Bertya ingramii
{{Short description|Species of flowering plant}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2019}}
{{Speciesbox
| image = Bertya ingramii.jpg
| image_caption = On the Northern Tablelands
| status = EN
| status_system = EPBC
| status_ref = {{SPRAT|21383|Bertya ingramii}}
| genus = Bertya
| species = ingramii
| authority = T.A.James{{cite web |title=Bertya ingramii |url=https://biodiversity.org.au/nsl/services/apc-format/display/114784 |publisher=Australian Plant Census |access-date=21 March 2025}}
| range_map = Bertya ingramii DistMap11.png
| range_map_caption = Occurrence data from Australasian Virtual Herbarium
}}
Bertya ingramii, commonly known as narrow-leafed bertya,{{cite web |title=Approved Conservation Advice for Bertya ingramii |url=https://environment.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened/species/pubs/21383-conservation-advice.pdf |publisher=Australian Government Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water |access-date=18 March 2025}} is a species of flowering plant in the family Euphorbiaceae and is endemic to New South Wales. It is a slender to rounded shrub with linear to narrowly lance-shaped or narrowly elliptic leaves, separate male and female flowers arranged singly in leaf axils and oval capsules.
Description
Bertya ingramii is a slender to rounded, monoecious shrub that has young stems with woolly, greyish-white hairs. Its leaves are linear to narrowly lance-shaped with the narrower end towards the base, or narrowly elliptic, {{cvt|10–35|mm}} long and {{cvt|1-4|mm}} wide, the edges curved downwards, on a petiole {{cvt|1–3|mm}} long. The upper surface of the leaves has a few star-shaped hairs at first, later scaly, the lower surface whitish-grey to pale yellowish with woolly, star-shaped hairs. The flowers are arranged singly in leaf axils and more or less sessile or on a peduncle up to {{cvt|1|mm}} long. There are six to seven bracts, the outer bracts thick, densely hairy, {{cvt|1.5–3|mm}} long the inner bracts {{cvt|2|mm}} wide and more or less glabrous. Male flowers have oblong to elliptic, overlapping brown tepals {{cvt|3|mm}} long, the stamen column {{cvt|4–5|mm}} long. Female flowers are {{cvt|2–3|mm}} long and joined at their lower sides, the ovary is hairy, much longer than the tepals, and the three styles are each deeply divided. Flowerring occurs from August to November and the fruit is a capsule {{cvt|8–10|mm}} long with glossy, reddish-brown seeds about {{cvt|6|mm}} long.{{cite web |url=http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Bertya~ingramii |title=Bertya ingramii T.A.James |accessdate=25 April 2016 |author1=Harden, Gwen J. |author2=James, T.A. |date=1990 |work=Plantnet - New South Wales Flora Online |publisher=Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney}}{{cite journal |last1=James |first1=Teresa A. |title=Bertya ingramii (Euphorbiaceae), a new species from New South Wales. |journal=Telopea |date=1988 |volume=3 |issue=2 |pages=285–286 |url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/264398#page/157/mode/1up |access-date=19 March 2025}}
Taxonomy
Bertya ingramii was first formally named in 1988 by Teresa Ann James from specimens collected by John Beaumont Williams on the top of Dangars Falls near Armidale in 1964.{{cite web |title=Bertya ingramii |url=https://biodiversity.org.au/nsl/services/rest/instance/apni/548923 |publisher=Australian Plant Name Index |access-date=19 March 2025}} The specific epithet (ingrami) honours Mr C. Keith Ingram of Mount Tomah. It was one of eleven species selected for the Save a Species Walk campaign in April 2016; scientists walked 300 km to raise money for collection of seeds to be prepared and stored at the Australian PlantBank at the Australian Botanic Garden Mount Annan.{{cite news | url=http://www.smh.com.au/environment/conservation/race-to-save-11-endangered-plants-in-nsw-20160408-go1yxf.html | title=Scientists race to save 11 endangered plants in NSW | author=Barlass, Tim | date = 10 April 2016 | work= Sydney Morning Herald}}
Distribution and habitat
Narrow-leafed bertya grows among rocks or in thin soils close to cliff edges in dry woodland at Dangars Falls, nearby Mihi Gorge and Gara Falls in the Oxley Wild Rivers National Park near Armidale.