoria. 2011-05-26. Archived from the original on 2012-11-27. Retrieved 2012-05-24.
  3. Thompson, I.R. (2015). Wilson, Annette (ed.). Flora of Australia-Volume 37. Canberra: CSIRO. p. 122. ISBN 9781486304165.
  4. Lander, Nicholas. "Actites megalocarpus". Australian Plant Name Index. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  5. Lander, Nicholas (1976). "Actites megalocarpus". Telopea. 1 (2): 130. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  6. Sharr, Francis Aubi; George, Alex (2019). Western Australian Plant Names and Their Meanings (3rd ed.). Kardinya, WA: Four Gables Press. p. 250. ISBN 9780958034180.
  7. Kim, Seung-Chul; Lu, Christina T.; Lepschi, Brendan J. (2004). "Phylogenetic positions of Actites megalocarpa and Sonchus hydrophilus (Sonchinae: Asteraceae) based on ITS and chloroplast non-coding DNA sequences". Australian Systematic Botany. 17 (1): 73–81. doi:10.1071/SB03019.
  8. Longmore, Sue; Smithyman, Steve; Crawley, Matt (2010). Coastal Plants of the Bellarine Peninsula. Bellarine Catchment Network.
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