Western Australian plant taxa not collected for more than 50 years
GIBSON, N.
An analysis of the Western Australian Herbarium collections generated a list of 29 endemic taxa last collected between 1888 and 1965, which are not currently on the Presumed Extinct schedule. On review, four of these taxa are not of immediate concern. The remaining 25 taxa are predominantly shrubs, generally known from very few collections, and are concentrated in heavily cleared bioregions, particularly the Avon Wheatbelt. Two taxa, Ptilotus sericostachyus subsp. roseus (Moq.) Benl and Darwinia divisa Keighery & N.G.Marchant, are recommended for immediate nomination as Presumed Extinct, while the remaining taxa will require further survey and/or taxonomic work to resolve their conservation status. Further survey will be challenging given the general lack of specific geographical and habitat information available for these taxa.
