Lepidosperma avium | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Monocots |
Clade: | Commelinids |
Order: | Poales |
Family: | Cyperaceae |
Genus: | Lepidosperma |
Species: | L. avium
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Binomial name | |
Lepidosperma avium K.L.Wilson
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Lepidosperma avium, commonly named the central Australian rapier-sedge and the desert rush, is a rare species of sedge found in the Everard Ranges of remote northern South Australia and neighbouring parts of the Northern Territory. [1] [2] [3]
Lepidosperma avium was first scientifically described by Karen L. Wilson in 1994, from the Everard Ranges, which the species is believed to be endemic to. [4] [5]
L. avium shares the feature of having little, spiky branches and flattened flower clusters with several other species in the same genus: Lepidosperma clipeicola, Lepidosperma pauperum (from New Caledonia), Lepidosperma perteres, and Lepidosperma urophorum. [4]
The species epithet refers to the species' remoteness – avium, comes from the Latin avius, meaning isolated or out of the way. [4]
Specimens of the species are held in each of Australia's state herbariums, as well as in the Australian National Herbarium. [6]
Lepidosperma avium forms clumps, between 1.2 and 2.4 metres (3.9 and 7.9 ft) tall. The stems are stiff, hairless, and smooth, less than a centimetre thick, with small lines and grooves all over the surface. [4] [3]
L. avium occupies a "petrophilous (rock-loving)" ecological niche. [5] The sedges grow around rocky hills and boulders. The main threats to the species are bushfires. [3]