Senna heptanthera
| Senna heptanthera | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
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| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Fabales |
| Family: | Fabaceae |
| Subfamily: | Caesalpinioideae |
| Genus: | Senna |
| Species: | S. heptanthera
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| Binomial name | |
| Senna heptanthera | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
| |
Senna heptanthera is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae and is endemic to Arnhem Land in the north of the Northern Territory. It is a creeping, herbaceous perennial with pinnate leaves with one or two pairs of broadly egg-shaped leaflets, and yellow flowers arranged in groups of eight to ten, with seven fertile stamens in each flower.
Description
[edit]Senna heptanthera is a creeping, herbaceous perennial that has leaves up to 60 mm (2.4 in) long on a petiole up to 30 mm (1.2 in) long. The leaves are pinnate with one or two pairs of broadly egg-shaped leaflets, 20–50 mm (0.79–1.97 in) long and 20–40 mm (0.79–1.57 in) wide, spaced up to 30 mm (1.2 in) apart. There is a single, sessile gland between the lowest pair of leaflets. The flowers are yellow and usually arranged in groups of eight to ten in upper leaf axils on a peduncle 30–60 mm (1.2–2.4 in) long, each flower on a pedicel up to 15 mm (0.59 in) long. The petals are up to 10 mm (0.39 in) long and there are seven fertile stamens in each flower, the anthers about 4 mm (0.16 in) long. Flowering occurs in February and March and the fruit is a flat pod.[2]
Taxonomy
[edit]This species was first formally described in 1876 by Ferdinand von Mueller who gave it the name Cassia heptanthera in Fragmenta Phytographiae Australiae, from specimens collected near the Liverpool River.[3][4] In 1989, Barbara Rae Randell transferred the species to the genus Senna as Senna heptanthera in the Journal of the Adelaide Botanic Gardens.[5]
Distribution and habitat
[edit]Senna heptanthera occurs in northern Arnhem Land.[2][6]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Senna heptanthera". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
- ^ a b "Senna heptanthera". Australian Biological Resources Study, Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment: Canberra. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
- ^ "Cassia heptanthera". Australian Plant Name Index. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
- ^ von Mueller, Ferdinand (1876). Fragmenta Phytographiae Australiae. Vol. 10. Melbourne: Victorian Government Printer. pp. 8–10. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
- ^ "Senna heptanthera". Australian Plant Name Index. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
- ^ "Senna heptanthera". Northern Territory Government. Retrieved 4 July 2023.