Hibiscus diversifolius‎

{{Short description|Species of flowering plant}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2019}}

{{Speciesbox

|name = Swamp hibiscus

|image = Hibiscus diversifolius.jpg

|genus = Hibiscus

|species = diversifolius

|authority = Jacq.

}}

Hibiscus diversifolius, the swamp hibiscus, is a widespread species of hibiscus. It grows to between 1 and 2 metres in height, with prickly stems and yellow flowers with a maroon basal spot during spring summer.

Distribution

It occurs in tropical Africa, New Guinea, the Philippines, many Pacific Islands, Central and South America, the Galapagos Islands, New Zealand, Norfolk Island{{Flora of Australia Online|name=Hibiscus diversifolius|id=52488}} as well as the states of New South Wales and Queensland in Australia.{{NSW Flora Online | genus=Hibiscus |species=diversifolius}}{{cite web|title=Hibiscus diversifolius|publisher=New Zealand Plant Conversation Network|url=http://nzpcn.org.nz/flora_details.asp?ID=108|access-date=2009-03-10}}{{cite journal |vauthors=van Leeuwen JF, etal |title=Fossil Pollen as a Guide to Conservation in the Galápagos |journal=Science |volume=322 |issue=5905 |pages=1206 |date=November 2008 |doi=10.1126/science.1163454 |pmid=19023075|bibcode=2008Sci...322.1206V |s2cid=46449794 }} There is disagreement over its native range. Some sources consider it native only to Africa, and naturalised elsewhere;{{GRIN | name = Hibiscus diversifolius Jacq. | id = 19024}} but it is considered a native in New Zealand and Australia

It is found in low, swampy areas; in Africa it may occur inland or near the coast, but in all other continents it occurs only in coastal areas. This distribution, together with genomic evidence, suggests that it originated in Africa, and colonised the other continents through long-range salt-water dispersal.{{cite journal | author = Wilson, F. Douglas | title = The genome biogeography of Hibiscus L. section Furcaria DC | journal = Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution | volume = 41 | issue = 1 | pages = 13–25 | doi = 10.1007/BF00051419 | year = 1994| s2cid = 25854848 }}

File:Hibiscus diversifolius flower.jpg

References

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